It’s sectional playoff time, and that meant a trip to Hutchinson to take on the Central Christian Cougars was in order for the Thunder Ridge Longhorns.
The two teams traded possessions to start the game. Thunder Ridge was able to strike first on a touchdown run by Reece Struckhoff. that made it 6-0 in favor of Thunder Ridge. However, the Cougars struck quickly and it was 8-6 Cougars in no time.
Central Christian was able to recover 3 onside kicks en-route to scoring 30 unanswered points. The Thunder Ridge offense found some life, but the defense played uninspired and the Longhorns found themselves down 58-20 with just a few seconds left in the half. A long hailmary touchdown pass from Struckhoff to Dylan Bice made it 58-28 heading into the half.
The Cougars got the ball to start the second-half looking to end the game early by 45 point rule, however, the Longhorns had other plans. Thunder Ridge scored 22 unanswered points to make it 58-50. Running back Garret Burns would finally find the endzone for Central Christian, making it 64-50 heading into the 4th quarter.
Thunder Ridge was able to close the gap to 64-58 on their next possession. They even forced the Cougars into a safety to make the score 64-60. Thunder Ridge went on the offensive, trying to find the lead. They drove deep in to Cougar territory, making it inside the 20. However, a botched snapped backed the Longhorns up to midfield. Further disaster struck when Reece Struckhoff threw an interception on the very next play.
Central Christian had the ball with 2:40 left on the clock, so they’d have to pick up some first downs if they wanted to run the clock out. They were able to do so, making the final score: Central Christian 64 Thunder Ridge 60. The comeback attempt had fallen short.
Reece Struckhoff had another fantastic game, finishing with 305 rushing yards and 5 touchdowns on 38 carries. He also was 6/9 passing for 100 yards and 2 touchdowns. Dylan Bice caught both of those touchdowns. Struckhoff had well over 2,000 rushing yards this season. Garret Burns ran for 236 yards and 5 touchdowns on 26 carries for the Cougars. Quarterback Caleb Lambert was 17 for 24 passing for 220 yards and 4 touchdowns, most of that came in the first half. Adam hall caught 8 balls for 117 yards and 4 touchdowns.
The Longhorns end their season at 9-2. They have many fine young pieces to build on in Dylan and Dalton Bice, Kaleb Wagenblast, and Daxton Dunlap, among others.
The Cougars will face Osborne (11-0) next week in Osborne with a trip to state on the line.