Rivalry renewed; Scott City visits Ulysses for GWAC title

Scott City, Kan. (westernkansasnews.com)–Scott City vs Ulysses for a league title. That seems to be a common occurrence. For the last 10-plus years, Scott City or Ulysses have won a league title, through the first five years of the Great West Activities Conference, and the last few years of the Mid State Activities Association. In the sixth year of the GWAC, the league championship will stay in either Scott City or Ulysses. Tonight at Maxwell Field in Ulysses, the Beavers and Tigers renew their rivalry with the GWAC title on the line in a 7 pm kickoff.

Both teams enter the game at 5-0 overall, and 4-0 in league play. This is the first time that both teams face off with undefeated records since 2011. 

Scott City is coming off a 47-7 win over the Hugoton Eagles last Friday night at Darner Field on homecoming night. The Beavers took a 21-0 halftime lead and added 20 third quarter points to put the game in doubt. This year’s Scott City squad is averaging 341 yards of offense per contest and 33 points per game. Bo Hess has thrown for 582 yards with six touchdowns and five interceptions. Cooper Griffith paces the ground attack, as he leads the team in rushing, with 560 yards and nine touchdowns. Drake McRae is the leading receiver, with 270 yards on 15 catches and two scores. The defense has been solid as usual, giving up just under 10 points a game, and allowing only 159 yards of offense per game. Abe Wiebe leads the team with 48 tackles and seven sacks, and Griffith has 47 tackles. 

Ulysses, just like Scott City, took care of business on homecoming last Friday night in a 49-22 thumping of Goodland at Maxwell Field. The Tigers scored 28 first quarter points, and led 49-0 at intermission, before their second unit played a majority of the second half. This year’s Tigers team is led by senior Ian Rudzik, who has rushed for 12 touchdowns and has 1186 yards through the first five games. On defense, he’s the teams leading tackler with 47, and had a 98-yard interception return for a touchdown in last week’s game. Ulysses has been solid with their ground game, running the ball for an average of 352 yards per contest, while averaging nearly 427 yards of offense per game, while scoring 35 points a game. Defensively, the Tigers are allowing an average of 291 yards a game and surrendering nearly 20 points a contest. 

Scott City leads the all time series with Ulysses 36-30-1. The Beavers have won seven out of the last nine in the series, including a 14-7 win last year in Scott City. Ulysses won two years ago 25-6 for their last win in the series. 

Pregame coverage begins at 6:30 on KSKL, Mix 94 and AM 1420 KULY. For the Scott City broadcast, you can listen on 94.5, online at  https://www.westernkansasnews.com/mix94/, on Mix 94 using TuneIn Radio, and the KSKL app that’s free to download. The Ulysses broadcast can be heard on 1420 KULY, online at https://www.westernkansasnews.com/kuly-live/, or on the KULY app that can be downloaded for free.