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Warriors fall to Hillsboro in OT

Sports editor

It was déjà-vu Thursday night for Marion High School football fans.

For the second straight year, the Warriors lost to Hillsboro High School by one point in overtime.

A two-point conversion pass from Ben Gottsch to Ben Bebermeyer in overtime secured a 22-21 victory for the Trojans.

HHS had not led since scoring the opening touchdown less than a minute into the game.

The victory gave the teams identical 6-3 records, but the Trojans moved on to the playoffs because of their 2-1 district record.

The Warriors were without senior quarterback Mitchell Leppke who broke his hand two days before the game.

Leppke was looking for his 13th victory as a Warrior QB.

Sophomore Matt Sprowls, who had not thrown a varsity pass this season, filled in for Leppke.

He was 0-2 passing, ran for eight yards, and did not commit a turnover.

“We were very proud of how our team responded,” Thierolf said of Leppke’s injury. “We feel terrible about Mitchell’s situation, but nobody said that life and athletics were fair.

“We were very pleased with the play of Matt Sprowls.”

What wasn’t pleasing to the MHS coaching staff was the first minute of the game.

The Trojans took all of three plays to march 80 yards for their first score.

Gottsch hit senior wide receiver Daniel Jost with a 46-yard bomb to cap off the drive.

The defense stepped up however, and allowed only one more touchdown through the rest of regulation.

The offense stepped up as well, as the Warriors went 54 yards on their opening drive to tie the game.

A steady diet of Sheldon Boone, who finished the game with 112 yards on the ground and a score, moved the ball to the Hillsboro 17-yard line.

A Marc Washington seven-yard run and a Boone three-yard run put the ball at the seven.

Slot back Drew Maddox then ran to the right four yards and dove the final three into the corner of the end zone for the score.

Brian Fruechting’s kick tied the game at seven with six minutes, 46 seconds left in the game.

On Hillsboro’s next possession running back Ishmael Morris went 16 yards on two carries, but the Trojans stalled at their own 38.

Mitch Cady then broke through the Trojans special teams to block a punt, and set the Warriors up at their own 47-yard line.

Boone carried the ball four, hard-nosed times for 15 yards to set up second-and-three for Marion.

The team then threw a change-up with Maddox and he gained 15 yards to the outside.

On the first play of the second quarter, Washington took a pitch to the left side and looked to be tackled at the 10-yard line.

However, the junior kept his balance and turned down the sideline for the score.

Marion led 14-7 and it stayed that way until the final minute of halftime.

Hillsboro used a 19-play drive, which included two third-and-long conversions, and two fourth-down conversions.

Gottsch completed a 15-yard screen pass to Andy Klassen on a third-and-14, and another to Morris on fourth-and-nine at the Marion 20.

The final play of the drive was a Gottsch to Jost nine-yard touchdown on fourth-and-goal.

“Our defense bent but didn’t break for most of the game,” Thierolf said. “But the big drive was right before the half when they used seven minutes and converted fourth (downs).”

The second half was marked by good defense by both sides, as neither team could close out a drive.

Thierolf called for a pass on the first play of the second half after Sprowls, who led the junior varsity to a 13-3 record the past two years, did not attempt one in the first two quarters.

Sprowls’ pass was batted down at the line of scrimmage, and the quarterback’s only other pass of the night was a dropped screen pass.

Although Sprowls did not light up the scoreboard, he did nothing to hurt his team.

The sophomore didn’t make any vital mistakes, and even ran for a first down late in the third quarter.

“We knew without Mitchell we would need to cut things down and it allowed Hillsboro to load up against the run,” Thierolf said. “That was a tough situation to be put into, but Matt handled it with poise and confidence.”

Even though Hillsboro loaded up against the run, the Warriors still managed to run for 195 yards.

“We asked our offensive lineman to step up and be big, and for the most part they played that way,” Thierolf said. “I thought Sheldon ran like an all-league player tonight and Marc and Drew made some nice runs for us.”

However, Boone also made his mark on the defensive side.

After Hillsboro took over on its own 23 with two minutes, 34 seconds left in the game, it looked like the offense was clicking again.

Gottsch hit Morris for nine yards, Jost for 17, and Klassen for another 13, all on play-action passes to get to the Marion 36-yard line.

Another 20-yard pass to Klassen set Hillsboro up at the 16 with 25 seconds left to play.

It seemed like no one on the Marion defense could stop the pass, until Gottsch floated one into the corner of the end zone for Bebermeyer.

Boone decided the game would not end in regulation, jumping up to snare the underthrown pass for his team-leading third interception of the season with 17 seconds left.

Marion then got the ball to start the overtime, and Boone scored on the first play, causing the Warrior crowd to erupt.

Fruechting nailed the extra point, and the pressure was on Hillsboro.

Morris eventually scored from five yards out, leading to the Bebermeyer two-point conversion catch.

The Warriors needed the victory to move one, and were denied the playoffs for the fifth year in a row, despite having a record of 6-3 or better three times.

“We knew what the situation was going into district play, and we just came up one play shy,” Thierolf said. “That doesn’t diminish how we feel about our players or how much we care about them.

“We couldn’t be more proud of how our kids played this year and how they conducted themselves as sportsmen.”

Last modified Nov. 5, 2008

 

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