Ground attack leads Scott City past Goodland
Scott City, Kan. (westernkansasnews.com)–Scott City knew they would have their hands full with a pass-happy Goodland team on Friday night at home on Senior Night. While they trailed for the first time at home all season, they would shrug it off and go back to their bread and butter with the ground and pound game. One week after rushing for a season-low 61 yards, they would carry the ball 53 times for 338 yards en route to their third consecutive Class 3A, District 8 title in a 48-9 win over the Cowboys at Darner Field.
After the Beavers went three-and-out on their opening drive, Goodland (4-3) marched down the field on their opening drive with the wind at their back. A Michael Johnston 27-yard field goal with 7:50 remaining in the first quarter gave the Cowboys an early 3-0 lead. Scott City bounced back with a 12-play, 65-yard drive, as they got a third down touchdown run of 18 yards by Cayden Couchman with 3:07 remaining in the opening frame. Couchman ran in the two-point conversion to give them an 8-3 lead.
Scott City opened the game up in the second quarter with 21 points. Their first came on a four-play drive with a Couchman four-yard run with 9:11 left in the half to go up 15-3 with the Jackson Rumford extra point kick. The Beavers second score of the quarter came with 2:47 left with a Camden Vulgamore one-yard run and the Rumford extra point to go up 22-3. With a short field and no timeouts, they scored on third and three on a 33-yard touchdown pass from Vulgamore to Couchman with 27.8 seconds left in the half to extend the lead to 29-3 with the Rumford extra point.
Both Scott City and Goodland would go empty-handed on their opening drives to open the second half. The Cowboys scored on an eight-play, 72-yard drive, aided by several Scott City penalties. They would cash in, as Zach Thorson found Linkon Cure on a 10-yard touchdown to pull to within 29-9 with 4:14 left in the third. The extra point was no good. Scott City (6-1) marched right back down the field with a nine-play drive that took just over four minutes. On a busted play, Camden Vulgamore scored form 31 yards out with 10.6 seconds left in the third quarter to extend the lead to 36-9 with the Rumford PAT.
The Beavers added two more scores in the fourth quarter, as Matthew Wheeler found the end zone with 5:36 left form a yard out to extend the lead to 42-9, and he would score on the games final play from 21 yards out to make the final 48-9.
Scott City finished 443 yards of offfense, with 338 coming on the ground. Cayden Couchman had 14 carries for 137 yards and two touchdowns, and added 79 receiving yards on four receptions and a touchdown. Camden Vulgamore was 5-9 for 89 yards and a touchdown. The Beavers went 10-14 on third downs.
Goodland would end up with 182 yards of offense, with 202 through the air. Zach Thorson was 21-42 for 201 yards. Kacen Sederstrom ended up with seven receptions for 89 yards. The Cowboys finished with minus-20 yards rushing.
With the win, Scott City clinched their third consecutive district title, and will host a playoff game November 1. They also picked up their 21st consective win over the Cowboys, and lead the series 42-11. Scott City hits the 40-point mark for the third time this year. It was a season-low of points for Goodland.
Up next for Scott City is a trip to Colby to wrap up their regular season next Friday night. The Eagles are 4-3 after a 22-14 loss to Lakin at home. Goodland hosts Hugoton with playoff implications next Friday night. The Eagles are 4-3 after falling 33-6 at Holcomb.
Coach Jim Turner Postgame
Box Score
Goodland 3 0 6 0–9
Scott City 8 21 7 12–48
Scoring Summary
1st Quarter
GD 7:50 Michael Johnston 27-Yard Field Goal 10-44, 2:50
SC 3:07 Cayden Couchman 18-Yard Run (Couchman Run) 12-65, 4:43
2nd Quarter
SC 9:11 Couchman 4-Yard Run (Jackson Rumford Kick) 4-69, 1:25
SC 2:47 Camden Vulgamore 1-Yard Run (Rumford Kick) 11-55, 4:33
SC :27.8 Couchman 33-Yard Pass from Vulgamore (Rumford Kick) 3-40, :27
3rd Quarter
GD 4:14 Linkon Cure 10-Yard Pass from Zach Thorson (PAT No Good) 8-72, 3:42
SC :10.6 Vulgamore 31-Yard Run (Rumford Kick) 9-69, 4:04
4th Quarter
SC 5:36 Matthew Wheeler 1-Yard Run (PAT No Good) 8-56, 3:55
SC :00 Wheeler 21-Yard Run (No PAT attempt) 9-78, 3:51
Goodland
Rushing
Linkon Cure 3-14; Chayton Goodwin 5-11, Ethan Horinek 2-3, Zach Thorson 3-(-47), Team 1-(-1); Total: 14-(-20)
Passing
Zach Thorson 21-42 201 0-0; Linkon Cure 1-2 1 0-0
Receiving
Kacen Sederstroom 7-89; Jaxson Miller 6-84; Chayton Goodwin 4-17; Linkon Cure 2-18; Braylon Mull 3-4; Total: 202
Total Yards: 182
Scott City
Rushing
Cayden Couchman 14-137; Kevin Wiebe 7-46; Matthew Wheeler 6-45; Kelton Cook 9-38; Pierce Vallejo 6-22; Camden Vulgamore 7-19; Drew Metzger 2-18; Peyton Bergner 2-13; Total: 53-338
Passing
Camden Vulgamore 5-9 89 1-0; Drew Metzger 2-3 16
Receiving
Cayden Couchman 4-79; Alex Tarango 2-14; Peyton Bergner 1-12; Total: 105
Total Yards: 443
