Big plays help Louisburg rout Wyandotte

By Andy Brown
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Updated: September 7, 2016

Andy Brown / Louisburg Sports Zone

Senior Jake Hill (24) puts a hit on a Wyandotte player and gets some help from teammates Austin Moore (21), Nick Hull (44) and T.J. Dover (70) during Friday’s season opener at Wyandotte High School. The Wildcats rolled to a 48-0 victory.

KANSAS CITY, Kan. – Everyone got involved in some form or another for the Louisburg High School football team Friday in its season opener against Wyandotte.

The Wildcats marched up and down the field as five different people found the endzone in Louisburg’s 48-0 victory over the Bulldogs at Wyandotte High School. It was everything the Wildcats could have hoped for to begin the season.

Despite a few hiccups, the Wildcats came up with several big plays and racked up 27 points in the second quarter before they forced a running clock in the second half. Defensively, the Wildcats forced five turnovers.

“It was good,” co-head coach Gary Griffin said of the win. “I thought our kids did a lot of good things, but we were a little sloppy at times. It was pretty typical for a first game. We are leaning hard right now on our offensive line. We rushed for close to 400 yards and that is what we want to do. We are working on our passing game, but I wanted to run the football and we did a good job.”

Louisburg’s offensive line of Mason Koechner, Dustyn Rizzo, Garrett Lowry, Dalton Frazier and T.J. Dover, along with tight ends Ben Hupp and Dalton Ribordy, provided a lot of holes for the Wildcat backs to run through. Overall, Louisburg rushed for 394 yards as a team as it reeled off big play after big play.

Mason Koechner brings down Wyandotte quarterback Marcus Jones on Friday.

Senior running back Thomas San Agustin led Louisburg with 147 yards on the ground, including an 82-yard run for a touchdown to begin the onslaught in the second quarter.

Another senior, Korbin Hankinson, had a big game on both sides of the ball. Hankinson had touchdown runs of 23 and 39 yards in the first quarter to give the Wildcats an early lead and finished with 122 yards for the game.

“It feels good to get this first game under our belt because you are always nervous for that first one,” Hankinson said. “We all had a pretty good game. I really have to give it to my linemen for all the good runs I had. I couldn’t have done it without them.”

Defensively, Hankinson was also responsible for three of Wyandotte’s turnovers. Hankinson intercepted three passes from the cornerback spot.

“Korbin is a heck of an athlete,” Griffin said. “He really hasn’t played a ton of defensive back for us, but when the ball is in the air he goes and gets it and that is really nice to see.”

After San Agustin’s touchdown in the second quarter, quarterback Grant Harding got a couple good blocks and broke free for a 29-yard touchdown run.

Senior Jake Hill also reeled off a pair of big runs in the second quarter as he scored on runs of 26 and 27 yards, respectively, to put Louisburg up 41-0 at halftime.

Sophomore Austin Moore added a 3-yard touchdown in the third quarter to force the running clock and sealed the win for the Wildcats.

“We have some stuff to fix, but overall I think we played pretty well,” Hankinson said. “We had about four or five plays where we had touchdowns called back and had a bigger lead, but I think we did really well overall.”

Defensively, the Wildcats had to deal with Wyandotte quarterback Marcus Jones, who was a threat to run or throw on every snap. Still, Louisburg limited Wyandotte to 122 yards of offense.

“He is an athletic kid,” Griffin said of Wyandotte’s quarterback. “They ran some different stuff than what we were expecting, but I though Coach (Jeff) Lohse did a good job with adjustments and the kids responded well. We just have to keep plugging away. We have a lot of room for improvement but that is probably a good thing.”

Seniors Nick Hull and Koechner led the Wildcats with seven tackles each, while Rizzo added five tackles and two sacks. Moore finished with six tackles, while Hill and Dover tallied five tackles.

The Wildcats also got a good performance from the second team defense as sophomore Kohl Vogel intercepted two passes in the second half to keep the shutout intact.

Louisburg gets an opportunity to play in front of its home crowd Friday as it hosts Piper in its home opener. Piper defeated Paola 23-13 in week one and the Wildcats know it will be challenge to get that second straight win.

“Our schedule outside of (Wyandotte) is pretty brutal,” Griffin said. “We just have to convince the kids that hard-nosed football is what wins games. Piper is going to be a tough, physical game. They have a lot of athletes and returning players. They beat us two years ago and we beat them last year, so this is going to be a rubber game. It will be a good test for us and we need that.”

To view a photo gallery from the game, please click here.

LOU 14 27 7 0 – 48

WYAN 0 0 0 0 – 0

First quarter

L: Korbin Hankinson 23 run (kick failed)

L: Hankinson 39 run (Ben Hupp pass from Grant Harding)

Second quarter

L: Thomas San Agustin 82 run (Harding run)

L: Harding 29 run (run failed)

L: Jake Hill 26 run (Hill kick)

L: Hill 27 run (kick failed)

Third quarter

L: Austin Moore 3 run (Hill kick)

STATISTICS

RUSHING – Thomas San Agustin 9-147; Korbin Hankinson 8-122; Jake Hill 3-52; Grant Harding 5-29; Austin Moore 7-27; Nick Hull 1-9, Brian Houck 4-4, Blue Caplinger 1-0. Totals: 40-394.

PASSING – Grant Harding 1-1-3