Injuries take toll on Cusick

CUSICK – The Cusick Panthers football team lost some of their upperclassmen to injuries in their homecoming game against Curlew Friday, Sept. 12. Curlew won 60-14.

“The kids never gave up,” Cusick coach Dustin Person says. Playing with many freshmen and sophomores, turnovers hurt the Panthers, he says.

“We had a boatload of turnovers,” he says.

Sophomore Kaden Person scored on a quarterback keeper in the second half. He later completed a 21-yard touchdown pass play to Daniel Lyon. Judah Sutton ran in the 2-point conversion.

The team only had two seniors and one, Ondrej Suchanek, an exchange student from the Czech Republic, had not played football before this year. He and fellow senior Daniel Lyon suffered shoulder injuries and will be out, Person says. Other experienced players suffered lesser injuries.

Cusick’s next game is at Tekoa Rosalia, Friday, Sept. 19.

“They’re 2-0, so it will be a tough game,” Person says. Cusick has a chance, though, he says.

Cusick is in the Northeast 1B North League.

Inchelium is leading the league with a 2-0 record. They beat Columbia- Hunters 46-26 Friday. Curlew is second with a 1-1 record.

Columbia Hunter, Selkirk, Republic and Cusick are all 0-1 in league play.

The Tekoa-Rosalia game starts at 7 p.m.