MELVERN — Crest High did plenty of good things Thursday night to kick off the Kansas Eight Man-Division II playoffs.
Problem was, Marais des Cygnes Valley did things a little better.
On a night when even hanging onto the ball was a challenge, the Trojans came through on a series of big plays to outscore Crest, 52-40, to end the Lancer season at 5-4.
“In games like this, the ball can bounce a million different ways,” Lancer head coach Nick McAnulty said. “Some of them did bounce the way we needed them to, but we couldn’t make the ones hurt like they did.”
The primary antagonist was MdCV senior quarterback Cole Lacey, who came through repeatedly on key fourth-down attempts. The Trojans were 6 of 8 on fourth-down conversions, most of which paved the way for scoring chances.
Meanwhile, Crest received another sterling effort from junior tailback Holden Barker, who rushed (unofficially) for 259 yards and three touchdowns, while returning a kickoff 68 yards for another score.
But Crest also fumbled six times, losing three, and committed six penalties on the night.
“We just didn’t trust ourselves to make the plays we needed to make,” McAnulty said. “We weren’t securing the tackles we needed to.”
Marais des Cygnes Valley took the lead for good late in the third quarter.
The Trojans’ Maximum Davis scored on a 17-yard run to give MdCV a 36-28 lead. Barker’s 27-yard jaunt closed the gap to 36-34, but the Lancers failed on the two-point conversion, another key factor in the outcome. (Crest scored six times, but converted only one two-point try on the night).
Lacey’s 25-yard touchdown run pushed the Trojans on top, 44-34, and the next two Lancer drives ended on downs and with a fumble. Lacey then scored again on a 38-yard run for a 52-34 lead with 4½ minutes left.
Barker gave the Lancers a final charge, when he blasted through on a 42-yard touchdown on the Lancers’ next play from scrimmage.
But the Trojans were able to chew up valuable time on their next possession, and Crest had only one last-gasp drive in the waning minutes that failed to secure a first down.
Marais des Cygnes Valley advances to take on Waverly, a 38-0 winner over Wakefield.
Meanwhile, Crest enters an offseason stinging with defeat, but with optimism that bigger things lie ahead.
