Wildcats earn 14 spots on All-Frontier League team

By Andy Brown
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Updated: November 21, 2017

Andy Brown / Louisburg Sports Zone

Louisburg junior Austin Moore was the lone Frontier League player to earn first team All-Frontier League honors on both sides of the ball. Moore finished the year with a team-high in tackles, rushing yards and touchdowns.

Although the Louisburg High School football team didn’t make the state playoffs, the Wildcats still considered it a successful season for many reasons.

Louisburg posted a 6-3 record after losing 17 seniors the season before to graduation, and the Wildcats had nearly had an entire new coaching staff, led by head coach Robert Ebenstein.

The Wildcats were a test to everyone in the Frontier League and the other six league coaches were aware of that. The all-league honors were officially released Monday and Louisburg had players all over the team.

Louisburg had five players selected on the offense, while nine were named to the all-league defensive team.

“When you take into consideration how much talent is in our league, I thought we were represented very well,” Ebenstein said. “Every year the Frontier is one of the toughest and most consistent leagues in the state of Kansas. Every season it seems like there is a Frontier League school in the final two in the East. De Soto was there this year, and last year us and Ottawa were two of the final four.”

Austin Moore was one Louisburg player where the Frontier League coaches liked what they saw as he earned first-team honors on both sides of the ball and was the only player in the league to do so.

Moore, a junior, was named first team all-league on defense at middle linebacker and was a first team skill player on offense. It was the second season in a row he finished the year with first team honors on defense.

Senior lineman Garrett Lowry was a first team all-league selection on offense.

Senior Garrett Lowry was a first team selection on the offensive line for the Wildcats, while senior safety Christian Tosterud was named to the first team on defense.

Moore had a big season for the Wildcats as he led the team with 1,154 yards rushing and 15 total touchdowns. Defensively, Moore led Louisburg with 69 tackles, five sacks, five tackles for a loss, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.

“Austin had a very solid season on both sides of the ball, but the most impressive thing about Austin is that he is a great kid and a true leader,” Ebenstein said. “It is reassuring to have kids like Austin around because you know he is always going to do the right thing and represent Louisburg football to the utmost. Austin was the only player in the league to be selected to first team on both sides of the ball, and that is just a testament to him and his work ethic.”

Lowry, who is a three-year starter for the Wildcats, was a fixture on the Wildcat offensive line as he helped pave the way for 2,145 yards rushing and almost 3,000 yards of total offense.

Tosterud was all over the field defensively for Louisburg as he was second on the team with 61 tackles and a forced fumble from his safety spot.

Senior safety Christian Tosterud earned first team all-league defensive honors.

“I was very excited to see Christian and Garrett both receive first team all-league honors as seniors this season,” Ebenstein said. “Both of those guys basically missed an entire year of their high school careers, so for them to get past those trials and work their butts off I am so glad other coaches in the league saw their potential as well.”

The Wildcats also had a pair of players selected to the second team.

Quarterback Madden Rutherford was named as a second team skill player. The Louisburg sophomore finished the season with 670 yards through the air and had eight touchdowns. He also finished with 318 yards rushing and two more touchdowns on the ground.

Sophomore quarterback Madden Rutherford tallied almost 1,000 yards of total offense as he was named second team all-league.

Defensively, junior Kiefer Tucker was a big part of the Wildcat defensive line as he ended up with 35 tackles, two sacks, three tackles for a loss and two fumble recoveries.

“I am very excited for the future of this program as there are many kids that are ready to rise up and take that next step,” Ebenstein said. “We have a lot of young guys returning on both sides of the ball who will big time contributions for us next year. Having a quarterback return who received any honors is a huge advantage. By the end of the year, Madden was making some solid decisions, and began to read veer, midline and our other option plays very well. He had just under 1,000 total yards combined.

“As for Kiefer, he will never be the biggest by the definition of an offensive or defensive lineman, but his motor is relentless and I think that is what the other league coached noticed about him. He is a kid that can close down three gaps and still play stretch and sweep because he is so fast and only has one speed and that is 100 percent.”

Junior lineman Kiefer Tucker earned second team all-league defensive honors.

Louisburg’s defense was well-represented on the honorable mention team as the Wildcats six players named. Defensive linemen Noah Larson and Lowry, linebacker Will Ridley and defensive backs Blue Caplinger, Brayden Gage and Desmond Doles earned all-league honors.

Offensively, Doles and Tucker were selected as honorable mentions, as well.

Doles was the team’s leading receiver with 284 yards through the air and five touchdowns. He also added 29 tackles and a team-high three interceptions on defense.

Caplinger and Gage each had two interceptions for the Wildcats and had 32 and 26 tackles, respectively. Gage also had two forced fumbles and Caplinger had two fumble recoveries.

On the line, Larson had 22 tackles but was second on the team with four sacks and had three tackles for a loss. Lowry finished with 26 tackles and one sack. At linebacker, Ridley had 41 stops to go along with two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery and a sack.

Also for the first time in program history, Ebenstein unveiled six team awards and were handed out during the team’s banquet on Nov. 9.

Austin Moore was named the team’s Offensive Player of the Year and earned the B.A.C. Award. Christian Tosterud was selected as the team’s Defensive Player of the Year and was also give the Hammer Award.

Special Teams Player of the Year was given to Will Ridley and Scout Team Player of the Year was awarded to Jonathan DePriest. Kiefer Tucker earned the Hardhat Award.

“The team awards are something we decided to do to just acknowledge some of the work that our kids put into this sport,” Ebenstein said. “A lot of people do not realize how much most all of our players sacrifice for this program. I could not even attempt to explain, but this commitment aspect is something that separates Louisburg from many other programs throughout the state. The team awards were just a way for us to honor these kids and keep that motivation going all year.

“I honestly thought it would be a fun easy thing to do, it was honestly the hardest thing we had to decide on all year as a coaching staff. The decisions on who would get these awards were the most heated discussion we had all year, in a positive light of course but we have so many deserving kids that it was a really difficult process to get it down to one player for each award.”

ALL-FRONTIER LEAGUE FOOTBALL

FIRST TEAM OFFENSE

Offensive Line: Marshall Kellner, De Soto, senior; Devin Haynes, De Soto, junior; Michael Mashburn, De Soto, junior; Jake Miller, senior, Paola; Garrett Lowry, Louisburg, senior

Skill: Bryce Mohl, De Soto, senior; Trevor Watts, De Soto, senior; Kurt Golubski, Paola, senior; Colton Gleghorn, Paola, senior; Luke Laskowski, Baldwin, senior; Austin Moore, Louisburg, junior

Kicker: Max Garrett, De Soto, senior

SECOND TEAM

Offensive Line: Dustin Adler, Eudora, senior; Keegan Wahlmeier, De Soto, senior; Jeff Schartz, Paola, junior; Mike Stribling, Paola, sophomore; Keegan Crotchett, Spring Hill, senior

Skill: Carter Neis, Eudora, junior; Leo Oplotnik, De Soto, senior; Brennen Feeback, Spring Hill, junior; Nathan Ewing, Spring Hill, senior; Hunter Ramirez, Baldwin, senior; Madden Rutherford, Louisburg, sophomore

Kicker: Jon Bock, Eudora, senior

HONORABLE MENTION

Offensive line: Griffin Oxley, Eudora, junior; Victor Berumen, De Soto, junior; Quinn Nichols, Baldwin, junior; Kiefer Tucker, Louisburg, junior; Tyler McKinney, Paola, junior

Skill: Elijah Kennedy, Eudora, senior; Darren Winans, De Soto, senior; Connor Strouse, De Soto, senior; Drew Smith, Paola, senior; Brandon Wilkes, Paola, senior; Brandon Carlson, Ottawa, junior; Devion Bethea, Ottawa, senior; Desmond Doles, Louisburg, senior

Kicker: Bear Gardner, Spring Hill, sophomore; Ryan Wokutch, Paola, sophomore

FIRST TEAM DEFENSE

Defensive line: Zach Titus, De Soto, senior; Cole Zade, De Soto, senior; Clay Essex, Paola, sophomore; Keegan Crotchett, Spring Hill, senior

Linebacker: Jack Barger, De Soto, senior; Brendan Ohlmeier, Paola, junior; Kaleb Shaffer, Ottawa, senior; Austin Moore, Louisburg, junior

Defensive back: Brayden Brummer, De Soto, senior; Tanner Duncan, Paola, senior; Christian Tosterud, Louisburg, senior

Punter: Max Garrett, De Soto, senior

SECOND TEAM

Defensive line: Austin Ormsby, Eudora, senior; Josh Diehl, De Soto, senior; Brandon Wilkes, Paola, senior; Kiefer Tucker, Louisburg, senior

Linebacker: Jameson McGinness, Eudora, senior; Mason Taulbee, De Soto, senior; Trevor Gress, De Soto, senior; Winston Davis, Paola, senior

Defensive back: Bobby Gill, De Soto, senior; Mason Bell, Spring Hill, senior; Ethan Temple, Baldwin, senior

Punter: Jon Bock, Eudora, senior

HONORABLE MENTION

Defensive line: Elijah Kennedy, Eudora, junior; Jeff Schartz, Paola, junior; Jake Miller, Paola, senior; Kip Rogers, Paola, junior; Garrett Borth, Baldwin, senior; Tristan Schweda, Baldwin, senior; Garrett Lowry, Louisburg, senior; Noah Larson, Louisburg junior

Linebacker: Carter Neis, Eudora, junior; Jimmy Bichelmeyer, De Soto, senior; Colton Gleghorn, Paola, senior; Jacob James, Spring Hill, senior; Nolan Ewing, Spring Hill, junior; Zach Flowers, Baldwin, junior; Cy Hockey, Baldwin, junior; Will Ridley, Louisburg, senior

Defensive back: Drew Smith, Paola, senior; Seth Richmond, Paola, junior; Trajan McCormick, Spring Hill, senior; Desmond Doles, Louisburg, senior; Blue Caplinger, Louisburg, junior; Brayden Gage, Louisburg, junior