By TYLER HENRY
Salina Post contributor
After one of the best runs in program history, the 2020 Southeast of Saline season came to an end on Friday at the hands of Wichita Collegiate by a final score of 27-22.
The Trojans fought valiantly to come back and even take a late fourth quarter lead, but the Spartans proved to be too much to handle, wrestling away that lead in the final minutes of the contest.
“It was a good football game and I’m awfully proud of our kids,” SES head coach Mitch Gebhardt said. “Wichita Collegiate took us a little out of our game in the first half and we challenged our kids at half, I was really proud of how they responded”
After a scoreless first quarter, Wichita Collegiate got on the board first with a four yard touchdown run by Carson Phelps to put the Spartans up 7-0.
SES would respond with a four yard connection from Jaxson Gebhardt to Eli Harris, and a two point conversion put the Trojans on top 8-7.
Just before the half, the Spartans found the end zone again, this time thanks to a 12 yard touchdown run by Jacob Chugg.
Out of the break, the Trojan offense struggled, turning the ball over twice on their first three second half drives. But the Southeast defense stepped up in a big way, holding Collegiate scoreless in the third.
“Defense has been key to everything we did this year,” Gebhardt said. “They set the tone and our defense played well tonight against a good offensive football team.”
In the fourth quarter, the Spartans struck quickly with a touchdown on a keeper by quarterback Wesley Fair, but once again Southeast answered, forcing a turnover on downs on the Collegiate 10 and running it in with Jaxson Gebhardt to cut the lead back down to 21-14.
Trailing with just 4:13 to play, Gebhardt unloaded a pass to Tyler Breeding who made an unbelievable catch in the end zone to bring the Trojans within one.
A two point conversion put Southeast on top 22-21 with just over 4:00 to play.
With all the wind out of their sails, Collegiate looked to their sophomore quarterback to lead a comeback drive, and he did just that, marching the Spartans 84 yards downfield and running it in from seven yards out to give his team the lead.
With under a minute to play the SES offense took the field looking for a playoff miracle, but it never came and the Trojans fell for the first time all year, ending their season at 9-1.
While Southeast’s season ends tonight, Wichita Collegiate will advance to take on Andale in the state semifinal, following their 42-0 ransacking of Riley County. The two met once this year already in a 43-14 win for Andale.
Through ten games this season, Southeast allowed just 7 points per game, outscored their opponents 364-73 and reached the state quarterfinal, something no Trojan team has done in the last decade.
Feature image of the team courtesy Jessica Kendall Sprecker.