Defensive domination; Scott City shuts out Ulysses

Scott City, Kan. (westernkansasnews.com)–You often hear the phrase “next man up”. Friday night at Maxwell Field in Ulysses, Scott City filled in and stepped up. Playing without multi-dimensional senior Wyatt Kropp and senior defensive end Draven McRae, the Beavers dominated every aspect of the game from start to finish, and picked up a 35-0 road win at Ulysses in a battle of 5-0 clubs. 

Scott City found the end zone once in the first quarter, capping off a 58-yard drive, when Cooper Griffith scored from one yard out with 2:03 remaining in the first quarter to make it 6-0, as the extra point missed. 

The second period saw the Beavers capitalize on short field for their second score of the night. After being stuffed on first down, Bo Hess connected with Drake McRrae, who raced down the Scott City sideline for a 47-yard touchdown pass with 6:29 remaining in the first half. Hess connected with Jarrett Jurgens for the two point conversion to give the Beavers a 14-0 lead. Scott City would find the end zone on the following drive. They capped off a 71-yard drive with 2:19 remaining before halftime, as Hess found Justin Faurot on an eight-yard touchdown pass. Tre Stewart knocked in the extra point to push the lead to 21-7.

Ulysses (5-1, 4-1 GWAC) had one big threat before the break. After a 40-yard completion to the Beaver five yard line, the Scott City defense rose to the occasion, and pushed the Tigers six yards back on four downs, as Ian Rudzik was tackled by Jarrett Jurgens for a three-yard loss to the 11 late in the first half.

On their second possession of the third quarter, Scott City (6-0, 5-0) may have put together one of their best drives not only this year, but in quite a while. An 83-yard drive that burned nearly seven minutes of the third quarter clock was capped off by a Griffith one-yard plunge with 1:12 remaining in the period to give the Beavers a 28-0 lead, following the Stewart PAT.

Ulysses drove down the field late in the third quarter and early in the fourth quarter, taking it down to the Scott City 14 yard line. Nick Nowak intercepted backup quarterback Zach Zerr’s pass at the two yard line, which was his second interception of the game. The Beavers marched down the field in three minutes and put one more score on the board. After eight plays, Scott City scored through the air on the ninth play, as Drake McRae hauled in a 13-yard pass from Bo Hess with 7:55 remaining in the game. Stewart’s PAT capped off the scoring at 35-0.

For Scott City, Bo Hess was 7-10 passing for 162 yards and three touchdowns. Two of his touchdowns went to Drake McRae, who hauled in six passes for 154 yards. Cooper Griffith rushed the ball 28 times for 171 yards with two touchdowns. Jarrett Jurgens, who started for Wyatt Kropp in the running back position, rushed the ball nine times for 76 yards. Scott City rushed for a season best 312 yards and finished with 474 yards of offense. 

Ian Rudzik was held to a season-low 33 yards on 15 carries, while Araham Romero was the Ulysses leading rusher, carrying the ball 13 times for 52 yards. Braeden Scott completed one pass for 40 yards, while Jason Borthwick had three grabs for 62 yards. The Tigers had 113 rushing yards and a total of 165 yards of offense.

Scott City’s win gave them their eighth in the last 10 over Ulysses, and also clinched their seventh league title in eight seasons, with the first two in the run coming in the Mid State Activities Association. It was also Scott City’s 20th straight regular season win and their first shutout win over the Tigers since September 18, 2009, when they won 27-0 at Maxwell Field. 

Scott City has one more regular season home game, as they host the Southwestern Heights Mustangs Friday night. Southwestern Heights is 3-3, after a 33-8 loss to Hugoton. Ulysses travels to Mulvane for their district opener on Friday. The Wildcats are 3-3, after a 27-7 setback to Andale. 

Scott City Coach Glenn O’Neil Postgame