LAKE STEVENS — Another day, another thriller.

Down seven to Puyallup in a gargantuan non-league matchup, the Lake Stevens offense found itself down 28-21 with 5:30 to play on Friday night. Senior quarterback Blake Moser, committed to Iowa State, has seen his fair share of heart-stopping moments in a decorated career with the Vikings, and he found himself back in the pressure cooker at home.

The Viks, ranked as the top team in the state coming into Friday by the Associated Press, had been getting back to the line quickly all game as usual. This play was the same, as Moser didn’t slow down to talk this potentially game-deciding play over with his coaching staff. They lined up in the pistol and had Moser run a zone read with star running back Jayvian Ferrell, who brought most of the Puyallup second level with him on the fake, leaving Moser nothing but daylight to scamper 36 yards for a game-tying score.

But Friday night made deafening, dramatic moments like those seem regular, as Puyallup punched back to tie the game at 35 apiece as time expired.

Moser found the end zone once again with his legs to open overtime, but Puyallup, ranked No. 2 in the same poll coming into Friday, knew it could win with a touchdown and a two-point conversion. The visitors watched as star running back Briytan Bailey caught a wide-open two-point conversion after the visiting Vikings scored to walk it off in a 43-42 barn-burner.

FINAL: Puyallup 43, Lake Stevens 42

Briytan Bailey finds himself wide open in the flat for a walk-off 2-pt conversion for Puyallup to down top-ranked Lake on the road.

Gritty win, both teams left it on the field.

The scenes:@HeraldNetPreps | #wafbscores pic.twitter.com/SH0VAe2qGj

— Qasim Ali (@qasimasports) September 19, 2026

“It was an instant classic,” Lake Stevens head coach Tom Tri told The Herald as he left the field. “It’s a tough way to lose, but someone’s gonna win that game, and someone’s gonna lose that game… Unfortunately, they made one more play tonight than we did, and that’s why they’re celebrating right now.”

One more play in a game chock-full of show-stopping moments, and the numbers to show for it.

Moser finished with 190 yards and two touchdowns through the air while rushing for over 150 yards and two scores for Lake Stevens (2-1). Ferrell nearly finished with 150 total yards to pair with three scores, while receiver Deuce Wilson had 53 yards through the air with a score. Junior Seth Price had 91 yards receiving and swung the momentum toward Lake Stevens with a seismic fourth-quarter interception.

On the topic of turnovers, senior defensive back Felix Ramsey forced the first of the night by punching the ball out after a long run from Bailey, leading to a go-ahead Lake Stevens score.

Lake’s defense had trouble at times coping with Puyallup’s 1-2 punch of junior running backs in 230-pound Malcolm Akuffo and the 170-pound Bailey. Bailey finished the night with nearly 230 yards on the ground to go with over 40 by air, while Akuffo added 70 yards and a touchdown. Puyallup’s air attack came alive in the second half, however, to turn the game into a shootout.

Senior quarterback Noah Smith finished with over 200 yards passing and five TDs, three of which went to senior J’Isaiah Mitchell (61 yards). The other two were caught by senior Luke Parker, who finished with 36 yards for Puyallup (3-0).

But the Vikings defense, despite the big numbers, came up with multiple timely stops — especially at the end of the second quarter.

After a Lake Stevens turnover on downs, Puyallup drove in enemy territory with the game knotted at seven. Looking to make the hosts pay for not scoring, Bailey burst up the middle for 20 yards before Ramsey punched the ball loose, allowing junior defender Akio Yonesaka to recover it. Seven plays later on a short field, Lake Stevens scored as Moser found Wilson on a well-timed slant route.

With a chance to tie things before the half, Puyallup decided against a field goal with 2.8 seconds on the clock and tried to score from 12 yards out. But another incompletion and stop had Lake defensive coordinator Eric Dinwiddie and his unit feeling good.

“We have high-quality players at every level,” Dinwiddie said, highlighting senior defensive lineman Ty Tautolo, who Puyallup avoided running toward at times. “(Felix) causing a fumble, and then a (Yonesaka) recovery, and guys being able to handle some of the adjustments we were doing.”

Just when Lake thought they had wrestled away the momentum from the visiting Vikings, Puyallup had an ace up its sleeve.

The team from the South Puget Sound League had kicker Alex Horace try an onside kick, and to perfect effect — senior Colton Caldara came away with the ball.

Then it was time for 6-foot-5 J’Isaiah Mitchell to put his stamp on the game. Smith dropped back and fired a 17-yard go-ball to Mitchell on the right side of the end zone, with a back-shoulder placement for the receiver to attack.

That he did, hauling in the score to bring things level as Puyallup had snatched the momentum back to tie it at 14 apiece. Lake Stevens answered with a five-minute drive capped off by a Moser-to-Ferrell 15-yard score, but Puyallup had made it a game.

Bailey fielded a bouncing Lake kickoff and had his best return of the night, getting all the way to the opposing 44-yard line to set up a short field. Akuffo immediately rumbled for a 27-yard gain — Puyallup’s biggest rush of the night — before Smith looked Mitchell’s way again.

Indeed, in the same corner of the endzone, Mitchell high pointed a throw for his second score in as many possessions to even things at 21.

In a game as complex as football, Tri could appreciate the simplicity of those two key scores from his opponent.

“You can’t coach size,” Tri said. “You got a guy that’s really athletic, that’s a good receiver like that… I give our guys credit for fighting and kicking and scratching.”

For as stingy as his unit was before halftime, Dinwiddie knew things changed after Puyallup recovered that onside kick.

“They came out and kind of got momentum and we struggled to figure it out on defense,” Dinwiddie said. “Luckily our offense picked it up”

But after another long Lake drive, an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty turned what would’ve been a fourth-and-3 into a fourth-and-18. In plus territory, Tri’s squad went for it, but couldn’t complete a pass on the sideline.

Smith and Puyallup pounced, putting together the longest drive of the night at nearly six minutes on 12 plays to take a 28-21 lead on a moon-ball from Smith to Parker in the red zone.

Moser’s big fourth-down run came next before Price got his interception on a ball that slipped through a receiver’s hand and into his, completely swinging the game back to the home team. Faced with another fourth-and-short in their own territory, the Viks went with a Ferrell draw up the middle and watched as their feature back found the right sideline and turned on the afterburners to score from over 60 yards out.

“We battle… we play hard,” Tri said. “Our leaders are doing a good job of leading us like (Ferrell) and (Moser).”

With 78 yards to paydirt and 2:35 on the clock, Smith and Puyallup didn’t waver. After converting a third down, Smith found Bailey on a wheel route down the left sideline for nearly 30 yards to get into Lake territory. Five straight runs got Puyallup to the 1-yard line with 7.8 seconds to play. They brought in Akuffo to do the honors, and the big man bowled in to force overtime.

Lake Stevens started 25 yards from the end zone and watched as Moser motored up the middle on a zone read before cutting back right to leave the Puyallup defense stumbling for a 13-yard TD to cap a two-play possession.

But after the point-after kick was made, it was apparent why teams defer possession to start overtime. Puyallup could now walk it off with a touchdown and a two-point conversion.

Sure enough, Smith found Mitchell over the middle for his third score of the game from 11 yards out, and Puyallup left its offense on the field for one decisive two-point conversion with the scoreboard reading 42-41.

After a timeout, both teams lined up for what was sure to be the night’s last action.

Puyallup came out with three receivers to the left and Bailey as the lone back to the right of Smith. As the ball was snapped, Bailey darted to the left-side flat after an awkward play-action fake with Smith. All the receivers in the bunch had already vacated the flat, leaving Bailey all alone to catch what felt like a slow-motion lob from Smith to secure the win.

The entire Puyallup sideline stormed the field, celebrating at midfield as the Lake Stevens faithful were left stunned. It was the first overtime game Lake had played since losing the state title game to Sumner last season.

“It’s hard to put in the work that we do… and have it not go your way,” Dinwiddie said.

With the level of competition between quite possibly the best the state of Washington has to offer, it’s hard to remember it’s still September. Both teams are yet to start their league slates, with Lake Stevens off to a bye week, but Friday was another test to get the squad with plenty of championship pedigree ready for another postseason run in a few short months.

Lake downed rival Graham-Kapowsin in a classic to open the season two weeks prior, and now finds itself picking up the pieces after losing to a quality team. While a roster full of players and a sideline of coaches will tell you they’d have rather won on Friday, losing can be an effective teacher.

“The kids see what we need to do,” Dinwiddie said. “We got to focus on us.”