Wildcats lose to Smithville in rare battle with Missouri school

Louisburg senior Alec Younggren fights through the Smithville offensive line to get to the quarterback last Friday in Smithville.

SMITHVILLE, Mo. – For the first time in several decades, the Louisburg football team traveled across the state line to face off against a Missouri high school.

The Wildcats were scheduled to host Bonner Springs in a Frontier League matchup last Friday, but the Braves team was forced to quarantine and the Louisburg coaches had to scramble to find an opponent.

They found one in Smithville High School and the Missouri Class 5 program hosted Louisburg in a last minute contest. As unique as the matchup was, the Wildcats left Smithville with a bad taste in their mouths.

Smithville scored 35 unanswered points in the final three quarters and handed the Wildcats a 35-7 loss. It was a difficult challenge for the smaller Louisburg program, but the Wildcats (3-3) tried to make the best of a bad situation.

“I think they were up for the challenge and I am proud of the way that they accepted it for what it was,” Louisburg coach Robert Ebenstein said. “You lose a home game against a league team that we wanted to play and one that we have never played before. I would have liked a week to prepare for Smithville, but it is what it is. I am proud of the boys for playing hard.”

After a scoreless first quarter, Smithville scored on two big pass plays in the second that gave the Warriors some momentum going into halftime. The combo of quarterback Andrew Hedgecorth and Keltin Nitsche connected on a pair of touchdowns on almost the same play.

Nitsche caught a 23 and 22-yard touchdown pass on a fade to the endzone on both occasions and the Warriors took a 14-0 halftime lead.

Louisburg’s offense had a tough time getting much going until late in the game, by then the Wildcats found themselves down 35 points.

Smithville (5-2) opened the second half with a touchdown that was aided by three Louisburg penalties and Wildcats were down three scores and was difficult to come back from. The Warriors ran a spread offense, which was tough to prepare for in a short amount of time.

“We gave up 45 yards of penalties in that drive, so that was kind of tough,” Ebenstein said. “That was a killer for sure. But right before halftime, we had a chance to get at least 3 on the board and we threw an interception and that kind of hurt us a little.

“It was a weird week for sure. It was one of those things where we got the exact opposite for what we were preparing for and what we planned on. It is what it is though. We came over here and Smithville has a good team. It was a short week to prepare and it was kind of tough as the scoreboard kind of reflected that.”

Louisburg’s offense got going in the fourth quarter when quarterback Weston Guetterman found Konnor Vohs on a pair of long passes, including one where Vohs made a one-handed grab.

Guetterman then ended the shutout with a 45-yard touchdown run and the Layne Ryals extra point made it 35-7.

Along with his two catches, Vohs also had a big game on defense as he led the Wildcats with 11 tackles on the night. Sophomore Jase Hovey and seniors Ben Wiedenmann and Jay Scollin each finished with six stops and Wiedenmann also had sack.

Louisburg will try and get back on the winning side of things this Friday when it hosts Ottawa for homecoming in a Frontier League matchup. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. and the crowning will take place at 6:30.

LOU               0             0             0             7 – 7

SMI                0             14           14           7 – 35

SCORING SUMMARY

Second quarter

S: Keltin Nitsche 23 pass from Andrew Hedgecorth (Michael Tyhurst kick)

S: Nitsche 22 pass from Hedgecorth (Tyhurst kick)

Third quarter

S: Adin Murawkski 15 pass from Ryan Pestano (Tyhurst kick)

S: Hayden Sigg 1 run (Tyhurst kick)

Fourth quarter

S: Samuel Calvert 2 pass from Hedgecorth (Tyhurst kick)

L: Weston Guetterman 45 run (Layne Ryals kick)

LOUISBURG STATISTICS

RUSHING – Weston Guetterman 8-82; Ben Wiedenmann 16-76; Kolby Kattau 2-10; Justin Collins 3-4; Andy Hupp 1-2

PASSING – Weston Guetterman 2-10-55

RECEIVING – Konnor Vohs 2-55

TACKLES – Konnor Vohs 11, Jase Hovey 6, Ben Wiedenmann 6, Jay Scollin 6, Kolby Kattau 5, Weston Guetterman 4, Justin Collins 4, Andy Hupp 4, Aiden Barker 4, Alec Younggren 3, Tom Koontz 1, Nathan Vincent 1, JR Rooney 1.

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