Game Review: Football vs. SM West

After 17 years of dominance by SM West, Chip Sherman and his Lancer football team got their signature win of the season last night with a 21-10 victory over the Vikings. The win ended a 13-game losing streak to SM West, and improved the Lancers’ record to 7-1, which ties a school record for wins in a season.

Entering last night’s game, the Lancers had racked up six wins against opponents with a combined record of 18-30 on the season. Anyone skeptical about the legitimacy of this team as a true state title contender had to be impressed with the way the Lancers dominated the game on both sides of the ball against SM West, now 6-2.

The defense stole the show early for the Lancers. Senior defensive lineman George Brophy and senior linebacker Josh Mais plugged up holes in the trenches and kept Viking running backs Will Livingston and Tre Burt from breaking any big runs. Brophy set the tone for the Lancers with an early sack on the mobile quarterback for the Vikings, Armani Williams, for a nine yard loss.

Mais continued the defensive pressure by stepping in front of a second quarter pass from Burt and intercepting it, then returning the ball deep into Viking territory. Schrock led the Lancers on the first scoring drive of the game for either team, and he punctuated the drive with a one-yard quarterback keeper. Senior kicker Chase Woofter put the Lancers up 7-0 with an extra point. Woofter was a perfect 3-3 on extra points, and he did not attempt any field goals.

After a 27-yard field goal by the Vikings on the last play of the first half, the Lancers took a 7-3 lead into the locker room. The third quarter was where the Lancers truly broke the game open. Schrock and junior running back Adam Lowe perfectly executed the option to the left side of the field, and Lowe scampered into the end zone for a seven yard touchdown after receiving the pitch from Schrock. Minutes later, Schrock found junior wide receiver Elliot Faerber, the Sunflower League leader in receptions, on a post pattern down the middle of the field for a 21-yard touchdown.

The Vikings were able to muster just one late touchdown, a 12-yard pass from Williams to wide receiver Derrian Henderson, but it wasn’t enough. East was able to run the ball effectively and keep the clock moving, and the final dagger to the Vikings came when Lancer punter Connor Rellihan turned a bad snap on 4th and long into a first down with less than a minute to play.

A late injury to Schrock is the only thing that put a damper on this huge win for the Lancers. Schrock says that he separated his right shoulder and sprained the AC joint in that shoulder. The timetable for his return is uncertain, with one doctor telling Schrock that he could return in 2-4 weeks and another giving him an estimate of 4-6 weeks. Senior quarterback Robby Moriarty will fill in during Schrock’s absence, which will assuredly extend through next week’s game against SM South, currently 2-6, and into the first round of the playoffs.

When it was all over, the Lancers rushed to their friends, family and fans to celebrate their snapping of the Vikings’ six game winning streak. With the win, Chip Sherman’s team, currently ranked 15 in the state by Metro Sports, leads District 2 for Class 6A. The Lancers will close out their season against the SM South Raiders next Friday, which is senior night, before beginning their quest for the first state title in school history.