Marion out; Peabody heads to sub-state
Staff writer
Last week, only two of five county teams remained in football playoffs. After Marion fell in an old-fashioned mud bowl Friday night, the county is down to one.
Peabody-Burns
The Warriors defeated Chetopa 62-20 Friday night to become regional champions.
“We played very well overall as a team, and I was proud of the boys’ performance with the weather conditions,” coach Eric Dutton said.
The Warriors opened up scoring with a seven-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Aiden Hurst to Jameson Miles.
On a long 4th and 11, Hurst then turned on the jets for a 25-yard touchdown run.
Hurst did it again for a 12-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.
“It was a great game to see the boys having so much fun. Everyone was hyped up to play in the rain,” Dutton said.
Peabody-Burns scored its final touchdown late in the fourth, a 26-yard pass from Hurst to Dalton Philpott.
“The way it works in this round, east travels to west, no matter your seed in the bracket,” Dutton said.
Peabody-Burns (8-1) will be on the road Friday to play a familiar rival, Tescott (8-2), for a chance to advance to the sub-state round.
“They’re another very physical team, and they’re very well coached,” Dutton said. “As a team, we have a lot to work on to prepare for this game. The boys keep showing up and are pushing harder than ever to learn what is needed week after week.”
Peabody-Burns beat Tescott 40-39 in the season opener Sept. 6.
Marion
The Warriors’ season ended on the road Friday night against top-ranked Conway Springs. Marion lost 21-6.
“I couldn’t be more proud of my group, especially the seniors,” coach Shaun Craft said. “The growth they showed not only as football players, but as young men, from middle school to this season, helped them finish their high school football careers with four straight years of winning football.”
Quarterback Kellen Waner is credited with the only score for Marion, a 32-yard rushing touchdown.
Jameson Looper finished with 21 carries and 119 yards rushing.
Brian Nguyen led the defense with eight tackles, followed by Kadon Mercer with five.
“This senior group played with a chip on their shoulder all season and wanted to prove to a lot of doubters they were still going to be contenders when it came to the playoffs,” Craft said.
On defense, Waner finished with four interceptions, two fumble recoveries, and 13 tackles over the course of the season.
Luke Watkins led the defense for the season, with 38 tackles total, six quarterback sacks, and two forced fumbles.
Nguyen had 57 tackles on the season, as well as five quarterback sacks.
On offense, Looper led the team with 160 touches, 1,303 yards rushing, and 17 touchdowns for the season.
Lane Smith had 106 touches for 895 yards rushing to go with eight touchdowns.
Tripp Peterson is credited with one touchdown from a kickoff return this season.
“They challenged No. 1 and defending state champs Conway Springs until the very end,” Craft said. “Even though the season did not end the way we wanted, speaking not only for myself but all the coaches, it was a pleasure to get to coach these young men for four years, and they will be greatly missed.”