Above: Jay Pankratz, a 245-senior lineman, records a sack.
Fisher Knish rumbled for 130 yards, Carter Dylla intercepted four Alden-Conger/Glenville-Emmons passes, and the host Clippers beat the Knights 23-6 for a homecoming victory on Friday.
The winless Knights posted a touchdown late in the first quarter, but the Clipper defense kept them in check from then on.
“We came out hard and we seemed to let up a little bit,” said senior lineman and linebacker Jake Anderley. “I think we got a little too overconfident.”
“They (AC/GE) thought this was their shot to get a victory,” explained assistant coach Larry Walechka. “So they’re coming out high energy. Our goal is to get our guys to play hard right from the get-go, put the hammer to them, and we did tonight but let down a little. Our defense is playing really well. We had a few things go wrong, but we fixed it.”
Taking over on downs on their 26, the Clippers used a balanced offense to score on their second possession. Knish blasted a 7-yard run after the first snap, and Tanyon Hoheisel followed with a 4-yard carry.
“I like our offense,” Walechka said. “With Tanyon and Fisher in the backfield, we can get three to five yards at a crack.”
Henry Strobel’s 6-yard run was sandwiched between Knish runs of 6 and 7 yards before quarterback Blake Lyons, back after missing two games with an injury, connected with Dylla for a 32-yard catch and run that planted the Clippers on the Knight 14.
From there, Knish ran right for the touchdown, and Strobel booted the PAT kick through the uprights to put the Clippers in front 7-0 with 2 minutes left in Q1.
But after the kickoff, the Knights responded with passes of 26 and 33 yards followed by a 15-yard run for the score. The PAT pass fell to the grass, but the Knights narrowed their deficit to a point.
The Clippers were deep in Knight territory a couple of times in the second quarter, including after a Kale Kelley pick on the 25, but couldn’t convert.
After took a punt to the AC/GE 44, the Clippers took the ball to the 1, and a Strobel field goal gave them a cushion with 6 minutes left in Q3.
"Late in the second half, they were getting mad, and we just kind of fed off of it and hit them harder,” Anderley said. “We came in and started to have some fun in the third quarter, and once we had fun, it was game over.”
A Dylla pick on the next series put the ball on the Clipper 44. Four plays later, Knish rumbled 34 yards into the end zone. The Strobel PAT missed the target, but the Clippers were up 16-6 with 3 minutes left in Q3.
After Dylla’s fourth intercept, the Clippers scored with 3 minutes left in Q4 when Dylla, now in at QB for the injured Lyons, connected with Kaleb Timlin on the sideline for a 27-yard touchdown.
“The guy tipped it, and it just kept coming in my hands,” said the senior wide receiver, who got back on the field full time after an injury three games prior. “I walked the sidelines. It was a great pass by Carter.”
This time, Strobel’s point-after kick was good.
Jackson Meyer, who started the year as QB, but had a knee injury end his season for the second game, took the knee behind center for the last play of the game.
Lyons completed five of 13 throws for 37 yards and one interception. He left the game late in the third quarter with a shoulder injury.
“They grabbed my head, and I fell forward, and my arm got caught but my shoulder kept moving, and it popped,” said the freshman.
Dylla completed four of 10 passes for 37 yards and one touchdown. On the other end of the throw, he hauled in three Lyons tosses for 33 yards.
Kelly had one catch for three yards. Colin Krenik grabbed three passes for 11 yards. Timlin had the one big catch. Knish caught a pass, but it was for zero yards.
Knish had 19 carries. Hoheisel rushed 11 times for 68 yards, Dylla ran eight times for 62 yards, and Strobel legged a dozen yards in four carries.
Dylla returned three punts for 107 yards with a 40-yard return his longest. Strobel punted five times for 137 yards with a 42-yarder his longest.
Defensively, Hoheisel had four solo tackles and one assist. Cade Kriha had four solos and three assists.
“It was the most fun I’ve had in a while,” said Kriha, a senior lineman. “I just kept shooting gaps and was making tackles and blocking my guy on offense, and we came out with a win. It was just a great time. Homecoming was fun, all the activities that we did. It couldn’t have been a better week.”
Knish had two solos and one assist. Lucas Walechka had two solos and five assists. Krenik had two solo tackles. Carter Barto had two solos. Anderley had three solos and one assist. Strobel had two solos. Kelley had one solo and one assist. Dylla, Jay Pankratz, Gabe Sullivan and Jack Voit each had one solo tackle. Nick Simonette had one assist.
Walechka and Pankratz each recorded a sack. Strobel also intercepted. Jacob Rohlfing deflected a pass.
The 3-4 Clippers host Mayer Lutheran on Wednesday to close out their regular season. The Crusaders’ only loss was in their opener, 32-27 to GFW.
QB Blake Lyon tries to avoid a defender. In front is senior lineman Wyatte Devens.
Jacob Anderley leaps at a Knight throw.
Henry Strobel looks for a way around a defender.
The bib girls had a few more points to count off than usual.
Colin Krenik wraps up a runner for a tackle.
Carter Dylla changes directions after one of his four interceptions.
Fisher Knish on the run. Beside him is Tanyon Hoheisel.