Cougars win over Goessel in district play
If you enjoy a football game with lots of action, the place to be Friday was at Cougar Field. Centre High School football team defeated Goessel in two quarters by a score of 60-14 to win the first of two district games.
Seven touchdowns were scored in the first quarter alone, five by Centre and two by Goessel. Centre had six extra points and Goessel two, for a score at the end of the quarter of 36-14.
Kyle Luna, senior receiver for Centre, literally got the game off to a running start. In the opening kick of the game, with Centre receiving, Luna took the ball 36 yards to Goessel's 11-yard line. Two plays later, he ran for two yards to score the first touchdown, then caught the ball in the end zone for two extra points.
After Goessel went three and out, a face mask penalty by Goessel put Centre in good scoring position. Junior receiver Todd Stahlecker caught a pass from quarterback Curtis Gutsch for a first down. Stahlecker ran another nine yards to score. Mark Pagenkopf ran for the extra points. With 7:05 to go, Centre was ahead 16-0.
Centre recovered the ball on a Goessel fumble, and once again, the Cougars were headed for the goal line. Gutsch ran 31 yards for a touchdown and Luna ran for the extra points, making it 24-0.
In a surprise burst of action, the Bluebirds sprang to life and returned the kick-off to Centre's two-yard line, then scored. The PAT attempt failed.
Centre scored again at 4:27 on a 24-yard run by Luna. The PAT was good on a run by Eric Peterson, but the extra points were forfeited on a Centre penalty.
The Bluebirds' second and last touchdown came at 1:57, again on a long run. With the two-point conversion, the score stood at 30-14.
The Cougars weren't quitting. With just over a minute to play in the quarter, Stahlecker caught a pass from Gutsch and ran 51 yards to score again. The PAT failed, but the Cougars had a solid lead, 36-14.
On the first play of the second quarter, Goessel threw a pass that was intercepted by Gutsch, setting up Centre's offense on Goessel's 38-yard line. After a quarterback keeper to the 10-yard line, Luna plowed into the end zone for another touchdown followed by a run for the two extra points.
With 9:22 to go in the half, the score stood at 44-14. Another fumble by Goessel put the ball back into Luna's hands. The possession resulted in a 27-yard run by Gutsch for a touchdown. Luna added the extra points, and the score was 52-14.
The Cougars' thirst for points seemed insatiable. Pagenkopf recovered a short kick-off by Centre, which resulted in Centre's final touchdown of the game on a 34-yard run by Gutsch. The extra-point attempt was good.
The game was called at half-time with a final score of 60-14.
The second district game is sure to be tougher as the Cougars take on Little River Nov. 1 at Little River. They play at Quivira Heights Friday in a non-district game.
Coach Bud Peterson was pleased with his team's play Friday.
"I thought we looked pretty good," he said, noting Gutsch's seven carries for 139 yards rushing and Luna's long runs. He said he didn't expect the boys to roll over Goessel so easily.
He said both Quivira Heights and Little River are highly rated.
"We're going to have to step up and meet the challenge," he said. "If everything goes right, we ought to be able to compete."
Leading tackler on the season is Travis Burns with 46 solos and 51 assisted.
Statistics
Team play (Centre/Goessel): first downs 7,4; rushing 28c/265, 17c/58; passing 4/5/0/89, 6/14/1/114; punts 0, 1/17; punt returns 0, 0; kicks 8/302, 3/111; kick returns 3/40, 5/121; fumbles 1/0, 3/3; penalties 3/20, 4/20.
Rushing: Luna 11/89, Gutsch 7/139, Stahlecker 3/10, Pagenkopf 7/27.
Passing: Gutsch 4/5/0/89.
Pass receptions: Stahlecker 4/89.
Kick-offs: Luna 8/302.
Kick returns: Pagenkopf 1/12, Stahlecker 2/28.
Tackles, unassisted, assisted: Burns 4/2, Luna 4/6, Gutsch 2/2, Pagenkopf 1/4, Stahlecker 3/5, Peterson 1/1, Joe Forsberg 2/2, Derek Belton 0/4.
Interceptions: Gutsch 1, Pagenkopf 1.
