As the final buzzer sounded Friday at Wildcat Stadium, members of the Louisburg football team found themselves in uncharted territory.

For nearly three years, the Wildcats hadn’t lost a Frontier League game and had won 19 straight league contests going into Friday’s Senior Night game against Spring Hill. And just like the last three years, Louisburg’s final game with Spring Hill would decide the Frontier League title.

The streak, unfortunately, came to an end for the Wildcats as they suffered a 14-13 setback to the Broncos and lost their first game of the season, along with their No. 1 ranking in Class 4A.

“At this point, it is kind of hard to grasp on what we accomplished in the league and it is tough to see it come to an end,” Louisburg coach Drew Harding said. “We were two points away from continuing the streak and it is definitely a tough loss.

“I felt like we played pretty decent overall. We just had a couple errors and some penalties that kind of cost us. I don’t think we played bad by any means, I think they just played a little bit better.”

Prior to the game, the Wildcat team honored their 24 senior players and three senior managers with their parents. Russell Wiseman, Logan Henry, Josh Holtzen, Daniel Aponte Soto, Reid McCaskill, Conlee Hovey, Wyatt Crooks, Garrison Bloustine, Myles Vohs, Emmett White, Alex Saad, Ashton Moore, Lucas Swartz, Darby Van Eaton, Erik Lien, Aidan Meyer, Jacob Bentz, Roy Bauer, Brayden Yoder, Nate Capuro, Jimmy DeVary, Xander Lucas, Miles Meek and Aiden Kennedy were recognized, along with managers Jazzy Leach, Sami Lane and Liz Willming.

It was a defensive battle for most of the night, despite both teams scoring on their opening drives. Spring Hill (7-1) took the lead first on a 7-yard touchdown run by quarterback Jordan Miller, then the Wildcats (7-1) answered when Ashton Moore found the endzone on a 1-yard run.

From there, opportunities to score were few and far between.

Louisburg junior Blaise Vohs gave the Wildcats the lead in the kicking game with a 30-yard field goal in the second quarter to put the Wildcats up 10-7 at halftime.

The lead widened with another Vohs field goal in the third quarter, this time a 26-yarder. Spring Hill, however, had an answer as it drove down the field and scored on a 3-yard run to go up 14-13.

“Spring Hill just made a couple more plays than we did,” Harding said. “I think we just made a few too many mental errors. We kicked two field goals in the redzone and that turned out to be the difference. If we could cash one or two of those in then it is a completely different game.”

The Broncos tried to extend its lead with a field goal of their own, but the 37-yard try was blocked by Conlee Hovey and gave the Wildcats some momentum with nine minutes left in the game.

Louisburg quarterback Alex Saad found Myles Vohs for a 39-yard diving catch to the Spring Hill 38-yard line. Then Saad hit Vohs again for another first down to the 25.

Then on third down at the 20-yard line, Saad’s pass was tipped at the line of scrimmage and intercepted by the Broncos with just under five minutes left. Spring Hill would run out the clock on the Wildcats’ hopes for a third straight league title.

“It was tough,” Harding said. “It was just a tipped pass and the kid made a heck of a play on the interception. It was unfortunate that it kind of happened that way.”

The connection between Saad and Myles Vohs was big for most of the night. Myles led the way with seven catches for 128 yards and Saad completed 11 of 17 passes for 153 yards.

However, the Wildcats were unable to get much going in the run game as they had just 59 yards on the ground and 41 of those came from Moore.

“Spring Hill was very physical and they did a good job of controlling the line of scrimmage,” Harding said. “It was tough for us to get any traction in the run game and that made it pretty difficult on us.”

Defensively, the Wildcats did their best to limit a powerful Spring Hill offense. Louisburg held Spring Hill to just one point off its season low and the Wildcats got a big performance from defensive tackle Brayden Yoder.

Yoder was all over the field as he led the Wildcats with 17 tackles on the night, including eight solo stops. Moore finished with 13 tackles and had six solo tackles.

Hovey was also big on the defensive line for Louisburg as he had 11 tackles, including two for a loss. Lucas Swartz and Erik Lien had eight and six tackles, respectively.

Louisburg will now begin its playoff run Friday as the Wildcats, who earned the No. 2 seed, will host No. 15 Bishop Miege (1-7). Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

“We are playing on borrowed time right now and nothing is guaranteed,” Harding said. “Our mission from this point forward is just to prepare as best we can during the week and put us in a position to make our season last as long as we possibly can.”

LOU 7 3 3 0 — 13

SH 7 0 7 0 — 14

SCORING SUMMARY

First Quarter

SH: Jordan Miller 7 run (kick good)

L: Ashton Moore 1 run (Blaise Vohs kick)

Second Quarter

L: Blaise Vohs 30 FG

Third Quarter

L: Vohs 26 FG

SH: Patrick Stumpff 3 run (kick good)

STATISTICS

RUSHING — Ashton Moore 15-41; Alex Saad 8-20

PASSING — Alex Saad 11-17-153

RECEIVING — Myles Vohs 7-128; Ashton Moore 2-15; Conlee Hovey 2-10

TACKLES — Brayden Yoder 17, Ashton Moore 13, Conlee Hovey 11, Lucas Swartz 8, Erik Lien 6, Logan Henry 5, Russell Wiseman 2, Myles Vohs 2, Gage Feldkamp 2, Jimmy DeVary 2, Josh Holtzen 1, Bryce Thompson 1, Aiden Kennedy 1. 

OTTAWA — In what was the final game of its 3-game road trip, the Louisburg football team faced its toughest challenge to date.

The Wildcats traveled to Ottawa and went up against a 1-loss Cyclone team that had its eyes on a Frontier League title themselves.

Louisburg quickly dashed those hopes and showed why it is the 2-time defending league champion.

The Wildcat defense held the Ottawa offense to just seven points and Louisburg used two long drives that helped it to a 17-7 victory Friday.

Louisburg maintained its perfect season with a 7-0 record and is still currently ranked No. 1 in Class 4A.

“This was definitely a good game for us to experience,” Louisburg coach Drew Harding said. “We faced some adversity and they certainly had all the momentum there to start the second half. For the guys continuing to play through that and getting the win was good and hopefully this type of game will benefit us in the future.”

As much as the Wildcat offense has thrived this season, it was their defense that came through with its best performance of the year. Louisburg held Ottawa to its lowest point total of the season.

Ottawa’s previous lowest total was 21 points in a loss to Eudora and the Wildcats made a lot of big stops against the Cyclones’ high-powered offense.

“They played really, really well and playing to the scheme and knowing their assignment,” Harding said of the defense. “We did a really good job. We gave up a few big plays that we shouldn’t have, but this team is very explosive, and to hold them to seven points is a good performance.

“Ottawa has a good running back, some good wide receivers and a quarterback that can make some plays. Their offensive line is good too. They are a well-rounded team and they were 5-1 coming in for a reason, so to walk out with a win feels good.”

Louisburg got on the board first in the opening quarter as the Wildcats drove 97-yards to score the game’s first touchdown. On a fourth down and goal from the 1, senior Ashton Moore ran it in to put the Wildcats up 7-0.

Ottawa drove down near the redzone on its next possession, but senior Logan Henry picked off a pass in the endzone to prevent a Cyclone score. 

The Wildcats put together another drive in the second quarter that ended on a 41-yard field goal by Blaise Vohs and Louisburg took a 10-0 lead at halftime.

Ottawa came out with a vengeance after halftime. The Cyclones forced a punt on the Wildcats’ first drive of the half, and then scored on a 26-yard pass to cut the Louisburg lead to three.

After the Cyclones forced another Wildcat punt, Ottawa was on the move again, but the Wildcats got pressures from Lucas Swartz, Brayden Yoder, Erik Lien and Ashton Moore that forced three straight negative plays and an Ottawa punt.

The Wildcat defensive front created havoc most of the night and it was led by Yoder, who finished with seven tackles and a sack. Seniors Conlee Hovey and Miles Meek also had a sack.

“Defensive line played really well and we were able to put pressure on them,” Harding said. “Their quarterback is a tough guy to corral and bring down, but they were able to do it several times and really made it uncomfortable for him.”

Moore took care of the rest from the linebacker spot as he led the team with 10 tackles, including a tackle for a loss. He also created a big turnover as he took the ball away from a Cyclone receiver after a big catch and returned it more than 20 yards in the first half.

Moore carried the load on offense as the Wildcats featured a run-heavy attack. He carried the ball 34 times for 137 yards and had both touchdowns and was also the team’s top receiver with four catches for 41 yards.

“Ashton did take on a load,” Harding said. “We told him that he was going to be carrying the football a lot and we told him that we are going to need him defensively as well. Ashton stepped up to the challenge and just had a big time game.”

Several of those carries came on the game’s most crucial drive. The Wildcats started with 1 minute and 30 seconds left in the third quarter, and Moore put them up by 10 on a 2-yard run with under five minutes left in the fourth.

The drive was 14 plays that covered 61 yards and took 8 minutes and 40 seconds. The Wildcats also got big conversions on third down on catches by Reid McCaskill and Hovey and runs from quarterback Alex Saad.

“Controlling the clock was one of our goals and we wanted to keep their offense on the sidelines,” Harding said. “A drive like that was exactly what we wanted to do.”

“All those guys played really well. We needed to convert on some third and fourth downs and Saad was able to get us a couple. Then Reid and Conlee had big catches for us as well. It was a team-effort for sure.”

Louisburg’s defense put together one more stop and were able to walk out of Ottawa with its perfect record intact.

The Wildcats will now try to secure their third consecutive league title this Friday as they host Spring Hill on Senior Night. The Broncos are 6-1 on the season as both teams are vying for the league crown.

“It will be a challenge,” Harding said. “They are a really good football team and they are a physical team that does a lot of good things. We will have to have another good week of preparation in order to come out and get a win. We are certainly excited to play at home for sure.”

LOU 7 3 0 7 — 17

OTT 0 0 7 0 — 7

SCORING SUMMARY

First Quarter

L: Ashton Moore 1 run (Blaise Vohs kick)

Second Quarter

L: Blaise Vohs 41 FG

Third Quarter

O: Cole McGrath 26 pass from Haydon Hull (kick good)

Fourth Quarter

L: Moore 2 run (Vohs kick)

STATISTICS 

RUSHING — Ashton Moore 34-137; Alex Saad 5-45; Myles Vohs 1-5; Darby Van Eaton 1-2

PASSING — Alex Saad 10-17-94

RECEIVING — Ashton Moore 4-41; Conlee Hovey 3-33; Reid McCaskill 1-16; Myles Vohs 2-4

TACKLES — Ashton Moore 10, Brayden Yoder 7, Lucas Swartz 6, Logan Henry 5, Russell Wiseman 4, Conlee Hovey 4, Miles Meek 3, Myles Vohs 2, Erik Lien 2, Jimmy DeVary 2, Rickey Giles 1, Reid McCaskill 1, Bryce Thompson 1, Gage Feldkamp 1

Here is the Louisburg Sports Zone Athlete of the Week for week seven of the fall sports season, sponsored by Louisburg Family Dental.

BRAYDEN YODER, SENIOR, FOOTBALL

Louisburg senior Brayden Yoder helped lead the Wildcat football team to one of their best performances of the season on defense. Yoder was a member of the defensive line that created havoc last Friday at Ottawa. At defensive tackle, Yoder finished with seven tackles, including one for a loss and a sack in the Wildcats’ 17-7 win.

Yoder is also one of the leaders on the Louisburg offensive line that accounted for nearly 300 yards of total offense. On the season, the Louisburg senior has 45 tackles to go along with 4.5 sacks and 5.5 tackles for a loss as he has helped the Wildcats to a 7-0 start.

The athlete of the week award is announced every Wednesday morning during the fall season and the winner is selected by Louisburg Sports Zone with the help of nominations from coaches.

Previous Winners:

Week 1: Myles Vohs

Week 2: McKenna Lohse

Week 3: Ashton Moore

Week 4: Levi Cotter

Week 5: Colton Blue

Week 6: Adelyn Moore

WICHITA — The Louisburg football team took its undefeated record, and No. 1 ranking, on the road Friday against an unfamiliar opponent in Wichita West.

Whatever doubts there were for the Wildcats were quickly dashed by halftime.

Louisburg scored 43 unanswered points against the Class 6A program and left Wichita with a 43-9 victory at Friends University. It was another well-rounded showing for the Wildcats as they improved their record to 6-0 on the season, despite the long travel to get there.

“It was definitely a different circumstance than we are typically used to,” Louisburg coach Drew Harding said of the close to 3-hour journey to Wichita. “It was a long road trip, but I thought the guys didn’t let that be a distraction and came out and played a pretty good game overall.”

Wichita West opened the game with the ball and the Pioneers drove down the field on the Louisburg defense, but the Wildcats held firm and forced a turnover on downs. From there, the Wildcat offense took over and never let up.

Senior Darby Van Eaton opened the scoring with an 11-yard touchdown run to go up 7-0 in the first quarter and the Wildcats put together several scoring drives in the second.

“I felt like we kind of came out trying to feel them out a little,” Harding said. “We were hoping for a faster start, but the defense was able to prevent a score there on the first drive, and after that I think we settled down and played more to who we are.”

Louisburg senior Ashton Moore scored three touchdowns on the night, including a 33-yard run to begin the second quarter. Junior Blaise Vohs ran in the 2-point conversion and the Wildcats were up 15-0.

Moore scored again on a 3-yard run on the next drive and senior Myles Vohs broke free on a 67-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Alex Saad and the Wildcats led 29-0 at halftime.

The Wildcats were able to move the ball against a bigger Wichita West front for most of the night and were able to win the line of scrimmage. The Louisburg offensive line of Brayden Yoder, Xander Lucas, Nate Capuro, Johnny Hendrickson and Miles Meek provided several lanes to run through.

“That was definitely the biggest fronts we have seen across the board both offensively and defensively,” Harding said. “I thought our guys up front on both sides of the ball played well.  I don’t think we have ever gone into a game thinking we were bigger than the other team, so those guys know they have to play with good technique and be physical.”

Louisburg added a pair of touchdowns in the third quarter on 1-yard run by Moore and a 2-yard touchdown pass from Saad to Myles Vohs.

Moore had a big night on the ground as he carried the ball 18 times for 119 yards and the three scores.

Saad was successful through the air as he completed 13 of 18 passes for 247 yards and two touchdowns. His favorite target was Myles Vohs, who had six catches for 129 yards. Senior Reid McCaskill also had a big night with 84 yards receiving.

Senior Logan Henry was all over the field to lead the Wildcat defense. The Wildcat defensive back had a team-high 13 tackles to go along with an interception.

Moore was second on the team with eight tackles, while Russell Wiseman, Erik Lien and Brayden Yoder each had six. Lien also had an interception.

Senior Conlee Hovey had 1.5 sacks, while Yoder and Moore also had a sack. 

“I thought offensively we were pretty efficient,” Harding said. “I thought we were able to run the ball when needed and were able to make some plays through the passing game as well. Defensively, other than maybe a few too many yards on that first initial drive, I thought they played well. This was a team that wanted to speed us up and play in space and I thought we responded well to the challenge.”

Louisburg will try to keep its winning streak alive this Friday as the Wildcats travel Ottawa for a Frontier League matchup. Ottawa is currently 5-1 on the season and Harding knows it will be a challenge.

“It is certainly a big game,” Harding said. “They are off to a really good start and are a good football team. I know Ottawa has some really good athletes and they are well coached, so it will be a challenge for sure. We will need a good week of preparation this week to get ready for them.” 

LOU 7 22 14 0 — 43

WW 0 0 0 9 — 9

SCORING SUMMARY

First Quarter

L: Darby Van Eaton 11 run (Blaise Vohs kick)

Second Quarter

L: Ashton Moore 33 run (Vohs run)

L: Moore 3 run (Vohs kick)

L: Myles Vohs 67 pass from Alex Saad (Vohs kick)

Third Quarter

L: Moore 1 run (Vohs kick)

L: M. Vohs 2 pass from Saad (Vohs kick)

Fourth Quarter

W: Safety

W: 14 yard run (kick good)

STATISTICS

RUSHING — Ashton Moore 18-119; Darby Van Eaton 2-10; Myles Vohs 1-2

PASSING — Alex Saad 13-18-247

RECEIVING — Myles Vohs 6-129; Reid McCaskill 2-84; Conlee Hovey 2-20; Ashton Moore 2-10, Darby Van Eaton 1-4

TACKLES — Logan Henry 13, Ashton Moore 8, Russell Wiseman 6, Erik Lien 6, Brayden Yoder 6, Conlee Hovey 5, Tate McGreer 5, Reid McCaskill 4, Bryce Thompson 4, Jimmy DeVary 4, Lucas Swartz 3, Myles Vohs 2, Gage Feldkamp 2, Rickey Giles 1, Josh Holtzen 1, Daniel Aponte 1, Cole Heinrich 1, Will Norton 1, Miles Meek 1, Aiden Kennedy 1, Casey Carpenter-Ross 1.

EUDORA — The last few seasons, the Louisburg and Eudora matchup has come down to the final minutes — if not the final seconds.

There was no suspense in this matchup — the Wildcats made sure of that early

Louisburg scored 35 unanswered points, and forced a running clock in the fourth quarter, as the Wildcats cruised to a 42-14 win at Eudora in what could have been their most complete performance to date.

“I thought they played really well and they were focused,” Louisburg coach Drew Harding said. “We talk about 11 white hats all playing together and I think we did a good job of that in the first half. It was nice to score on our opening possession, get a stop and then go score again. We never let our foot off the gas and that was nice to see for sure.”

Senior Myles Vohs provided the Wildcats with a lot fireworks and both sides of the ball and it started on the first drive of the game. Vohs took the pitch from quarterback Alex Saad and sprinted to the endzone for a 58-yard touchdown pass.

After an Ashton Moore 8-yard touchdown run late in the first quarter to put Louisburg up 14-0, Vohs struck again. Saad found a wide open Vohs on a busted coverage for a 52-yard touchdown pass to go up 21-0.

Vohs also did some work on defense as he had a 39-yard interception return for a touchdown in the second half as he alluded several Eudora defenders on his way to the endzone. On the day, Vohs had four catches to go along with 157 yards receiving.

“Myles is just a playmaker,” Harding said. “When he touches the ball, good things can happen. You saw that on offense and then he was able to make that pick, which was great in itself. Then for him to get all those yards and run it back for a touchdown was big time.”

Moore, who scored two touchdowns on the night, finished with a team-high 70 yards rushing. Senior Darby Van Eaton was right behind him with 67 yards on the ground to go along with a 19-yard touchdown run.

Saad ran the offense well with 238 yards passing and had the two touchdowns.

However, it all began up front as the offensive line of Brayden Yoder, Xander Lucas, Miles Meek, Johnny Hendrickson and Nate Capuro, along with tight ends Conlee Hovey and Erik Lien, allowed the Wildcats to control the line of scrimmage. 

“It definitely starts up front and you have to be able to run the football,” Harding said. “If you can’t run the football, you are going to be predictable and easier to defend. We challenged those guys to reestablish the line of scrimmages and they did a good job.”

Defensively, the Wildcats more than held their own. Moore led the team with 11 tackles and senior Logan Henry was second on the team with seven. Hovey forced a fumble and senior Jimmy DeVary had the recovery. DeVary also had 1.5 tackles for a loss.

Louisburg is now 5-0 to start the season and is currently ranked No. 1 in Class 4A by the Kansas High School Football Coaches Association rankings. The Wildcats are also the only remaining undefeated team in Class 4A.

The Wildcats will put their perfect record on the line this Friday when they travel to Wichita-West, a Class 6A program. The game will be played on the Friends University campus.

“It certainly is nice to be ranked, but I personally believe that you can’t read too much into it,” Harding said. “They are just numbers and it doesn’t really matter until you step onto the football field. We challenge our team to take it week by week and get better each week. 

“Playing Wichita-West is a unique situation. We don’t know a whole lot about them and I imagine they don’t know much about us. We will exchange film, come up with a game plan and see what happens.”

LOU 14 21 7 0 — 42

EUD 0 0 7 7 — 14

SCORING SUMMARY

FIRST QUARTER

L: Myles Vohs 58 pass from Alex Saad (Blaise Vohs kick)

L: Ashton Moore 8 run (B. Vohs kick)

SECOND QUARTER

L: Myles Vohs 52 pass from Saad (B. Vohs kick)

L: Darby Van Eaton 19 run (B. Vohs kick)

L: Moore 15 run (B. Vohs kick)

THIRD QUARTER

E: Christian Jarrett 30 pass from Braeden Vandonge (kick good)

L: Myles Vohs 39 interception return (B. Vohs kick)

FOURTH QUARTER

E: Vandonge 4 run (kick good)

STATISTICS

RUSHING — Ashton Moore 12-70; Darby Van Eaton 9-67; Alex Saad 2-32; Myles Vohs 1-8; Cole Heinrich 1-2; Bryce Thompson 1-2

PASSING — Alex Saad 11-15-238; Max Amren 1-1-6

RECEIVING — Myles Vohs 4-157; Reid McCaskill 2-27; Conlee Hovey 3-25; Ashton Moore 1-15; Darby Van Eaton 1-14; Tate McGreer 1-6

TACKLES — Ashton Moore 11, Logan Henry 7, Russell Wiseman 6, Conlee Hovey 6, Brayden Yoder 5, Miles Meek 4, Jimmy DeVary 3, Lucas Swarz 2, Erik Lien 2, Myles Vohs 1, Rickey Giles 1, Garrison Bloustine 1, Bryce Thompson 1, Aidan Meyer 1, Gage Feldkamp 1, Johnny Hendrickson 1, Will Norton 1, Aiden Kennedy 1. 

Louisburg was hoping to get out to a quick start against Bonner Springs during Friday’s homecoming game and the Wildcats didn’t disappoint — quarterback Alex Saad made sure of it.

Saad threw five touchdowns passes, and the Wildcats scored 49 unanswered points, in their 57-8v rout of the Braves at Wildcat Stadium.

Louisburg moved its record to 4-0 on the season as the Wildcats continue their perfect start in the Frontier League. 

“We were striving to play a more complete football game after last week and I think we took some steps to approach that goal,” Louisburg coach Drew Harding said. “It was a fun night for sure.”

Saad got in on a lot of that fun as he threw touchdown passes to four different receivers and had his best night of the young season. 

The senior quarterback was nearly perfect as he completed 11 of 12 passes for 211 yards to go along with the five scores. 

“Alex did a really good job,” Harding said. “He is really, really talented. We challenged him to make sure that his feet are set, and when he does that, he generally delivers a really good ball. I think that kind of showed out there against Bonner. He was able to do some stuff in the RPO’s that make it kind of tough on a defense. He had a great game.”

Louisburg got out to a quick start as the Wildcats scored on their opening possession that ended with a 7-yard touchdown run by Ashton Moore. It would be the first of seven unanswered scores.

Saad threw his first touchdown on the next possession as he found tight end Erik Lien wide open in the endzone for a 5-yard scored. 

Senior wideout Myles Vohs was the recipient of Saad’s next two touchdowns. Vohs beat the Bonner Springs secondary for a 27-yard score to put the Wildcats up 21-0 late in the first quarter.

Then in the second quarter, Vohs made a leaping catch at the goal line for a 10-yard score. Vohs finished the game with five catches for 113 yards and two touchdowns. 

“That really was an emphasis for us this week was to get off to a good start,” Harding said. “We kind of slept-walked through the first half last week and I think we came out and got two or three stops scored on two of our first three drives offensively. We did a much better job starting the game off.”

Right before halftime, the Wildcats struck again. Saad found a wide open Reid McCaskill for a 45-yard touchdown. 

Senior Conlee Hovey recorded a touchdown from Saad to begin the third quarter, and the reserves got a chance to come in and play the rest of the game. 

Backup quarterback Max Amren replaced Saad and scored two touchdowns, including one on a 42-yard pass to Tate McGreer.

The Wildcat defense was dominant from the opening snap as it allowed just the one score in the fourth quarter.

Moore and senior Brayden Yoder each led the way with seven tackles each and Hovey finished with four. Lucas Swartz and Jimmy DeVary each recorded a sack, while Yoder had two tackles for a loss.

“We challenged our defense to play a complete game and we got better for sure,” Harding said. “We did a good job of being assignment sound and being focused the entire game.”

Louisburg will now find themselves away from home for three straight weeks, and that begins this Friday in an important league matchup against Eudora. 

“Eudora is always really well-coached with good athletes, so it will definitely be a challenge,” Harding said. “They run a flex-bone offense that they are good at running. It has been low-scoring games against them for the last three or four years, so it has always been a battle and I am sure this next one will be as well.”

LOU 21 14 7 15 — 57

BON 0 0 0 8 — 8

SCORING SUMMARY 

First Quarter

L: Ashton Moore 7 run (Blaise Vohs kick)

L: Erik Lien 5 pass from Alex Saad (Vohs kick)

L: Myles Vohs 27 pass from Saad (B. Vohs kick)

Second Quarter

L: M. Vohs 10 pass from Saad (B. Vohs kick)

L: Reid McCaskill 45 pass from Saad (B. Vohs kick)

Third Quarter

L: Conlee Hovey 3 pass from Saad (B. Vohs kick)

L: Tate McGreer 42 pass from Max Amren (B. Vohs kick)

Fourth Quarter

B: Kyle Blanz 5 run (run good)

L: Amren 26 run (Freddy Moreau run)

STATISTICS

RUSHING — Ashton Moore 9-79; Darby Van Eaton 9-52; Max Amren 2-21; Cole Heinrich 2-20; Freddy Moreau 2-14; Bryce Thompson 1-8; Grant Bloustine 1-3

PASSING — Alex Saad 11-12-211; Max Amren 1-1-42

RECEIVING — Myles Vohs 5-113; Conlee Hovey 4-48; Reid McCaskill 1-45; Tate McGreer 1-42; Erik Lien 1-5

TACKLES — Ashton Moore 7, Brayden Yoder 7, Conlee Hovey 4, Russell Wiseman 3, Lucas Swartz 3, Erik Lien 3, Logan Henry 2, Bryce Thompson 2, Jimmy DeVary 2, Miles Meek 2, Tate McGreer 2, Rickey Giles 1, Eil Roth 1, Darby Van Eaton 1, Noah Kush 1, Aidan Meyer 1, Tanner Labrie 1, Gaston Schleicher 1, Johnny Hendrickson 1

Missed opportunities, penalties and turnovers all hampered Louisburg on Friday in its home contest against Clay Center.

It is the type of things you see with a loss. Fortunately for the Wildcats, they battled through the adversity against what was an unfamiliar opponent. 

The Wildcats got a big second half from senior running back Ashton Moore, and the Louisburg defense rose to the occasion in a 23-15 victory over Clay Center. It marked a 3-0 start to the Wildcats’ season, although it wasn’t the prettiest.

“Obviously it is good to win, but we have to start playing more complete football games,” Louisburg coach Drew Harding said. “Without looking at the stats, I bet we had more than 400 yards of total offense and we only had 23 points. 

“We didn’t finish two drives that were inside the five and we weren’t good tacklers on defense. It was little things that we have to start correcting, but it was certainly good to get a win.”

Clay Center set the tone early as the Tigers scored on their opening drive and took a 7-0 lead. The Wildcats were ready to match that with a touchdown of their own.

Louisburg quarterback Alex Saad hit Myles Vohs in stride for an apparent 68-yard touchdown, but was called back due to a penalty. The Wildcats thought they had another score on the same drive on a 4th down from the 5-yard line.

Saad threw the ball toward Vohs again in the back of the endzone and one official originally called a touchdown, but was eventually overruled as an incomplete pass.

“It seemed like we were feeling them out to start the game instead of coming out and asserting ourselves,” Harding said. “Credit goes to Clay Center as they have some tough, physical kids. They were ready from the start and we didn’t quite match that intensity and thankfully we did as the game went on.”

The Wildcat offense would sputter until late in the first half. With a minute remaining, Harding put Moore in the backfield in what was his first real action offensively this season.

Moore responded with a 25-yard run on his first carry, which set a up 26-yard touchdown from Saad to Vohs, who dove for the pylon on the score. A Blaise Vohs extra point tied the game at halftime.

Myles Vohs finished the game with six catches, and led the Wildcats with 103 yards. Saad also had a big game through the air as he completed 15 of 23 passes for 169 yards.

Moore carried the ball 14 times, most of those coming in the second half, and finished with 135 yards on the ground. Louisburg senior Darby Van Eaton also had a strong day running the ball with more than 100 yards of total offense.

“I told Ashton during the game that he brought us some serious energy there and that is what we needed,” Harding said. “It gave us a spark for sure and he was huge out there for us. It was awesome to see him back there and his running style is fun to watch. Darby also ran the football well, so to have both of those guys being able to tote the rock is nice.”

Louisburg looked to add its lead to start the second half as the Wildcats drove the ball to the Clay Center 2-yard line, but fumbled that prevented another Wildcat score.

The Wildcat defense came through with another stop and got the ball back to its offense. Louisburg found the end zone this time as Saad found Lucas Swartz on a 7-yard touchdown pass. The Wildcats went for 2 points and got it on a Van Eaton run.

Clay Center tied the game at 15-all early in the fourth and Louisburg faced a 4th down and 5 at midfield with just over five minutes left in the game. Saad picked up a crucial first down on a 10-yard run to keep the drive alive.

The Wildcats finished their nearly 7-minute drive when Moore broke through several Clay Center tackles and scored on a 17-yard run with 1:52 left in the game. Wildcats went for 2 again, and Saad hit Moore on a swing pass for the conversion.

Louisburg’s defense came through again when Gage Feldkamp intercepted a Clay Center pass to stop the Tiger drive. Clay Center did get the ball back with 30 seconds left, but Brayden Yoder and Swartz combined for a sack on fourth down to seal the win.

Yoder had a strong defensive performance up front with 10 tackles, and also had 2.5 sacks on the night. Swartz had 1.5 sacks and six tackles, while senior Erik Lien had seven tackles.

Conlee Hovey and Miles Meek each recorded a half-a-sack.

“After that first drive, I thought we played good defensively football,” Harding said. “We were pretty assignment sound and I felt like we did a decent job of limiting their quarterback, which was one of our goals coming into the game. They have good athletes and they made it tough on us.”

Louisburg will try and make it four wins in a row this Friday as the Wildcats host Bonner Springs for homecoming. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

LOU 0 7 8 8 — 23

CC 7 0 0 8 — 15

SCORING SUMMARY 

First Quarter

CC: Eisaac Girton 1 run (kick good)

Second Quarter

L: Myles Vohs 26 pass from Alex Saad (Blaise Vohs kick)

Third Quarter

L: Lucas Swartz 7 pass from Saad (Darby Van Eaton run)

Fourth quarter

CC: Cole Pladson 9 run (Pladson run)

L: Ashton Moore 17 run (Saad pass to Moore)

STATISTICS 

RUSHING — Ashton Moore 14-135; Darby Van Eaton 26-86; Alex Saad 5-34

PASSING — Alex Saad 15-23-169

RECEIVING — Myles Vohs 6-103; Darby Van Eaton 4-26; Reid McCaskill 1-20; Conlee Hovey 1-8; Lucas Swartz 1-7; Ashton Moore 1-3; Josh Holtzen 1-2

TACKLES — Brayden Yoder 10, Erik Lien 7, Lucas Swartz 6, Ashton Moore 5, Russell Wiseman 4, Logan Henry 4, Conlee Hovey 4, Jimmy DeVary 3, Miles Meek 2, Rickey Giles 2, Myles Vohs 2, Gage Feldkamp 2, Blaise Vohs 1, Johnny Hendrickson 1, Tate McGreer 1

Here is the Louisburg Sports Zone Athlete of the Week for week three of the fall sports season, sponsored by Louisburg Family Dental.

ASHTON MOORE, SENIOR, FOOTBALL

Louisburg senior Ashton Moore provided a big lift for the Wildcat football team in its 8-point victory over Clay Center last Friday. Moore, who has played mainly defense to start the season, was put in at running back late in the first half and it paid off in a big way for Louisburg.

Moore tallied 135 yards on 14 carries, with many of those coming in the second half, and scored the game’s go-ahead touchdown in the Wildcats’ 23-15 victory over Clay Center. He also caught a 2-point conversion from Alex Saad following the score and finished the game with five tackles at the linebacker spot.

The athlete of the week award is announced every Wednesday morning during the fall season and the winner is selected by Louisburg Sports Zone with the help of nominations from coaches.

Previous Winners:

Week 1: Myles Vohs

Week 2: McKenna Lohse

PAOLA — The football rivalry between Louisburg and Paola has been one-sided as of late, and it has been controlled by the Wildcats.

Nothing changed following Friday’s contest at Paola High School.

Louisburg dominated from the start as it scored 27 unanswered points to start the game and never looked back in a 34-13 victory over the Panthers. It marks the third consecutive season the Wildcats have come out on top in the rivalry battle.

It was a much more comfortable victory for the Wildcats following their week one overtime victory against Tonganoxie.

“We got a little better from last week,” Louisburg coach Drew Harding said. “We are still far away from a finished product at this point, but we took a step forward and now we just need to keep taking steps each and every day.”

Louisburg took control of the line of scrimmage and provided lots of room for running back Darby Van Eaton. The Wildcat senior tallied 134 yards on 24 carries with two touchdowns and had 40 yard receiving.

The Wildcat offensive line of Brayden Yoder, Nate Capuro, Miles Meek, Xander Lucas and Johnny Hendrickson, along with tight ends Conlee Hovey and Erik Lien, opened running lanes for Van Eaton.

“Darby ran the football hard,” Harding said. “He was able to break tackles and he was finishing plays and always falling forward. That is what we want out of our backs and he did a good job.”

Van Eaton scored his two touchdowns in the second quarter as he opened with a 2-yard run to give Louisburg a 7-0 lead. On the Wildcats’ next possession, he then broke free for a 36-yard run to the end zone to put his team up two scores.

Louisburg added to its lead at halftime as it got its passing game going.

Quarterback Alex Saad found senior Josh Holtzen in the corner of the end zone for a 30-yard touchdown pass with less than a second remaining in the first half. A Blaise Vohs extra point gave the Wildcats a 21-point lead at halftime.

“We definitely didn’t feel like we were playing our best offensive football in the first half, so to be able connect there right before halftime, and put a bright spot on the first half was pretty nice,” Harding said.

Saad continued the scoring to start the third quarter with a 1-yard touchdown run. Then after a Paola touchdown, the Wildcats answered right back when Saad found Hovey for a 28-yard score and Louisburg led 34-6.

The Louisburg quarterback finished the game with 177 yards and two touchdowns on 12 of 19 passing. Senior Myles Vohs and Hovey each led the team with 53 yards receiving.

Defensively, the Wildcats stymied the Paola offense in a first half shutout. Louisburg limited the big plays as it held the Panthers scoreless till midway through the third quarter when the game was already in-hand.

Lien led Louisburg with 11 tackles on the night, while Rickey Giles and Yoder each finished with five. Yoder also had 1.5 tackles for a loss and Giles had a sack.

Louisburg senior Logan Henry had a first half interception that led to a Wildcat score, while Hovey, Holtzen, Swartz, Lien, Russell Wiseman and Ashton Moore also had tackles for a loss.

“I thought the defense played great,” Harding said. “I still think we are playing better defensive football than offensive football right now. We did a really good job of being assignment sound and getting lined up and making Paola work for what they got.”

The Wildcats also got a chance to put in its reserves in the second half, which doesn’t happen often in a Louisburg-Paola matchup.

“It is really fun to get those guys in because they get beat up on scout team so much,” Harding said. “They put in just as much work as everyone else, so for them to get in on a Friday night is a lot of fun.”

Louisburg will try for its third straight win to start the season this Friday as it hosts an out-of-league opponent in Clay Center — a team the Wildcats aren’t very familiar with. Still, it presents a new type of challenge.

“It is fun to play someone new,” Harding said. “You don’t really know what they do well, so we will obviously watch some film on them, but they have some really good athletes and it will be a challenge for us for sure. We are excited to play someone a little different.”

LOU 0 21 13 0 — 34

PAO 0 0 6 7 — 13

SCORING SUMMARY

Second Quarter

L: Darby Van Eaton 2 run (Blaise Vohs kick)

L: Van Eaton 36 run (Vohs kick)

L: Josh Holtzen 30 pass from Alex Saad (Vohs kick)

Third Quarter

L: Saad 1 run (kick failed)

P: JD Troutman 1 run (kick blocked)

L: Conlee Hovey 28 pass from Saad (Vohs kick)

Fourth Quarter

P: Troutman 30 run (kick good)

STATISTICS

RUSHING — Darby Van Eaton 24-134; Freddy Moreau 3-13; Cole Heinrich 2-7; Bryce Thompson 1-4; Alex Saad 1-1

PASSING — Alex Saad 12-19-177

RECEIVING — Myles Vohs 4-53, Conlee Hovey 3-53, Darby Van Eaton 3-40, Josh Holtzen 1-30, Erik Lien 1-1.

TACKLES — Erik Lien 11, Rickey Giles 5, Brayden Yoder 5, Logan Henry 4, Josh Holtzen 4, Lucas Swartz 4, Gage Feldkamp 4, Russell Wiseman 3, Conlee Hovey 3, Ashton Moore 3, Myles Vohs 2, Bryce Thompson 2, Aidan Meyer 2, Johnny Hendrickson 2, Michael Foote 2, Daniel Aponte 1, Wyatt Crooks 1, Kael McGuire 1, Jimmy DeVary 1, Aiden Kennedy 1

Here is the Louisburg Sports Zone Athlete of the Week for week one of the fall sports season, sponsored by Edward Jones-Craig Holtzen.

MYLES VOHS, SENIOR, FOOTBALL

Louisburg senior Myles Vohs certainly made an impact in the Wildcats’ season opener against Tonganoxie and it took him only two plays to do it. On his first two touches of the game, Vohs scored a pair of touchdowns and helped the Wildcats to a 21-20 victory over Tonganoxie at Wildcat Stadium

On the game, Vohs had three catches and had a team-high 108 yards to go along with the two scores. He scored on a pair of touchdown passes from Alex Saad of 26 and 41 yards.

The athlete of the week award is announced every Wednesday morning during the fall season and the winner is selected by Louisburg Sports Zone with the help of nominations from coaches.