COLONY — Marmaton Valley High Wildcats and Crest High’s Lancers waged a seesaw battle Friday night. The two Three Rivers League rivals’ Kansas Eight-Man I, District 1 game came down to the final plays of the game.
In a game that saw eight lead changes, the Lancers inability to convert on point-after tries hurt them in the end as they lost to the Wildcats on their home field 46-52.
“The loss was partly because of (failed PATs) but it also comes down to other things in that ball game,” said Crest head coach Brent Smith. “Defensively, we couldn’t stop them. We couldn’t get enough stops.”
Both teams offenses came to play. The Wildcats started strong as Jimmy Frye took a handoff from quarterback Zack English 23 yards, putting the first points on the board for either team. A successful point after pass from English to Cole Becker gave the Wildcats an 8-0 lead with 10:52 left in the first.
After trading three and outs, Crest’s Kyle Hammond threw a 13-yard touchdown pass Chris Brailler. But Lancers still trailed 6-8 after the conversion run failed.
The back-and-forth competition was just getting started. The Wildcats came back on the very next drive, leaning on the ground game to march the ball down the field. Becker capped the drive with 3-yard, up-the-gut run, widening the Wildcats lead to 14-6. Becker’s conversion run made it 16-6.
Both teams’ offenses finished the first half strong. Hammond threw and ran for two more Lancer scores and the Wildcats got its final first half points off another Becker run. The Wildcats led 24-18 at the break.
After a brief appearance by the both defense, the offensive showcasing continued. The Lancers were forced to punt after a quick three and out, but good punt coverage pinned the Wildcats on their own two-yard line. The Lancers pounced on the two-point opportunity, sacking English in the endzone for a safety. The score was 20-24 Wildcats with 9:03 left in the third quarter.
“We came out with good intensity in the second half,” Smith said.
Seconds later, Morton returned the free kick 65 yards for a touchdown, giving the Lancers their second lead of the game, 26-24. The conversion try failed.
Again, both offenses traded scoreless possessions before Becker took yet another handoff from English 52 yards for the score, giving the Wildcats a 30-26 lead with 2:53 left in the third quarter. The score would hold through the period.
The final period was a shoot-out. Crest struck first when Hammond connected with Cole Bowen for a 20-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the quarter. With 11:54 remaining, the Lancers led 32-30 after another failed conversion try.
Once again, Crest’s defense couldn’t hold. Minutes after giving up a lead, Becker took it back for the Wildcats, scoring his fourth rushing touchdown of the game on a 23-yard run. The Wildcats had their third lead of the game, 38-32, with 11:05 left in the match.
Marmaton Valley head coach Kent Houk said his team is committed to running the ball, and it showed Friday night.
“We’re a run heavy team. We run the ball 95 percent of the time,” he said. “We had some success with it tonight.”
