By the time the final seconds ticked off in Marion's 13-0 win over Nickerson Friday night, fans shouldn't have been surprised to see players limping off the field-for several reasons.
The game featured hard hits, early-season conditioning contributed to leg cramps and, most notably, each team kept shooting itself in the foot.
The Warriors and Panthers combined for eight turnovers and more than 150 yards in penalties, making it difficult for either team to establish continuity on offense.
But in the end, only half of the high school teams in Kansas were undefeated after Friday night, and the Warriors are among them.
"To get away from this with a win and not play particularly well, we're never going to turn one (a win) down or give it back," Marion coach Grant Thierolf said.
The first five minutes of the game signaled the type of game that was about to transpire.
Taking the opening kickoff, Nickerson was flagged for a holding penalty on its second play of the season.
Now facing a long-yardage situation, Panther quarterback Mace Krol threw downfield only to have the ball intercepted by Russell Ploutz at the 10:19 mark, giving the Warriors possession on their own 25-yard line.
After the Warriors were whistled for a holding penalty on their second play on offense, quarterback Josh Kelsey coughed up the football and Nickerson recovered it at the Warrior 30-yard line with 8:36 left in the quarter.
But one play later, the Panthers to returned the favor as Michael Brookens fell on a Nickerson fumble at the Warrior 30-yard line.
Two plays after that, Casey Nelson fumbled and Nickerson recovered the ball on the Marion 40-yard line.
Thierolf was at a loss for words to explain the mistakes.
"I'm just going to attribute that to first-game jitters," he said. "We haven't had a problem like that at all. I'll bet I can count on three fingers how many fumbles we've had in practice. But it's obviously not something we're emphasizing enough in our drills.
"This is something that's very correctable."
Nickerson put together a six-play drive, taking the ball inside the Warrior 30-yard line. But a personal foul on the Panthers forced them to punt.
Taking possession just three yards from its own goal line, Marion finally converted its initial first down of the season.
Three plays later, facing third-and-seven from the 18-yard line, lightning struck for Marion. Kelsey lofted the ball perfectly over the hands of the outstretched, Jason Hett grabbed the ball and raced untouched down the far sideline for an 82-yard score.
Jeffrey Richmond's extra point kick gave the Warriors a 7-0 lead with 1:50 left in the quarter.
"That (reception) has to help Jason's confidence," Thierolf said. "He's a very gifted athlete and he's a kid that can make plays. He's one of the best athletes we've coached.
"It was a nice play and a nice throw by Josh, but we expect our senior quarterback to make those throws, we really do."
Nickerson threatened to score twice before intermission. The second time, the gun sounded with the Panthers on the Warrior 12-yard line.
Neither team scored in the third quarter, leaving the Warriors to nurse their slim advantage into the final 12 minutes.
With Nickerson in possession, the Warrior defense rose to the occasion and forced a Panther punt. But an acting job worthy of an Emmy nomination resulted in a running-into-the-kicker penalty that gave the Panthers a first down.
Three plays later, Nelson blasted Nickerson's Zach Myers shortly after a reception, causing the ball to come loose. Jeffrey Richmond scooped up the ball and rumbled 29 yards for the score.
Although the extra-point kick was unsuccessful, Marion finally could breathe easier with a 13-0 lead and 8:13 remaining.
Nickerson mounted one final drive down the stretch, marching 34 yards in 11 plays. Fittingly, the drive ended with a fumble on the Warrior 17-yard line, preserving Marion's 13-0 victory.
"It's encouraging that we didn't play our best on defense and still got the shutout," Thierolf said. "I thought our defense did a good job of bend-but-not-break. It's just one of those things, but we're going to get better."
Marion managed only three first downs on 111 yards rushing and 94 passing.
Nelson picked up 72 yards rushing while Kelsey was 3-for-6 passing for 94 yards.
Nickerson had 191 yards total offense, including 126 on the ground. Still, Thierolf was pleased with the Warriors' effort.
"One of the things we're most pleased with is we found some depth tonight," he said. "We know our defensive starters are going to be pretty decent, but I thought Justin Anderson, Jake Czarnowsky, Emmanuel Jackson, Clay Riggs and John Barr played pretty well.
"We were happy with that group, and if we can get those guys playing at the varsity level, that just makes us that much better because we can rest some people."
Michael Brookens led the defense with 14 tackles, including six unassisted, while recovering a fumble. Casey Nickelson had 13 tackles, including five unassisted, and a fumble recovery.
Coming-Marion will take its 1-0 record to Halstead on Friday. The Warriors hope to avenge last year's 17-12 loss to the Dragons in the second game of the season.
"There's never a good time for a loss, but that loss didn't hurt us last year because we learned from it," Thierolf said. "We learned you better prepare, you better be ready and you have to bring your game every week.
"Whether we learned those lessons completely or not, we'll find out Friday," he added. "I guarantee you we'll be ready for Halstead this week.
