Colby outlasts Scott City in double overtime
Colby, Kan. (westernkansasnews.com)–Entering Friday’s district and GWAC game, the feeling that the Scott City/Colby game could go either way. Fans in attendance were treated to an excellent game, and were able to watch bonus football. Unfortunately, one team had to lose. And unfortunately, it would be the Beavers. Scott City would be stopped short on fourth down inside the one yard line in double overtime, as Eagles would snap a 15-game skid in the series in a 28-20 double overtime thriller at Dennen Field.
Scott City would get on the board first, taking advantage of a Colby fumble inside the Eagle 20 yard line. It was the first fumble recover of the year for the Beavers. On second down from the Colby eight, Brandon Winderlin would find the end zone to give the Beavers a 6-0 lead with 2:24 left in the first quarter. The extra point kick would be missed.
Colby answered right back on their next series, using a 10-play, 62-yard drive in just over four minutes, as the Eagles would get a fortunate tip, as Ryan Myers’ pass intended for Hagan Booi went off Booi’s hands and into the arms of Konnor Griffin in the end zone from 12 yards out to tie game at six with 8:48 left before halftime. The extra point was kicked in by Carson VanEaton to give the Eagles a 7-6 lead. That would be the score at the break.
Following a three-and-out by Scott City to begin the second half, Colby was able to convert four third downs to add to their lead. On third down from the four yard line, Calvin Stapp scored to extend the lead to 14-6, with the VanEaton PAT, with 2:50 left in the third frame. That drive took 7:34 off the clock, and lasted 14 plays.
In the fourth quarter, the Beaver defense would rise up after a three minute drive by the Eagles, stopping Colby on fourth down at the Scott City 19. The Beavers would march down the field, overcoming a holding penalty, and would have their longest scoring play of the season. Parker Gooden would take the snap and rush it 56 yards to pull them to within 14-12 with 6:02 left. After an illegal procedure penalty, Gooden threw a strike to Brandon Winderlin in the end zone to tie the game at 14.
On the ensuing possession, the Beavers thought they had forced Colby into their second turnover of the night on third and 11. Instead, a tough defensive holding call went against the Beavers, and the Eagles converted the third down. On the very next play, Colby was stuffed at the line, but the officials determined that Scott City committed a late hit on the quarterback, and after a penalty on the sideline, Colby would have the ball at the Beaver 31 yard line. Scott City’s defense stood up strong, and got the ball with 43 seconds left. They would get it to their own 47 yard line before a deep ball was intercepted with 7.5 seconds left. On the very next play, Scott City intercepted the Colby pass and took it to the Eagle 32 yard line. The final play of regulation saw a Hail Mary ball thrown toward the end zone, but was intercepted, and we would see overtime.
Scott City had the ball to begin overtime, and they wouldn’t waste any time scoring. On the first play, Parker Gooden found a crease and scored from 10 yards out to give the Beavers a 20-14 lead. They would go for the two-point conversion, but were called down just shy of the goal line. Colby would strike quickly on their first play of overtime as well. Calvin Stapp scored right away to tie the game at 20. The Eagles would bobble the snap for the PAT and didn’t have a chance to kick it or convert it, so the game was forced to a second overtime.
Colby had the ball first in the second overtime, and scored on third down from the two, as Calvin Stapp scored to make it 26-20 Eagles. Stapp would run the same play left side for the two-point conversion to make it 28-20. Scott City had one final shot. On fourth down from the one, they were stopped short of the goal line, and the Eagles would prevail 28-20.
Calvin Stapp led the way for Colby, but needed 22 carries to get to 97 yards and had three touchdowns. Ryan Myers added 55 yards on the ground on 12 carries. He passed for 45 yards on 5-12 passing with a touchdown and an interception. Peyton Wahlmeier had two receptions for 17 yards. Colby finished with 247 yards overall, with 202 coming on the ground.
Scott City would run for over 300 yards for the third time this season. Parker Gooden had 18 carries for 154 yards and two touchdowns, while Hunter Yager added 74 yards on seven carries, and Brandon Winderlin had 70 yards on seven carries and a touchdown. Gooden threw for 21 yards on two of five passing with two interceptions. Hunter Yager had one catch for 14 yards. The Beavers finished with 333 yards of offense, with 312 on the ground.
Penalties and turnovers were big, and hurt Scott City for a second straight game. They turned the ball over five times, twice inside the red zone, and committed seven penalties for 70 yards. Colby had two turnovers and finished with six penalties for 53 yards.
With the win, Colby not only clinched their first district championship since 2015, they also won the Great West Activites Conference championship for the first time. They snapped a 15-game losing streak to the Beavers in the process, and won on their home field against Scott City for the first time since September 21, 1990, when they shut out the Beavers 21-0.
In the loss, Scott City has dropped two straight district games for the first time since 2005, when they lost to Ulysses and Hugoton in back to back games. It’s also their first two-game skid since 2016.
Despite the loss, Scott City is in the playoffs for a 14th consecutive season, with a tiebreaker over Russell, who won over Goodland 25-0 in a storm-shortened game. Colby will be the district champion, but the second through fourth spots remain open. With Concordia’s rally over Beloit 34-24, the Panthers vault into the second place spot with a 3-1 record in district play, while Beloit and Scott City are tied with 2-2 records and in third place. The Trojans not only have the tiebreaker over the Beavers, but they also have more points. Beloit is plus-25, while Scott City is plus-19.
Scott City drops to 5-2 overall, 2-2 in district play, and will host Concordia next Friday night in their regular season finale. The Panthers are now 4-3 on the year after their home win over Beloit. Colby is 7-0, and 4-0 in district play, and will play at 1-6 Goodland next Friday night.
Assistant Coach Landon Frank Postgame
