By VINCE LOVERGINE
TopSports.news
The last time Silver Lake and Sabetha football met was back in 2023 in the Class 2A regionals and Sabetha took that game, 45-34. Fast forward two years later and the Blue Jays handed Silver Lake another loss in the regional round on Friday night, 28-16.
Silver Lake freshman quarterback Kip Kruger passed for 283 yards and two TDs in Friday's 28-16 Class 2A playoff loss to Sabetha. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Senior Dayne Johnson caught 13 passes for 167 yards and a TD in Silver Lake's 28-16 loss to Sabetha. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
“I just told them I’m proud of them and I love them,” Silver Lake coach Logan Pegram said. “What kids sacrifice in today’s society is so much to be a part of a football program like ours. We ask a lot of time of them, we ask them to do things that are abnormal in society today, to see them hurt as a coach and a leader of young men is probably the biggest pain to see that hurt, but I just told the how much I love them, I care about them and how proud I am of them because we started the season 0-2 and they responded with seven almost eight weeks of hard-nose grinding football.”
Sabetha has now won four straight against the Eagles in the playoffs, dating back to 2015 and 2017.
The Eagles controlled much of the first half but throughout the game, the Blue Jays run game was too much to handle. In fact, the Blue Jays did not attempt a pass in the game.
Senior William Voos led the Sabetha rushing attack with 24 carries for 191 yards and two touchdowns.
“Their program prides themselves on grinding you down and I felt like the first half we responded to that well but in the second half I think they just got some big plays,'' Pegram said. "Credit goes to them and their coaching staff and their community, hats off to them,”
This game at least stat-wise showed it could’ve been a defensive battle and it played out like that in the first half. Out of the nine games coming into Friday, the Eagles held their opponents to one score in six of them.
The Blue Jays were just as good, recording four shutouts and had three games with one score.
Sabetha’s defense forced two straight three and outs of Silver Lake and the Eagles only had one first down in the first quarter.
The game's first score would come from Silver Lake freshman quarterback Kipton Kruger, on a screen pass to senior Dayne Johnson for 22-yards, which almost was negated after a penalty flag was picked up, making it 7-0 with 8:22 left in the half. That was Johnson’s eighth of the season.
The Eagles couldn’t get the ground game going, totaling just 28 yards, but the Silver Lake passing attack was working. The screen passes to Johnson, the Blue Jays couldn’t figure out, and check down throws to Dom Monhollon.
Kruger in that first half went 18-19 passing for 148 yards and Johnson had eight catches for 88 yards in that first half alone.
Kruger went a perfect 18-18 until an incomplete pass on a third and nine on their own 10 to Johnson forcing a fourth down, but then the Eagles missed the field goal to keep the score, 7-0 at halftime.
“I think we were controlling the game pretty well,” Pegram said. “I felt like we were taking advantage of what the defense gave us and we were just trying to find space out there but Kipton did a great job of that. The first half it felt like we played really well and the second half I felt like the momentum got back on their side and we were trying to get over that hump to get it back on our side, had that turnover so just some things didn’t go our way tonight.”
It remained 7-7 until the third quarter where Sabetha started with possession and drained nearly nine minutes of the clock, as junior quarterback Micah Lang went off the line to the right and punched in the score.
Silver Lake would then take over, running 12 plays for 70-yards into the fourth quarter. Kruger found senior Grady Bergmann, but dropped the pass on third and four after getting popped by a Sabetha defender to force a fourth down. Junior Mason VanVactor nailed a field goal to make it, 10-7 Silver Lake.
But then, the wheels fell off for the Eagles. On the ensuing kickoff, Sabetha’s Cole Menold ran 83 yards to the 4-yard line, followed by a Voos touchdown as the Blue Jays took a 14-10 lead.
“I think that kick return and right after that I think on the next possession we had a fumble and then they got a big chunk play so just a couple of haymakers that landed and we didn’t respond really well to that adversity,” Pegram said.
Still about 10 minutes left in the game, Silver Lake looked to respond, but the Eagles fumbled near mid-field, and Sabetha recovered.
The Blue Jays would then score on another Lang QB sneak from four yards out to make it a 21-10 game. Sabetha would tack on another score after a turnover on downs from Silver Lake, Voos got loose for 38 yards, pushing it to 28-10.
Kruger did throw an interception in the end zone but followed it up a couple of minutes later with a 11-yard pass to senior Joel Miller and that’s where the game ended, 28-16.
Kruger finished 30-35 for 283 yards with two passing touchdowns.
“He’s been great all year, I tell everyone, I’ve been very impressed with his maturity, coming in as a freshman and taking over at a program that values offense and quarterback play,” Pegram said. “I’m very proud of him, but he’d be the first to tell you, it doesn’t happen without the guys around him. Credit goes to those seniors and those guys catching the balls on the outside and the guys up front blocking for him.”
After a 13-catch, 167-yard, one touchdown night by Johnson, Pegram couldn’t help but not reflect on what No. 11 meant to the program.
“I never try to talk about one player, but Dayne Johnson is the heart and soul of what this program is about,'' Pegram said. "He’s competitive, he got thrown in early due to an injury as a freshman, a huge touchdown against Rossville as a freshman to force overtime. I think when it comes to Dayne, I think he’s the most competitive kid I’ve ever coached and I’ve coached Division I kids, I’ve coached a lot of kids and he’s the most competitive kid I’ve ever coached.” Pegram said.
Silver Lake finished the campaign at 7-3.
Individual statistics
Silver Lake:
Kipton Kruger: 30-35, 283 yards, 2 TDs, INT, 2 rush yards
Dayne Johnson: 13 catches, 167 yards, TD
Joel Miller: 5 catches, 37 yards, TD
Grady Bergmann: 4 catches, 38 yards
Owen Rottinghaus: 1 catch, 5 yards
Dom Monhollon: 5 catches, 17 yards, 21 rush yards
Mason VanVactor: 1 catch, 7 yards
Paxton Willett: 1 catch, 11 yards
Bryson Burgos: 3 carries, 10 yards
Sabetha:
Micah Lang: 12 carries, 31 yards, TD
Lincoln Menold: 3 carries, 15 yards
Curtis Fitzgerald: 6 carries, 14 yards
William Voos: 24 carries, 191 yards, 2 TDs
