By: Luke DeRoos - CHS Journalism
The Warriors had a strong end to the regular season with a 42-12 win over Boyd County, scoring 42 points in the first half.
The Warriors set the tone for the game with a 36-yard touchdown pass to Sr. Jackson Lynde in the first offensive play of the game. After a 3-and-out and a punt, the Warriors quickly put the ball back in the end zone with a 5-yard run from So. Preston Foxhoven.
Their second series of defense ended the same as the first, and the offense kept their momentum with a 28-yard touchdown pass to Sr. Jace Panning. The Boyd offense was finally able to get a first down, but they ultimately ended their drive with a turnover on downs. The Warriors kept the air raid coming, with a 50-yard touchdown pass to Panning to end the first quarter.
The second quarter was also dominated by the Warriors, with a 3-yard run from Foxhoven. The Warriors kept up their defensive stops, and scored again with an 11-yard run from Jr. Tyson Jackson, his 35th of the year which leads the state and puts him in the top-10 nationally. Jackson is also 2nd in the state for rushing yards with 1515.
Jackson stated, “My success starts up front. I can’t have any success without you those guys blocking for me every single play. Also, our passing attack with Preston at quarterback makes the other team back up a little, and that helps me and the run game succeed.”
The Warriors ended the half with a score of 42-0.
After a turnover on downs for the Spartans, the Warriors had some fun, letting their senior linemen Tyson Sanger and Anthony Steffen each have a rush attempt, with Sanger gaining 7 yards and Steffen gaining 1. After finishing the drive with a turnover on downs, the Warriors let some of their younger players take over the rest of the game. The third quarter was ultimately a stalemate, with neither team scoring. The Spartans offense was finally able to put some points on the board, with two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to end the game 42-16.
The Warriors earning Player of the Week honors are Sanger on the defensive side with 2 solo tackles and 3 assisted tackles, and Lynde earning offensive player of the week with 2 receptions for 43 yards and a touchdown. Lynde stated, “Focusing and preparing in practice and making sure I was doing my job on the field played a big role in my success against Boyd County.”
This Warriors win solidified them as District Champions, and earned the 5th seed in the D-1 Football Playoffs.
Head coach Johnnie Ostermeyer believes that his Warriors are a lot better than their record shows. He stated, “People who haven’t actually watched us play don’t understand how good we are. Our schedule is one of if not the hardest in the state. We have also improved a lot since the start of the season, which is mainly because of our focus. After we were able to adjust to everything new in our offense and focus on the small details, that’s what got us to where we are here at the end of the season.”
The Warriors are set to play #28 Kimball at home at 5:00 p.m. this Thursday, Oct. 23 for a chance to advance to the second round of the playoffs.