Warriors defeat Lions
Pair of Joshes team up to defeat Lyons 14-7
Sports reporter
The game wasn't pretty, but the catch sure was.
In a game that featured only 239 yards of total offense, it was big plays at the right time that set the tone for Marion High School's 14-7 victory Friday against Lyons.
The first big play was a fourth-down pass from MHS quarterback Josh Kelsey to receiver Josh Smith.
Smith's acrobatic, 20-yard touchdown catch in the corner of the end zone with 27 seconds left in the first quarter, gave Marion a 6-0 lead it would never relinquish.
Smith out-jumped the Lyons defender and grabbed the pass from Kelsey, landing just in bounds for his first touchdown of the season. The drive started after Smith recovered a Lyons fumble on the 36-yard line.
"It was a great catch," said Marion head coach Grant Thierolf. "He's a big strong physical receiver, and it's his senior year. He ought to be making plays like that for us all the time. That was just a big time play."
It was Kelsey's first touchdown pass of the year, and the second of his career.
The game turned sluggish in the second quarter. Both teams became stubborn on defense, forcing each other to punt twice before the end of the first half.
The Warriors held the Lions to negative yards rushing in the first two quarters, and led 6-0 at the break.
Coming into the contest Marion had outscored its opponents 13-0 in the third quarter, and it continued that trend Friday night.
After recovering another fumble on the Lyons 18-yard line, Marion used eight plays, capped by a Kelsey three-yard run, to find its way into the end zone.
Kelsey followed his fourth rushing touchdown of the year with a two-point conversion pass to David DeForest for a 14-0 lead.
Once again both defenses got stingy, forcing punts until the end of the third quarter.
"There wasn't anything pretty about this game," Thierolf said.
It wasn't pretty for Marion early in fourth quarter, when Kelsey threw a pass that went through the hands of his receiver, and into the hands of a Lyons defender.
Kelsey knocked the defender out of bounds at Marion's 15-yard line, setting up a short field for the Lions.
Four plays later quarterback Nick Reed hit Clint Bieberle on fourth down for a 10-yard touchdown. The extra point was good, and Marion's lead was trimmed to 14-7 with 9:46 to play in regulation.
Marion then turned to junior Casey Nelson to run out the clock. Nelson carried the ball 28 times for 71 yards, including 21 on the drive after the touchdown.
But on third-and-five Nelson was stuffed, and Marion was forced to punt with 3:37 left in the game.
As Lyons began its final attempt at a comeback, Marion had yet another big play up its sleeve.
This time it was senior lineman Dale Vogel. One play after Vogel knocked down a pass from Reed, he decided that wasn't good enough.
Vogel read the offense and sat back anticipating a screen pass. It came. Vogel tipped the pass and cradled it in for his first career interception. He rumbled down to the Lyons 28-yard line.
Seemingly over, the Warriors decided to run the clock out. But Nelson fumbled just two plays later, giving the Lions one last chance at a comeback.
From its own 38-yard line, Lyons tried some trickery. A half-back pass attempt fell incomplete. But even worse for Lyons, offensive pass interference was called.
A 15-yard unsportsman-like conduct penalty on head coach Toby Munz for arguing the call pushed the Lions even farther back. One last heave on fourth-and-45 resulted in a 20-yard completion, but fell short of a first down.
Marion took over on downs, and ran the clock to zero.
The Warriors managed just 127 total yards, but the defense held Lyons to 34 yards rushing.
In the past two games, Marion has held opponents to just 102 yards rushing, after giving up more than 460 yards rushing in its first two games.
The Warriors must keep up the stingy defense if they want to defeat their homecoming opponent this weekend, the Ellinwood Eagles.
"They're a good football team," Thierolf said. "They'll be the best team we've faced so far, by far. But, we'll play them and we'll have a good scheme, and we'll have a good game plan for them."
The Warriors improved to 2-1 in the league and 3-1 overall with the victory. Lyons fell to 1-1 in the league and 1-3 overall.
