By VINCE LOVERGINE
TopSports.news
Seaman football was unable to overcome a slow start in Friday's season-opener at Don Pierce Field, dropping a 33-22 United Kansas Conference decision to Piper.
Jared Swafford's Seaman Vikings rallied late but dropped a 33-22 UKC decision to Piper Friday night. [File photo/TSN]
Friday was the first time the Vikings didn’t feature guys like Max Huston, Bryer Finley and Kaden Jordan, just to name a few, over the last couple of years and in the post-game huddle Seaman coach Jared Swafford said Friday's loss was on him and said he loved his team’s fight in the end and that they didn’t fold. He knows he’s got a young group but he said that’s not going to stop them.
“Anytime you lose, it’s easy to look at all the issues or what you think is an issue,'' Swafford said. "I’m really proud of our team. It could’ve gotten ugly. We kept fighting back. We gave ourselves chances to go out and still be in a ballgame. It’s one of those things, give credit to Piper, they have a good squad, a running back that is unbelievable and they did stuff to put us in a bind and it’s on me.
“Our team is only going to get better and I’m really excited about it… we’re going to continue to build… we have a lot of great pieces, the coaches worked their tails off, but obviously just not the result we were hoping for on Week 1.''
It was a sluggish start for the Vikings to begin the game, as penalties hurt them both on offense and defense in the first half. Piper booted a field goal in the first quarter to make it 3-0 with one minute left in the quarter.
Piper would get the game's first touchdown in the second quarter after Kole Schaunaman picked up a sack on third down to give the ball back to the Pirates. About three minutes later, Piper running back Roman Byers punched it right up the gut for a 1-yard TD to make it 10-0 with six minutes left until halftime.
Right after the Piper score, Seaman immediately marched down the field, finished off by a Quentin Moravec 2-yard rushing touchdown to make it 10-7 with 4:13 left in the half.
The Pirates would not back down and respond with their own score, Byers ripped off 59-yard rushing touchdown straight up the middle of the field to make it a 16-7 game after a muffed snap for the point-after attempt. The junior running back finished with 29 carries and 206 yards on the ground.
“That’s a very talented young man (Byers). He runs really hard, he’s got great vision, he makes cuts where you think you got him and then he’s gone,” Swafford said. “He’s a really good player, but we won’t be the last defense who has to stress spending all week about how to slow him down. They’re going to be a really tough team. That’s what I said in the handshake line, ‘You guys got a great team and keep grinding.’ ”
Seaman would try to even the score but junior quarterback Cale Ketter was intercepted by Piper’s Eric Seigel with 1:45 left in the half, halting any momentum the Vikings had.
Something needed to change for Seaman to get that momentum back, and on the second half kickoff, the Vikings recovered the kick, exactly what the doctor ordered. But, Piper put the clamps down and forced a turnover on downs.
Then the wheels started to fall off. Alamar Brooks broke free for a 72-yard touchdown and the Pirates converted a 2-point conversion to take a 24-7 lead in the third quarter.
The Pirates would secure a safety, after Seaman punter/kicker Bryan Hayes stepped out of bounds as the Vikings were pushed back on the 1-yard line to end the third quarter. On the ensuing possession after the kickoff, Easton McCarty hooked up with quarterback Leeum Healy for a 13-yard catch, making it a 33-7 game.
In the end, Seaman would not back down, as Moravec scored two more touchdowns on the ground to account for the 33-22 final margin.
Seaman’s next tilt is against Shawnee Mission East at home on Friday, Sept. 12.
Scoring Plays:
Piper Field Goal: (3-0)
Piper – Roman Byers: 1-yard rush TD (10-0)
Seaman – Quentin Moravec: 2-yard rush TD (10-7)
Piper — Byers 59-yard Rush TD (16-7). Muffed PAT snap
Piper — Alamar Brooks 72 TD pass catch (24-7)
Piper – Safety (26-7)
Piper – Easton McCarty: 13-yard TD pass catch (33-7)
Seaman – Moravec: 5-yard rush (33-14)
Seaman – Moravec: 1-yard rush TD (33-22) 2-point good
Individual Stats:
Cale Ketter - 31-38, 181 yards, -4 rush yards
Noah Kobuszewski - 7 catches, 46 yards
Kaden McKinney - 1 catch, 5 yards, 6 rush, 38 yards
Josh Brown: 10 catches, 71 yards
Coy Barta: 8 catches, 53 yards
Jack Becker: 3 catches, 10 yards
Quentin Moravec, 1 catch, -4 yards, 17 rush, 93 yards 3 TD’s
