Conway Springs dismantles Wabaunsee, to battle Inman in rematch, in semis for first time since 2011
Conway Springs defense swarms Wabaunsee Wyatt Wurtz making a long evening for him.
by Tracy McCue, Sumner Newscow — The Conway Springs football team has advanced to the state semifinals for the first time since 2011. Conway Springs did it with a 39-14 shellacking of Wabaunsee Friday night at home.
The Cardinals will be facing a rematch with Inman, a team it defeated 35-14 a month ago. Inman defeated Smith Center 28-6. Conway Springs officials are saying the game will be at home.
Conway Springs dominated the line of scrimmage with 515 yards of offense. Wabaunsee, from northeast Kansas, mustered 231 yards of offense and had just 19 rushing yards.
“I thought our defense did a sensational job tonight,” said Matt Biehler, Conway Springs head football coach. “This was an offense that came here averaging 42 points a game. For us to hold them to 14 points says a lot.”
Offensively, Brayden Kunz rushed for 288 yards and scored four touchdowns. Isaac Winter had 92 yards, Nathan Berntsen had 76 and Jose Robles rushed for 49.
The Cardinals are now 7-3 and are the owners of a seven-game winning streak. This game almost came too easily with Wabaunsee sporting a 9-1 record that included a win over Smith Center.
Conway Springs’s defense would not allow a first down until the second quarter. The Cardinals scored the first touchdown on a Kunz 1-yard touchdown run and led 6-0 at the end of one.
Then Isaac Winter got a huge opening from the offensive line and took off for 73 yards to open up a 12-0 lead. Wabaunsee responded with an 11-yard touchdown run its only score during the competitive portion of the game with 1:17 to play in the half.
Conway Springs was only ahead 6-0 at the end of the first quarter. It seemed like it was much more dominating.
But then Conway Springs used just one play to respond to that score when Kunz ran for 54 yards to make it 19-6 at the half.
That set a time a huge 85-yard drive to start the second half. Conway Springs would go on a methodical 12-play drive that ended on a Kunz touchdown. It was 25-6 at the 7:19 mark of the third.
Wabaunsee never got a first down in the third quarter and turned the ball over on downs after it returned the kickoff to the Conway Springs 25. The Cardinals took over at their own 18 and then went on a 14-play drive that ended with another Kunz touchdown. All told in the first 14 minutes of the second half Conway Springs ran 26 plays to Waubaunsee’s 8.
Brayden Kunz had 288 yards vs. Wabaunsee.
The Cardinals added another 9-play drive that resulted in a touchdown, this one by Berntsten, to make it an insurmountable 39-6 lead at the 5:39 mark. In the first 17 minutes of the second half, Conway Springs ran 35 plays to Waubaunsee’s 8.
The Chargers would score late on a Wyatt Wurtz to Bryton Reves 48-yard touchdown pass.
The full stats can be found here.
