Patriot FB Nabs First Win of the Season
By: Kanyon Held, a junior at Leigh High School
After a disappointing loss to another top-ranked Cross County team the week prior, the Patriot football team traveled to Murdock, NE, to do battle with the Elmwood-Murdock Knights on September 4, 2020, where they earned their first win of the season.
When asked about the game, senior Trevor Zulkoski said, “I thought the game went well. We showed up meaning business and showed them how to play football.”
The Patriots started the game off strong when senior quarterback Lance Paprocki ran in a 42-yd rushing touchdown in the first quarter. Eli Hays punched in the two-point conversion after the touchdown. Tommy McEvoy also ran in a 33-yd rushing touchdown in the first quarter, but the Patriots failed to put the two-point conversion in after this one.
In the second quarter, the Patriots put the ball in the air to keep the offensive drive alive, scoring three more touchdowns. Paprocki had a 3-yd rushing touchdown and ran the two-point conversion in as well. Next, Carter Hanel caught a 30-yd pass that he ran in for a touchdown. Eli Hays also caught a 20-yd touchdown pass from Paprocki. Drew Beeson put in the two-point conversion after the touchdown, making the score 36-0 Clarkson-Leigh going into halftime.
In the third quarter, Eli Hays ran in a 47-yd rushing touchdown, but the Patriots failed to put the two-point conversion in. In the fourth quarter, Clarkson-Leigh scored two more touchdowns.by Mason Whitmore and Trey Steffensmeier. The Patriots failed to put the two-point conversion in after both touchdowns. The Knights finally got on the board in the fourth as well, running in a 55-yd touchdown and putting in the two-point conversion after.
Head Coach Jim Clarkson said, “It was a bittersweet night as Tommy McEvoy sustained a serious injury early on, but it was good to see other players step up, and as a team, we dominated on both sides of the ball.”
Clarkson-Leigh vs Elmwood-Murdock
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
C/L 14 22 6 12 54
E/M 0 0 0 8 8
Player Stats:
(rushing yards, passing yards, receiving yards, touchdowns, tackles, assisted tackles)
Lance Paprocki—164, 131, 0, 4, 2, 1; Eli Hays—72, 0, 80, 2, 2, 2; Carter Hanel—0, 0, 44, 3, 2, 0; Drew Beeson—32, 0, 7, 0, 5, 4; Tommy McEvoy—33, 0, 0, 1, 0, 0; Kyle Kasik—21, 0, 0, 0, 1, 6; Mason Whitmore—19, 0, 0, 1, 0, 1; Trey Steffensmeier—15, 0, 0, 1, 1, 1; Ryan Brichacek—15, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0; Bryce Jurgensen—4, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0; Dylan Higby—3, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0; Cooper Vance—0, 0, 0, 0, 3, 0; Trevor Zulkoski—0, 0, 0, 0, 2, 4; Austin Sayers—0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 0; Isaac Baumert—0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 0; Mitchel Beeson—0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 3; Kanyon Held—0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1; Kyle Holmberg—0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1; Troy Graybill—0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1