Marion captures District 12 victory over Hillsboro

ORIGINALLY WRITTEN TOM STOPPEL
The mere fact that Marion and Hillsboro were on the same football field was enough to fuel anticipation.

Add to that, both teams were desperate for a win in Class 3A District 12 to keep their playoff aspirations alive.

In the end, Marion’s athleticism and quickness gave the Warriors (6-2) the advantage in a 19-0 victory over the Trojans.

Marion coach Grant Thierolf said Hillsboro’s record (2-5) was somewhat deceiving, and acknowledged his own team benefitted from its first year of competition in the Mid-Central Activities Association.

“That’s just the power and strength of this league,” he said. “Two years ago, jumping into district like we did would have been a game shock because we weren’t used to competing at that level week in and week out.”

The Warriors wasted no time assessing how they stacked up against their cross-county rivals.

Winning the opening coin toss, Thierolf deferred his option to the second half, giving the ball to the hometown Trojans into the teeth of a strong south wind.

The strategy eventually paid off. Hillsboro drove from its own 22-yard line to the Warrior 42 before being forced to punt.

Marion then ground out an 11-play, 77-yard drive capped by a one-yard touchdown run by Josh Kelsey that the Warriors to a 7-0 lead with 4:06 left in the opening quarter.

The drive established the fact that Marion was able to control the line of scrimmage.

“We challenged our offensive linemen to take care of business,” Thierolf said. “We wanted to try to establish that early this week and see where we were-how well we recovered from the beating we took last week.

“I was proud of our guys because that was a big drive,” he added. “Anytime someone drives down the field on you on the first possession, it puts a little bit of doubt in your mind.”

After forcing a three-and-out by Hillsboro on the Trojans’ next possession, Marion had its next drive cut short when Daniel Deckert intercepted a Kelsey pass at the Trojan 34-yard line.

Riding the strong legs of running back Lucas Hamm, Hillsboro drove to the Warrior 35-yard line before quarterback Derek Hamm came up empty on two consecutive passes, forcing another Trojan punt.

Warrior special teams tipped the kick but a favorable roll pinned Marion at its own 9-yard line. After a couple of first downs, the Warriors were forced to punt.

Hillsboro took over with 1:42 left in the half for one last drive, but Russell Ploutz intercepted Derek Hamm’s pass inside the Warrior 20-yard line just before halftime, and Marion took a slim 7-0 lead into the locker room.

In the first half, the Warrior defense prevented the Trojan offense from penetrated the Warriors’ 35-yard line.

“I really think Marion’s defense is tough,” Trojan skipper Len Coryea said. “Their inside guys, they hustle. That’s the whole key.”

The second half didn’t start much better for Hillsboro, as Derek Hamm shanked the kickoff squirted out of bounds, giving Marion possession on the 35-yard line.

Marion then marched 65 yards in 13 plays, scoring on a nine-yard pass from Kelsey to Jeremy Vondenkamp. The kick was wide left, but Marion’s 61/2-minute drive increased its lead to 13-0.

“We talked about it being a new game (after halftime) and I think that drive helped establish maybe a little bit of doubt in their minds, and our kids started to believe this was a game we could finish off,” Thierolf said. “It was a very big drive, especially into the wind.”

Undaunted, Hillsboro started at its 34-yard line, and put together their most impressive drive of the night. Included in the surge were passes of 28 and 16 yards from Hamm to Deckert, enabling Hillsboro to reach the Warrior 20-yard line.

Following a 13-yard completion from Hamm to Ben Schaefer-off the hands of Marion’s Chris Freeby-Hillsboro faced first-and-goal on the Warrior 7-yard line.

An incomplete pass, and two Lucas Hamm carries moved the ball to the 1-yard line with the momentum of the game in the balance.

What transpired next caused one coach to shake his head and the other to extol the merits of his defense.

Lucas Hamm tried his luck up the middle of Marion’s defense, but came up short and the Warriors took over.

“That goal line stand was tremendous,” Thierolf said. “For one, it kept the shutout alive, but I was pleased the kids were able to attack and come forward without jumping offsides.”

Coryea, on the other hand, was disappointed in the Trojans’ lack of execution.

“We didn’t run the play I wanted,” he said. “Why we do that, I’ll never know. You talk to them on Monday about the scouting report that it’s not likely we can blow it up the middle, especially on (Dale) Vogel-he’s a great football player for them,” he added. “But I thought we could bounce to the outside on them-but we didn’t do it. I guess that’s why we call them high school kids.”

Facing a 99-yard field, Marion pushed to the 30-yard line before being forced to punt. Josh Smith responded by pinning Hillsboro at its own 25-yard line.

“We moved out far enough and with the punt yardage, we had about a 75-yard exchange-of-field position,” Thierolf said.

Hillsboro’s drive was short-lived, however, as Freeby intercepted Derek Hamm’s pass five plays later and returned it to the Hillsboro 36-yard line.

“Chris has really come on strong as an inside linebacker,” Thierolf said.

Marion covered those 36 yards in eight plays with Casey Nelson scoring on a three-yard run with 3:48 to play, giving Marion a 19-0 lead. For the night, Nelson picked up 119 yards on 29 carries.

“Casey has got great leg drive, but our offensive line opened up the holes,” Thierolf said. “Casey is maybe the best-conditioned athlete we’ve coached. He’s starting to understand the patience it takes to be a great running back.”

Coryea was impressed with the junior running back, too.

“He’s a beautiful threat to have there all the time,” he said. “We had to concentrate so much (on him) all the time, that other things happened.

“Actually, the kid I was most impressed with on that team offensively was their quarterback,” he added. “He threw the ball right on the button all night. He presents it where they can catch it.”

Kelsey was 4-for-7 passing for 40 yards and one touchdown while rushing for 75 yards on 15 carries.

For Hillsboro, Derek Hamm was 7-for-18 for 91 yards while tossing three interceptions.

Lucas Hamm led the Trojan ground game with 50 yards on 15 carries. Hillsboro had 99 rushing yards compared to 194 by the Warriors.

Coryea gave Marion its due.

“They are a better team than we are,” he said. “I’m not going to say, ‘Oh we could beat them tomorrow.’ Their linemen were beating us from the second quarter on. That’s the bottom line.”

Coming-Marion travels to Hesston, a 14-13 loser to Southeast of Saline Friday night. The winner will advance to the playoffs.

Hillsboro will end its season at home against the undefeated and state-ranked SES Trojans on Thursday night at Reimer Field.

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