Kpreps.com takes you Around the Classes as we look at a handful of games in each classification from teams outside our top five rankings.
Class 6A:
Hutchinson coach Ryan Cornelson showed his team’s willingness to take risks in the season-opener. Salthawks running back Brody Smith rushed for a touchdown to pull his team within one point with about 1-minute remaining in the game. Instead of going for the tie, Cornelson elected to give Smith the ball again. Smith scored the two-point conversion, and Hutchinson held off Olathe East 22-21. The Salthawks trailed by 14 points at halftime. Olathe East took the 21-14 lead with just under four minutes remaining on a TyJuan Lewis touchdown catch.
The Washburn Rural Junior Blues flexed their muscles in their season-opener scoring on all six possessions in the first half, building a 47-0 lead en route to a 49-0 victory over Topeka Highland Park. Washburn Rural rushed for 300 yards on 34 carries, while the Junior Blues defense limited the Scots to 42 rushing yards on 22 attempts. Sophomore running back Jaylen Carter led Rural with 105 yards and two touchdowns on 10 carries. Highland Park, which was led by Angelo Plakio with 51 rushing yards, suffered its 26th consecutive loss.
Garden City scored 17 points in the second quarter and shut out Wichita East 24-0. Garrett Doll passed for 160 yards and three touchdowns to Andrew Kreutzer. The Buffs’ defense paced the effort in limiting the Blue Aces to less than 90 total yards and three first downs. Quinton Lapointe caught four passes for 62 yards, while Kreutzer added 59 receiving yards on five receptions.
After falling behind 18-0 to Wichita Heights, Olathe North reeled off 32 consecutive points and held on for a 39-25 win over the visiting Falcons. The Eagles got a fumble return for a touchdown by Drew Rediger and a punt return for a touchdown by Daymonn Sanchez as part of their 32-point run. Heights closed the gap to 32-25 in the fourth quarter, but North QB Zac Krause connected with Sanchez on a long touchdown pass to expand the lead to 39-25. Krause passed for 191 yards and three scores; two of which went to Mason Myers who had 102 yards receiving. Wichita Heights played without its starting backfield of K’vonte Baker, Dejuan Scott, and Braxton Kirkendoll.
Class 5A:
The Shawnee Heights T-Birds defeated Manhattan 21-18, earning their first victory over the Indians since 1985. Senior running back Trey Jenkins led the T-Birds with 117 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries. Heights built a 14-0 halftime lead and a 21-3 advantage in the fourth quarter. Manhattan rallied with 15 points in the fourth quarter, but Heights recovered an onside kick attempt to seal the victory. The Indians were led by quarterback Talon Claussen, who recorded 91 passing yards and 88 on the ground.
Senior Ivan Webb rushed for 348 yards and two touchdowns on 31 carries, and the KC Schlagle Stallions topped Missouri foe KC Southeast 38-12 to open the season. The Stallions’ lead was only 7-6 after the first quarter, but they expanded that lead to 25-12 by halftime. Quarterback Brayden Soza passed for 63 yards and two touchdowns. Schlagle rushed for 440 yards as a team and accumulated more than 500 yards of total offense.
To say that Topeka Seaman’s defense was impressive in its season opener would be an understatement. The Vikings shut out Topeka West 52-0 and held the Chargers to negative-55 yards rushing. Overall, Seaman limited the Topeka West offense to 14 yards. Junior quarterback Kobe Jones led the Vikings with 111 yards passing and two touchdowns, as well as 73 yards rushing on six carries.
Andover outscored Salina Central 20-7 in the second half to secure a 26-14 victory. The Trojans trailed the Mustangs 7-6 at halftime. Andover has posted wins over Salina Central to open the season in consecutive years. Mustangs sophomore quarterback Joshua Kavanagh passed for 134 yards and a touchdown in the loss. Salina Central has now lost ten straight games dating back to the end of the 2015 season.
After falling behind 13-6 at Newton, Maize scored 16 consecutive points and held on for a 22-19 win over the host Railers. Eagle quarterback Caleb Grill passed for 161 yards and three touchdowns including scoring passes to Deriq Doty, Preven Christon, and Cameron Grimes. Newton’s defense was solid in holding Maize back Dalyn Johnson to just 45 yards on 20 carries. Isaiah Pressley led Newton with 72 yards on the ground and a touchdown. Colton Davis passed for 177 yards and a score, and added a rushing TD.
Class 4A-I:
Andale forced a turnover on downs and held on for a 28-21 victory over Andover Central. Andale rushed for 320 yards as a team. Sawyer Simon led the way with 158 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries. The victory was Dylan Schmidt’s first as head coach, taking over the program for Gary O’Hair.
Augusta scored in each quarter in beating Winfield 39-13 to open the 2017 season. The Orioles led 18-0 at halftime and led 33-6 after three quarters. Quarterback Chance Whitehead led the Orioles by passing for 150 yards and three touchdowns, and rushing for 111 yards and another score. Two of Whitehead’s touchdown passes went to senior Colton Barnett who finished with three catches for 37 yards. Ceetyn Anderson led Augusta with five catches for 83 yards.
Tonganoxie senior quarterback Mason Beach passed for 231 yards and two touchdowns as the Chieftains topped Spring Hill 23-14. Tonganoxie clung to a 16-14 lead entering the fourth quarter. Junior Korbin Riedel led the Chieftains’ rushing attack with 69 yards on 23 carries. Senior Mac Thompson led receivers with four catches for 78 yards and a touchdown. Drake Pray recorded the other receiving TD.
Chanute built a 21-0 halftime lead and pulled away from their nearby rival Iola, 38-7. The Blue Comets scored early on a 10-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Ty Bowman to Corbett Kimberlin. Chanute added touchdown runs from Jack Richard and Matt Hernandez in the second quarter to extend their lead. Junior Qualin Powell returned a Mustang fumble for a touchdown in the third quarter, and Bowman added a touchdown run. Chanute has now beaten Iola 29 consecutive times.
Despite a record-setting performance by Thomas More Prep quarterback Dave McFarland, Abilene held off the Monarchs 32-27. Abilene held leads of 20-0 early and 32-14 entering the fourth quarter, but TMP continued to battle back behind their senior quarterback. McFarland completed 41 of 63 attempts for a state-record 648 yards. He threw four touchdown passes and was picked off twice. He completed a pass to Trenton Mayo to the Abilene 1-yard line with eight seconds remaining, but a penalty backed TMP up. The Monarch’s final two plays ended in an incompletion and a sack. Trey Horner rushed for three scores to lead Abilene. Sunrise Christian Academy’s Zach Howell held the previous single-game passing record with 627 yards in 2011.
Class 4A-II:
Smoky Valley held off Halstead 24-22 in a key early-season Central Kansas League game. The game was tied at 16 entering the fourth quarter until the Vikings took the lead on a touchdown run by Cort Elloitt and two-point conversion. Halstead blocked a Viking punt late in the game to set up a Dragon touchdown with three minutes remaining on a touchdown pass from Dalton Kraus to David Schulte. Smoky Valley stopped the two-point conversion attempt to tie the game. Smoky Valley senior back Kyle Anderson rushed for 105 yards and a score, while quarterback Brett Heitschmidt passed for 127 yards and another touchdown. Schulte led Halstead with 106 yards rushing and a touchdown.
The Crawford-Neosho-Cherokee League battle between the Frontenac Raiders and the Girard Trojans was tied at 6 with less than 2 minutes left in the first half. However, the Raiders went on to score the game’s next 27 points to cruise to the season-opening victory. The game was a battle between two former NCAA Division II All-American quarterbacks as head coaches. Frontenac coach Mark Smith has the Raiders poised to be a 4A Division II contender again, while Neal Philpot is in his first season as the Trojans’ head coach. Smith and Philpot both played at Pittsburg State.
The Jefferson West Tigers scored in the fourth quarter to top Chapman 7-6. It was a strong start for the Tigers, who finished only 1-8 last year. Chapman won last year’s contest 8-6.
Baldwin outscored Frontier League rival Eudora 26-0 during the middle two quarters to secure a 40-14 victory in coach Doug Kerr’s Bulldog debut. The Bulldogs showed balance on offense in rushing for more than 200 yards and passing for nearly 120 yards. Quarterback Luke Laskowski passed for 118 yards and two scores, and added a pair of touchdown runs. Hunter Ramirez led Baldwin with 95 rushing yards and a score. Eudora was led by Curtis Wesley’s 67 yards and touchdown on the ground.
Burlington got off to a great start to the 2017 season by doubling-up Pioneer League power Wellsville, 40-20. Senior quarterback Connor Jeffers rushed for 229 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Wildcats, while sophomore Cael Johnson added 105 yards and two scores on the ground. Burlington rushed for 448 yards in the win. Jeffers also threw for 69 yards including a touchdown to Garrison Fielder. Wellsville was led by junior quarterback Zach Vance who passed for 139 yards and three scores.
Class 3A:
In a matchup between high-profile quarterbacks with Norton’s Jace Ruder and Goodland’s Levi Archer, Norton had a last-second comeback and defeated Goodland, 37-34, in a road contest. The Bluejays were down 34-22 with 1:41 left and came back. For the final TD, Norton went 80 yards in 24 seconds and scored with 33 seconds remaining. Hayden Wiltfong caught the two-point conversion for the final points.
Cheney opened with a 49-20 victory against Wichita Trinity in the first game under coach Shelby Wehrman, a former Derby defensive coordinator. Micah Grover delivered 205 passing and 62 rushing yards. He rushed for four touchdowns and passed for three. Trent Scheer had nine catches for 158 yards and three scores.
Brad Gober, the former Augusta defensive coordinator, won his opener at Beloit with a 13-6 victory against Concordia in North Central Kansas League play. All the points were scored in the first half. The Trojans stopped Concordia inside the five-yard line as time expired. Beloit led 7-0 after the first quarter. Rope Dorman tallied a four-yard run from Concordia. The Trojans have won five of the last six against Concordia.
Southeast of Saline rolled over Republic County, 56-12, in a matchup of North Central Activities Association squads. Trojan quarterback Hunter White took over for standout Bryce Banks and led the team to 359 total yards. White totaled 283 yards and five scores. SES led 36-6 at halftime. The Trojans have won three straight league titles. Nick Montgomery and Raef Boley caught TD passes.
Dalton Kellum, in his first game as Perry-Lecompton’s starting quarterback, led the Kaws to a 56-14 victory versus Riverside. Kellum scored on runs of one, seven, nine and 36 yards.
Sabetha opened with a 28-6 victory against Centralia. Sabetha led 28-0 after three quarters. Joe Gruber had scoring runs of 33 and one yard.
St. Mary’s Colgan started the Shawn Seematter era with a 16-0 road loss to Galena. The Bulldogs’ second score came after a third-quarter Colgan fumble that Galena recovered at the 1-yard line. Colgan lost senior quarterback/linebacker Bryce Hutchins to injury early in the first quarter. The Panthers finished with just 25 second-half yards.
Class 2-1A:
In a high-profile 2-1A and Heart of America matchup, Ell-Saline delivered a 31-21 home victory against Sedgwick, which opened No. 5 in the 2-1A poll. Junior quarterback Nick Davenport helped the Cardinals to 286 rushing yards and control the game. He rushed 26 times for 147 yards and three scores. Sedgwick had a slight edge in total yards, 340-334, mainly because of scoring passes of 81 and 87 yards. Sedgwick Mason Farrell, a standout offensive lineman, moved back from defensive end to linebacker and had a team-high 10 stops.
Levi Watts led Doniphan West to a 39-6 victory against Washington County, a back-to-back playoff participant. Watts threw TD passes of 21, 35 and 50 yards. He also rushed for a 1-yard TD. Clayton Ridout made three extra points and tallied TD runs of three and 47 yards.
Meade opened the Justin Powell-era with a 47-7 home loss to Hooker (Okla.). Hooker built a 28-7 lead at halftime and shutout the Buffaloes in the second half. Meade finished with 134 yards rushing on the night, led by senior Devon Waters’ 83 yards and a touchdown. Minneola transfer Tristan Haynes rushed for 44 yards and passed for 73 yards for Meade.
Elkhart held on to defeat La Crosse 30-20 in a game shortened to three quarters due to continuous lightning delays. Junior quarterback Lane Whisennand had a breakout game for the Wildcats. Whisennand rushed for 255 yards and three touchdowns on 17 carries, and completed 8 of 9 passes for 163 yards and another score. Christian Suppes led La Crosse with 101 yards rushing and a touchdown on 14 attempts
Class 8-man I
WaKeeney-Trego and Stockton played in Hill City, and WaKeeney earned a 40-34 victory. The game was supposed to be in Stockton, but the Tigers had a press box fire. WaKeeney’s press box is also ruined due to a recent hail storm. Last year, WaKeeney was supposed to host, but couldn’t because of an issue with the grass, and Stockton hosted the game. WaKeeney led 20-0 after the first quarter in a game that featured 145 plays and 19 penalties. Golden Eagle junior quarterback Keagan Shubert completed 20 of 33 passes for 180 yards and five scores against no interceptions. Stockton had a 315-261 yardage edge. Tiger quarterback Brady Beougher rushed 18 times for 151 yards and three scores, and completed 7 of 12 passes for 77 yards with a 2/1 TD/INT ratio.
Macksville, down 20-6 after the first quarter to Ness City, delivered a remarkable turnaround with 54 unanswered points, and won 60-20. The Mustangs tallied 30 second-quarter points to pull ahead. Junior quarterback Kody Mead completed 12 of 22 passes for 244 yards with a 4/2 TD/INT ratio. As a team, Macksville had 26 carries for 147 yards and a score. Senior Jacob Rein had five catches for 167 yards and three scores. The Mustangs had lost five in a row to Ness City, including 76-26 last season.
J.J. Allen had a big performance in Bennington’s 52-6 win versus Herington. Bennington finished with 20 points in the first quarter and outscored Herington, 32-6, in the second quarter. Allen tallied four touchdowns with a 58-yard punt return and had scoring runs of 31, 44 and 12 yards.
Solomon opened with a 66-34 victory versus Canton-Galva. The Gorillas led 14-8 after the first quarter. Solomon had a 30-26 lead with about two minutes to go in the first half before the Gorillas scored two touchdowns to close out the half. Braden Nielson threw a 19-yard scoring pass to Cobey Fiske for the first score, and Cameron Noggle tacked on a six-yard rushing score.
Logan-Palco opened with a 58-8 win versus Triplains-Brewster. Logan-Palco scored 36 points in the first quarter. Senior David Thompson rushed 10 times for 121 yards and three scores. Senior Riley Allen, in his first game at quarterback, had three carries for 71 yards and two TDs and completed his only pass for a 24-yard score.
Argonia-Attica started with a 38-20 home win versus Central Burden. Senior Trevor Pierce rushed 18 times for 128 yards as A&A delivered 281 rushing yards. The Titans overcame six turnovers, including four lost fumbles.
Class 8-man II
Frankfort defeated Onaga, 58-42, in a wild game. Frankfort led 16-14 after the first quarter and held a 22-12 margin in the second quarter, 14-12 in the third and 6-0 in the fourth. Garret Dalinghaus scored five touchdowns on runs of 15, 3, 57 and 30 yards and caught a 50-yard TD pass. For Onaga, Tanner Marten had five TDs on runs of 1, 25, 51, and 1 yard. He caught a 16-yard scoring pass.
Defending runner-up Dighton started with a 52-6 victory at Quinter. Twins Blair and Dalton Hoffman led the Hornet new-look backfield that graduated all-state quarterback Tyler Lingg, a four-year starter. The Hornets led 36-0 at halftime. Each Hoffman had two scores. Logan Lingg returned an interception 28 yards for a score, Isaac Torson scored off a five-yard fumble recovery, and Dighton recorded a safety. The Hornets have just 10 players this season.
Beloit St. John’s-Tipton took significant graduation losses but opened with a 28-12 home win against Chase. The Blujays led 8-0 at halftime. Ty Brummer had 24 carries for 107 yards with two rushing scores and one receiving TD. BSJT finished top-5 in Division II last season, while Chase won a Division II playoff contest.
Caldwell delivered a strong 50-20 victory against Udall. Caldwell led 36-6 at halftime and 50-6 in the fourth quarter. Corbin Rice, who took over as quarterback for Colten Ward, helped the Bluejays deliver 335 rushing yards. He rushed for two scores and passed for one with 133 total yards (109 rushing yards). Dakota Volavka tallied 163 rushing yards and three scores on 15 carries.
Mankato-Rock Hills opened with a 48-0 home victory against Wilson in a game called at halftime. Zane Colson had three rushing scores of 65, 25 and nine yards.
KCAA
Wichita Homeschool opened the 2017 season with a 66-28 victory over Veritas Christian. The Warriors led 34-14 at halftime and pulled away in the third quarter to lead 53-20. Veritas moved the ball well accounting for nearly 400 yards of total offense, but was hurt by four turnovers.
The St. Mary’s Academy Crusaders won their 10th consecutive game with a 60-12 season-opening victory over Axtell. St. Mary’s scored 32 points in the first quarter en route to victory. The Crusaders defeated Axtell 52-12 to open the 2016 season and went on to a perfect nine-win campaign including a 30-24, overtime win over Wichita Homeschool in the KCAA championship game.
6-Man
Defending 6-Man champion Weskan opened the 2017 season with a 40-32 win over Cheylin. The Coyotes built a 27-6 lead over the Cougars and held on for the victory. Cheylin was led by Manny Castillo’s 132 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Castillo is coming off a huge junior season where he rushed for 1,565 yards and 12 scores. Cheylin freshman Colton McCarty passed for 119 yards and two scores and rushed for 75 yards and a touchdown.
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