After a wild game that saw the Owls beat Olathe Northwest to win a conference championship and get the first seed in the 6A east bracket, the attention turned to Shawnee Mission North. The Bison were 1-7 coming into the matchup, but the Owls needed to play their best game to advance to the second round.
The Owls’ offense started the game off with a bang.The Owls’ dynamic offense took less than three minutes to take the lead when senior Josh Foland punched in a touchdown to take a 7-0 lead. However, the Bison weren’t ready to just roll over, as Shawnee Mission North drove down the field to tie the game.
Both teams traded scores for most of the first half. Senior Brody Hale continued his school record-setting campaign with three first-half passing touchdowns, coming by way of throws to seniors Sam Krzykowski and Luke Zimmerman, as well as junior Cabe Roberson. However, the Owls’ defense couldn’t stop the Bison’s potent rushing attack, and the score sat at 34-28 at the half.
Finally, after halftime, the Owls’ defense got a stop. The Bison quarterback had a wide-open path to the end zone, but junior Tanner Buster punched the ball out for a fumble. After the crucial recovery, the Owls scored less than two minutes when Foland scored from five yards out. However, the Owls elected to go for the two-point conversion. Junior Brayden Shin, normally a left tackle, went in motion for a possible screen pass. With acting fit for a straight-to-DVD movie, Shin kept motioning for Hale to throw him the pass, leaving junior Weston Voight wide open on the other side to bring the score to 42-28.
The Bison never got within striking distance for the rest of the game. Another five-yard touchdown run by Foland put the Owls up by 21 points. After another Bison touchdown, Krzykowski broke off a 70-yard touchdown run with junior right tackle Luke McCoy running right alongside him. Then, with around four minutes left, Hale got his fourth passing touchdown of the game, finding junior Alex Morrison. It was a memorable first varsity catch for Morrison, who has played in almost every game as a reserve tight end for the Owls. His touchdown cemented the final score as a 63-42 Owls victory.
The Olathe South Falcons are next on the schedule. The Falcons won their game last week against Blue Valley Northwest 35-21, and will now travel to CBAC to try and create a massive upset in 6A. On the Owls’ side of the bracket, Olathe Northwest will play Blue Valley West in a four versus twelve matchup. If the Owls take down the Falcons, then they will play the winner of that matchup.
The schedule doesn’t get any easier, so the Owls will need to be ready for every team, or else their magical season could be cut short.
Stat Leaders- 10/30 Vs SMN
Passing: SR Brody Hale 19/22 273 YD’s 4 TD’s 0 INT
Rushing: SR Josh Foland 21 Carries 129 YD’s 3 TD’s
Receiving: SR Sam Krzykowski 10 REC 140 YD’s 1 TD
Defense
Tackles: JR Cash Warren 13 Tackles
Sacks: JR Cash Warren 3 Sacks
Turnovers: SR Vaughn Overton 1 FR
