LAKEWOOD — The 2011 Cougar football squad will tell you that every game on the schedule matters.

It’s what just won them a Cascade Conference co-championship.

“The lesson was learned after the loss to King’s,” Lakewood coach Dan Teeter said of the letdown his team suffered a week after its Sept. 30 homecoming win against Archbishop Thomas Murphy.

Redemption in the final game of the season was at hand if Lakewood could beat South Whidbey on Oct. 27.

A wiser Cougar team trounced South Whidbey 34-7 to take the No. 1 seed in the 2A playoffs.

Archbishop Murphy finished with a 6-1 division record, the same as the Cougars, by beating Sultan on Oct. 27, but took the second spot because of the loss at Lakewood.

Junior Cougar quarterback Justin Peterson found the end zone three times by ground on 80 yards against South Whidbey and caught another touchdown — all in the first half.

“This was the second time Justin’s had a first half like that,” Teeter said. “The first time was against Granite Falls (on Sept. 23, in which Peterson had one passing, three rushing and two receiving touchdowns before halftime). He was at 20 touchdowns this season, two short of the Lakewood record. If you give him a crease, he’ll find a way to hurt you.”

Senior running back Chris Melton made the evening more fun for Lakewood by gashing South Whidbey for a career-high 142 rushing yards — 155 yards when Teeter and the staff reviewed the game film — and an eight-yards-per-carry average.

“Chris is a workhorse,” Teeter said. “It’s fun to give him so many carries and see him dragging defenders.”

Lakewood hosts the Burlington-Edison Tigers, a rematch of last year’s 43-12 Burlington-Edison rout of Lakewood, at 7 p.m. on Nov. 4. With a win, Lakewood becomes the No. 1 seed from District 1 in the 2A State Tournament.