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Warriors find fuel with 40-0 run to start playoffs
ARAPAHOE, Neb. — The pre-game chili dog meal needed some “fresh air” to get Arapahoe’s machine rolling Thursday evening.
So how about a little aerial attack against the physical Hemingford Bobcats in this D-1 state playoff opener?
“We haven’t been throwing the ball enough the last couple of games,” coach Dustin Kronhofman said. “But we certainly can throw it.”
Yes, they certainly can because Trenton Roskop’s touchdown throws of 44 yards to Grayson Koller and 30 yards into Hayden Sich ignited a 40-0 Warrior surge.
Granted, Koller’s TD was off a short screen pass ...but it spread out the Bobcats just enough for Araphoe to pull away and win 52-22.
“They were sending ‘the house’ at us,” Kronhofman observed about blitzing Bobcats from all angles. “So we stretched them to where our blockers could go one-and-one and win.”
Koller also caught a 24-yard pass in the end zone’s corner which gave Arapahoe its 24-point lead at 38-14.
However, the Warriors (8-1 record) didn’t forget their main “fuel” even if chili dogs weren’t a super igniter.
Junior William Cacy still ran to 61, 18 and seven-yard touchdowns.
Lone Warrior senior Rafe Hill also rumbled past Bobcats for a three-yard TD.
“Yup, he’s our only senior and been a great leader. Rafe Hill,” Kronhofman declared.
Hill’s six-point journey gave Arapahoe an early 12-0 lead.
Yet feisty Hemingford (5-4 final record) responded with its own two TDs.
Cody Galles went three yards then bumped outside tacklers to dash 60 yards for a 14-12 Bobcat advantage.
“We knew they’d come out and play physical. Through the first quarter and part of the second, we did not match that,” Kronhofman explained. “We weren’t playing with any energy. Nobody was fired up.”
Hemingford was driving again inside the Warriors’ 20 until — Warrior defenders ignited this turnaround.
They stripped the ball from a Bobcat as he ran past and Cacy recovered that fumble.
Arapahoe soon scored on the Koller 44-yard screen play, then made it 24-14 at halftime on Sich’s over-shoulder catch-and-run.
Hemingford never recovered, really not threatening to score again until a final TD with less than two minutes remaining.
“What I’ll take from this is we played a great second half,” the coach observed. “We didn’t really adjust anything. We just started doing what we were supposed to do.”
Cacy’s 18-yard score made it 30-14 after intermission before Sich caught his second TD.
Roskop ran an option 14 yards to cap a 20-0 third quarter which made the margin 44-14.
Cacy carried Bobcats across the goal line for Arapahoe’s final visit into six-point paradise.
Kade Fisher added the two-point PAT run.
Now Arapahoe gets ready to face the next D-1 playoff challenge as unbeaten Ravenna (9-0) will visit Arapahoe next Friday night (7 p.m).
“One thing we’ll work on is starting with more energy,” Kronhofman conlcuded.
Warrior game leaders on Thursday:
Passing: Trenton Roskop 5 completions-8 attempts-119 yards-3 TDs. Rushing: William Cacy 11 carries-107 yards-3 TDs; Roskop 11-36-1 TD; Hill 9-29-1 TD. Receiving: Grayson Koller 2 catches-68 yards--2 TDs; Cacy 4-45; Sich 1-30-1 TD.
Tackles: Cacy 9 total-2 assists; Roskop 6-5; Koller 5-3; Hill 4-7.