By TYLER HENRY
Little Apple Post contributor
After ripping off nine straight wins, an incredible campaign in Rock Creek came to an unfortunate 48-0 end at the hands of Andale in this year’s 3A quarterfinals.
The Mustang season draws to a close at 9-2, as the first nine-win campaign in Rock Creek since 2011.
“Andale is a different animal and credit to them, they did some things defensively that we weren’t quite prepared for,” Mustang head coach Shane Sieben said. “We didn’t really handle adversity well but our defense looked good early and got some really big stops for us before they got worn down in the second quarter.”
Despite coming up short of a semifinal berth, Rock Creek’s program turnaround continues to impress, as the Mustang's win total has steadily risen from three to nine in the last four years.
“This was a special group of kids and it’s the first group that I’ve had here from their freshman year to their senior year,” Sieben said. “We tell our kids to always leave things better than they found them, and these seniors have definitely done that with our program.”
In addition to posting one of the most prolific offenses in the state of Kansas over the last two years, this group of Mustang seniors has laid the groundwork for even better things to come as Rock Creek has established itself as a real player in Class 3A.
“These seniors have meant everything to me and to our program,” he said. “They’re outstanding players but more importantly, they’re outstanding kids. It’s a group that loves being around each other and it’s been a pleasure to be around them as they leave their legacy behind.”
This offseason will be a big one in Rock Creek as the Mustangs say goodbye to several key seniors including Dalton Whitworth, Ethan Burgess, Jaydon Winans, Yanci Spiller, Logan Sturdy, Kody Howard, Maddox Ibarra, Cooper Bittle, and Gavin Meyer.
Despite losing such a deep senior class, Rock Creek will return a great deal of talent for the 2023 season and will be eager to make another run with a new-look team next year.
“The toughest thing about coaching is when those groups of seniors leave,” Sieben said. “This one hurts but we have some good building blocks returning. We look forward to getting after it this offseason and seeing what we can build.”
The Little Apple Post would like to thank everyone who followed along with us throughout our coverage of Rock Creek football this season.
For more great Mustang content including coverage of Rock Creek boys and girls basketball, stay tuned to the Little Apple Post.