Indians Advance to Regional Play
The St. Francis Indians wasted little time in taking full control of the final district football game on Friday evening, October 27. In a game played on Greene Field in St. Francis, the Indians scored three times in the first five minutes of the contest, racked up a 36-0 lead after one quarter, and cruised to a 58-0 win over the Trego Community Golden Eagles. The win improved the Indians' season record to 7-1 and advanced them into the Regional play-off game to be held on Friday, November 3 in Spearville. Spearville is 9-0 on the season. Kick-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
The evening was also Senior Night. Seniors and their parents were recognized in the short ceremony before the game. Students recognized were members of the football team, cheerleaders, dance team members, or band members. Jake Faulkender, cross-country runner, was also recognized, but not present as he was en route to Wamego to compete in the State Cross-Country Meet. Seniors recognized were: Jake Faulkender, son of Tye and Amber Faulkender; Tate Busse, son of Cory and Jenny Busse; Trayton Doyle, son of Kris and Kelly Doyle; Wyatt Hackler, son of Mike and Amy Hackler, Luke Lampe, son of Kevin and Holly Lampe, Luin Norris, son of Elanne Srock, Nick Paulsen, son of Jeff and Connie Paulsen; Dalton Straub, son of Sean and Lucinda Straub; Mallery Mills, daughter of Mark and Julie Mills; Reagan Beims, daughter of Jeff and Leslie Beims; Emileigh Dinkiel, daughter of Randy and Susan Dinkel; Madison Tice, daughter of Derrick and Heidi Tice; Matthisen Witzel, daughter of Lance Witzel and Leisha Hilt, Tressa LaBarge, daughter of Chris and Jana LaBarge; Jylian Laten, daughter of Jesse and Lynn Laten; and Zoe Sundstrom, daughter of Garrett and Angie Sundstrom.
Trego Community received the opening kick-off and returned the kick to the 15 yard line where they were stopped by a tackle by Dalton Straub. The Golden Eagles earned 6 yards on first down running right and earned a new set of downs running left on the following play. A pass from Trego quarterback Keagan Shubert (165 lb. Jr.) to Dallas Schneider (170 lb. Jr.) was good for five yards on the new 1st down. A quarterback draw set up 3rd-&-1 at the Trego 36. After an incomplete pass attempt to Schneider, Carter Minson (150 lb. So.) tried the middle of the Sainty defense where he was met by Trayton Doyle for a short loss.
The Indians took over at the Trego 35 yard line. On the first play from scrimmage, quarterback Brady Dinkel passed to receiver Tate Busse for a touchdown. Dinkel also passed to Busse for the conversion points. With 10:23 left in the first period, St. Francis led 8-0.
The Golden Eagles tried a bit of trickery on the ensuing kick-off; running left and then throwing the football to the right side on the return. Kobe Tice made the tackle for the Indians. On the play, Trego was called for a forward lateral, and after the penalty was accessed, the Eagles were deep in their own territory at the 6. A bad snap on the first play from scrimmage resulted in a safely when Luin Norris and Tayton Weeter tackled Shubert in the end-zone. With less that two minutes gone in the contest (10:10), the Indians had their second score and led 10-0.
The free-kick was short, and Jordan Raby elected to fair-catch the ball rather than return it. The Indians took over on their own 35. Brady Dinkel ran left on the first play of the possession earning a first down at the Trego 32. Shadryon Blanka carried the football on the next play earning zero yards. A fumble by Dinkel on the following play ended the possession when the ball was recovered by Trego's Justin Turley (185 lb. Sr.).
Trego set up offense at their own 36. An offensive pass interference penalty on the first snap backed the Eagles up to the 20 yard line. The Indians helped the Eagles a bit with an encroachment penalty, but Dinkel stopped a quick-pitch to Hunter Price (170 lb. So.) for a 2-yard loss. Trayton Doyle's tackle ended Shubert's run on the next play for no gain. Facing 3rd-&-22, the Eagles attempted a pass that fell incomplete and then punted out-of-bounds on the right side at the St. Francis 39.
Jordan Raby gained 9 yards on a run to the right and picked up another first down plunging up the middle on the following play. A scramble by Brady Dinkel advanced the football to the 4 1/2 yard line. On the next play, Wyatt Hacker ran left for the second Indian touchdown. The conversion pass failed. With 7:17 left in the first period, St. Francis led 16-0.
Tayton Weeter's kick-off entered the end-zone for a touchback. On the first play of the Trego possession, Dalton Straub tossed the Eagles' runner for a 2-yard loss. Tate Pfannenstiel (195 lb. Sr.) earned the yards back on the following play. Shubert's 3rd-down pass to Minson in the left flat earned 4 yards, and the Golden Eagles punted the ball away.
Tate Busse returned the punt 47 yards for the third SF touchdown of the period. The conversion pass attempt fell incomplete. With 5:21 left in the first period, the Indians held a 22-0 advantage.
Schenider returned the Indians' kick-off to the Eagles' 20 where he was tackled by Dalton Straub. After a running play failed to gain yardage on first down, a pass from Shubert to Pfannenstiel earned a first down at the SF 36 yard line. Again, the Eagles tried running into the middle of the Indians' defense only to gain zero yards. On 2nd down, a pass from Shubert to Price earned four yards. A 3rd down pass was incomplete. The Eagles elected to "go-for-it' on 4th-&-6, and an option to the left was met by a strong tackle by Straub ending the possession.
St. Francis took possession on the SF 32 yard line. After a scramble to the right by Dinkel earned 3 yards, Tate Busse ran to the Trego 26 for a new series. On the next play, Austin Kinderknecht (190 lb. Sr.) sacked Dinkel for a 9-yard loss. On the next play, Dinkel rambled 34 yards down the right sideline for another St. Francis touchdown. The conversion pass was incomplete. The Indians' lead grew to 28-0 with 1:17 left in the first period.
Schneider returned the kick-off to the 19 yard line. A low snap on first down was mishandled and resulted in a 9-yard loss. Trayton Doyle made the tackle on the play. After an incomplete pass on 2nd down, Tate Busse intercepted Shurbert's third-down pass.
St. Francis set up offense at the Trego 37. On first down, a pass to Jordan Raby was dropped behind the Eagle defenders on the left sideline. On the next snap, Tate Busse sprinted 37 yards for the 5th Indian touchdown of the period. A pass from Dinkel to Raby accounted for the conversion points. With 3.1 seconds left in the first quarter, the Indians led 36-0.
Price was tackled by Dinkel on the kick return at the Trego 13 yard line. The play ended the first quarter. On the first play of the second period, Trego completed a pass to Schneider, but on the tackle Wyatt Hackler stripped the football, and Trayton Doyle recovered for the Indians at the Trego 14 yard line.
On the next play, Brady Dinkel passed to Tate Busse for another Indian touchdown. The conversion pass attempt fell incomplete. St. Francis led 42-0 with 11:47 left in the second period.
The Eagles returned the kick-off to their 25 yard line where the Indians were penalized for a late-hit. The mark-off advanced the ball to the SF 39. Shubert passed to Flax gaining 5 yards on first down. After a 2nd down pass fell incomplete, a run to the left was stopped by Jordan Raby a yard short of the line-to-gain. On 4th-&-1, a poor snap forced Shubert to scramble, and St. Francis took over on downs at the 30 yard line.
Brady Dinkel's pass to Dalton Straub moved the ball to the 6 yard line where Flax's tackle prevented another score. On the next play, Wyatt Hackler ran left for an apparent touchdown, but the play was nullified by a holding penalty on the Indians. One play later, an option to the right, Dinkel pitched to Raby who cut back against the grain to the left and sprinted to the left pylon. Hackler ran left for the conversion points. St. Francis led 50-0 with 9:38 left in the first half.
Schnieder returned the Indians' kick-off to the 26 yard line. Price was tackled by Raby and Doyle for a 3-yard loss on the first snap. On 2nd down, a screen pass was well-defended by Doyle. After a incomplete 3rd-down pass, the Eagles punted. The punt was low and fielded by Tate Busse.
Busse returned the punt 58 yards for the 8th Indian touchdown of the half. Jordan Raby ran left for the conversion points. St. Francis led 58-0 with 8:17 left in the first half.
The Indians' kick-off was short and out-of-bounds. Trego took possession at their own 30 yard line. With several Indian substitute players receiving playing time, the Eagles slowly advanced the football. An option to the right was stopped by Connor Keller after a gain of 4 yards. An option to the opposite side gained three more before a tackle was made by Doyle. On 3rd-down, Price earned a new series diving into the right side of the line. Hackler made the stop at the SF 38. Kobe Tice and Shadryon Blanka combined to stop Price after a gain of 4 on the next snap. On the ensuing play, Colton Neitzel and Luin Norris combined to stop Price for no gain. Luin Norris sacked Shubert on 3rd down for a 9-yard loss. Facing 4th-&-15, Trego called time-out and then punted.
Connor Keller returned the punt 21 yards to the Trego 39. On the next play, the Indians fumbled the football.
Trego recovered the football at the St. Francis 33. A aggressive tackle by Kobe Tice stopped Price after a 6-yard gain on first down. On the next play, Shubert ran the left side earning a new set of downs at the 15. A pass from Shubert to Flax advanced the football to the 6. A bad snap led to a loss of 7 yards on the following play. On 3-&-8, a middle screen was complete to Price who ran to the 1 yard line before fumbling. The fumble was recovered by Colton Neitzel of the Indians at the SF 7 with 32.8 seconds remaining.
St. Francis knelt in victory formation to expire the clock. The Indians defeated the Trego Community Golden Eagles 58-0 in two quarters of action.
The Indians will play Spearville, in Spearville, on Friday, November 3 at 7:00 p.m. in the Regional Championship contest.
Click the photos to see more photos!
Below is a video of the SFCHS Dance Team performing after the game.
