Tuesday, December 1, 2009

State Championship Results

Olathe North 37, Wichita Heights 3
A collective sigh of relief could be heard from the Olathe North faithful as the final whistle blew during Saturday's 6A title game. Olathe North, who won seven 6A state championships from 1996 to 2003, was finally back on top.
Olathe North came out focused on established their running game early, and often. Simone favorite James Franklin (below) carried the ball three times on the opening drive for 72 yards, with the last carry going for 25 yards and a touchdown to put Olathe North up 7-0. Wichita Heights kicker Chris Farley booted a 28 yard field goal, before Olathe North's Victor Simmons (bottom) scored on a 15 yard touchdown run.
On paper Olathe North controlled the first half (outgaining Wichita Heights in yards 228-61), but only came away with a 14-3 advantage at halftime.
In the third quarter the Eagles dominant run game began to take its toll on the Wichita Heights defense. Franklin added touchdowns on runs of 5, and 68 yards to push the Olathe North lead to 25 points. In the fourth quarter, Olathe North linebacker Kyle Swartz forced a safety, before quarterback David Blazevic added a rushing touchdown later in the quarter to seal the deal, 37-3.
Olathe North is now 8-1 in state championship games, with this title being the school's first since John McCall led the 2003 squad to a 10-3 record and 6A title.


Game Stats

Rushing—Wichita Heights, Smith 13-70, Ross 10-12, Deshazer 3-6, Jones 3-4, Reed 9-(-6), Moreland 4-(-23). Olathe North, Franklin 32-269, Simmons 11-62, Saunders 1-9, Walker 2-2, Blazevic 1-1.
Passing—Wichita Heights, Moreland 2-4-26-0, Reed 2-7-18-0. Olathe North, Blazevic 4-6-86-1, Simmons 0-1-0-0.
Receiving—Wichita Heights, Smith 2-16, Strand 1-15, Taylor 1-13. Olathe North, Peete 2-45, Swartz 2-41.

2 comments:

Rob Maggard said...

Eli,
Just wanted you to know that I really enjoyed looking at your site each week and keeping up with the Sunflower League. You do a great job! I hope that you will continue doing this in the years to come.
Thanks,
Rob Maggard

Eli Underwood said...

Thank you Rob! I will do all in my power to keep this blog up and running in the future.