Patriots Fall Against Tough Midway Squad

The Christ Prep Patriots limped into Cass-Midway last night and left with a 48-15 loss to a tough 5-1 Viking team. Although losing by a lopsided score, the Patriots competed well with what was a depleted and makeshift squad of players.

Timothy Finley, the Patriots usual TE, got the nod at QB last night as Josiah Thill and Tanner Metzdorf (1st and 2nd Stringers, respectively) were sidelined with injuries. Other players were shuffled around as well to compensate for other Patriot casualties.

Despite the adversity, Christ Prep didn't back down but ran into a Viking juggernaut that was Bobby Zielinski. Zielinski scored the first four Midway touchdowns of the game, the first two coming on pass plays from QB Peyton Semsch on strikes of 21 and 68 yards, respectively. Zielinski then followed up with a 58 yard interception return then concluded the half with another 42 yard touchdown pass from Semsch.

Those four plays put the Patriots in an early hole, but the team fought back late in the first half as Finley hit paydirt on a one yard run. The game went to intermission with Christ Prep trailing 28-7.

The Patriots entered the second half with momentum on their side and were optimistic that they could come back against the Vikings during the second half. However, Midway quickly squelched that notion as Semsch picked of a Finley pass and returned it 14 yards for an early third quarter score.

Midway added two more third quarter touchdowns, opening up a 48-7 lead early in the fourth quarter. Christ Prep wasn't finished however, as Finley hit Chase Stamatis on a 75 yard bomb that struck gold for CPA. Following a pass from Finley to Davis White for the two point conversion, the Patriots drew closer to 48-15 but could not score again as the game ended with that margin.

In many ways, the game represented the Patriots best effort of the season given the injuries and resulting adversity affecting the team as well as the strength and size of the Midway squad. Statistically the Patriots put up some decent numbers against the Vikings. Timothy Finley was 13-17 passing for 185 yards and one touchdown with three interceptions. Chris Mills caught five of those passes while Chase Stamatis caught 2 passes for 86 yards and a TD. Davis White caught five more passes and Levi Mann grabbed one. The Patriots managed only 55 yards on the ground on 28 carries.

Follow this link https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/113773381929590803444/albums/5793665205055528305?authkey=CMuL7sW05s6UQA to view photos of last night's contest.

The Patriots will take their 1-4 record next week to St. George, Kansas to play the 3-2 Rock Creek Mustangs. Midway travels to Rich Hill to take on the 0-6 Tigers.

Patriots Lose to Oskaloosa

The Christ Prep Patriots fell to the previously winless Oskaloosa Bears by a score of 32-12 this afternoon at Piper High School. CPA struggled early, as turnovers and penalties helped the Bears to a 20-0 first quarter lead which was expanded to 32-0 by halftime. The Patriots scored two second half touchdowns, one on a Josiah Thill run and the other on a Thill pass to Chase Stamatis. Another late CPA scoring drive stalled and the game ended 32-12.

We'll try to post links to pictures and some stats later on this weekend or Monday. Christ Prep travels to Midway High in Cleveland, Mo. next Friday night to take on the 4-1 Vikings.

Patriots Fall to McLouth 42-7

Despite being the beneficiaries of seven turnovers, the Christ Prep Patriots lost to the McLouth Bulldogs 42-7 last night at McLouth.

The Patriots sputtered early, handing the Bulldogs excellent field position on their first two drives. McLouth capitalized, as T.J. Crowell scored two first quarter touchdowns on runs of 1 and 20 yards.  McLouth added an 82 yard Drew Cerny punt return in the second quarter and took a 22-0 lead over the Patriots into the locker room at halftime.

The Patriots gained good field position on some of the McLouth turnovers, but never really capitalized. Several drives stalled at the hands of penalties or excellent defensive play by the Bulldogs. The Patriots managed one second half touchdown, the result of a 46 yard pass from Josiah Thill to Chase Stamatis. After Timothy Finley’s PAT, though, CPA found itself pretty much out of the game as they trailed 36-7 at the end of the third quarter. McLouth added another fourth quarter TD which capped the 42-7 victory.

Christ Prep managed only 59 yards rushing on 32 carries. Thill ran for 23 yards on 12 carries while Tanner Metzdorf had ten carries for 14 yards and Davis White added 13 yards on six carries. Thill also completed 12 of 26 passes for 95 yards and a TD. Chase Stamatis caught three Thill balls for 51 yards which included the 46 yard TD. Finley caught six passes for 33 yards. Davis White added two receptions and Chris Mills one.

Defensively, Regan Hurley led Patriot tacklers with 10. Stamatis added 7 followed by Thill (5), Mills (5), Cameron Blair (4), Metzdorf (4), and Levi Mann (4). Stamatis recovered two of the six Bulldog fumbles while Metzdorf added an interception. The other four McLouth fumbles were recovered by Will Cook, Logan White, Blair, and Mills.

With the loss, the Patriots fall to 1-2 as they return home to host 0-3 Oskaloosa next  Saturday afternoon at Piper H.S. McLouth improves to 3-0 as they travel next week to Olpe to take on the 2-1 Eagles.

Check out this link to view photos of last night’s contest: https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/113773381929590803444/albums/5788406070883136497?hl=en

Patriots Grab First Win

In a game that was not as close as the score indicated, the Christ Prep Patriots beat the Derek Thomas Academy Chiefs last night 19-6 at Piper High School.

The Patriots scored on their first possession, a 16 yard TD strike from Josiah Thill to Timothy Finley. The score happened four plays after an opening play 54 yard keeper by Thill.

The Patriot defense was stifling throughout the game and the Chiefs found few plays that would work against the CPA defenders. The teams traded possessions until Thill broke free for another score on a 13 yard run. The Patriots then took a 13-0 lead into intermission.

The Chiefs threatened to come back early in the third quarter, returning the second half kickoff to their own 40. Two plays later, the Chiefs' quarterback Robert Verge reversed field and ran 58 yards for the lone Thomas Academy touchdown.

Penalties kept the Patriots from reaching the end zone several times during the game as twice they were as deep as the two yard line before being penalized back where their drives ended up stalling. However, they did hit paydirt one more time as Thill pushed through for another TD in the fourth quarter on a one yard run.

Statistically, the Patriots showed well in all phases offensively. The team rushed for 179 yards on 37 carries. Josiah Thill had 114 of those yards on his 14 carries with two touchdowns. Tanner Metzdorf added 38 yards on ten carries while Cameron Rucker put up 27 yards on 13 carries. Thill had a big night passing as well, going 9 for 14 for 109 yards with one TD no interceptions. Thill hit Finley five times for 56 yards (one TD) and found Chase Stamatis twice for a total of 31 yards. Thill found Chris Mills and Metzdorf once each, completing passes of 16 and six yards, respectively.

The Patriots defensive put up some big numbers as well. As a unit they had 37 tackles and were consistently penetrating the line of scrimmage, tackling the Chiefs several times in their own backfield.  Chris Mills led Patriot tacklers with seven, while Josiah Thill also contributed on the other side of the line of scrimmage, tackling the Chiefs six times. Cameron Blair stopped the DT runners five times while Regan Hurley and Timothy Finley added four tackles each. Hurley also batted down an attempted PAT pass. Cameron Rucker  contributed the lone Patriot sack.

With the win, CPA improves to 1-1 as they travel next Friday night to McLouth to face the 2-0 Bulldogs who handily put away Doniphan West lat night by a score of 46-14. The Chiefs fall to 1-2 and will travel next week to Milan, Mo., to take on the 2-1 Wildcats.

Scroll down to see photos of last night's action.

Patriots Fall in Opener

The Christ Prep Patriots lost to the Jefferson County North Chargers 28-12  last night in the season opener for both teams.

CPA scored on its opening series--a 15 play workmanlike drive that was capped by a 9-yard run by senior Grant Layman. After drawing first blood, the Patriots sputtered on defense and allowed the Chargers to come right back and tie them 6-6 after a partially blocked punt was returned for a Jefferson County North TD. The Patriots struggled during the second quarter, as Jefferson County North capitalized on several Patriot injuries, miscues and turnovers, most of which were at least partially assisted by the torrential rains delivered courtesy of lingering Hurricane Isaac.

Although down 21-6 at the half, the Patriots made several adjustments at intermission and better contained the Chargers running attack during the third and fourth quarters. The Patriots gave up a 54 yard Charger running touchdown in the third quarter, which was by-and-large the only defensive hiccup in the second half. The Patriots looked better offensively late but could still just muster one more score-a 1 yard Josiah Thill quarterback sneak late in the game.

With the loss, the Patriots fall to 0-1 while the Chargers start the season at 1-0. Christ Prep returns next week to its home field--Piper High School--as they seek to even their record against Derrick Thomas Academy.

Scroll down to view pictures of last night's contest. Check back later for game stats and other new information.