By TYLER HENRY
Lead Sportswriter - Salina Post
For all the talk of roster turnover and regression, the Southeast of Saline Trojans still have yet to flinch, and certainly didnât flinch on Friday in a dominant 48-9 rout of the Ellsworth Bearcats.
The Trojan defense held Ellsworth to just one touchdown in garbage time and rolled through the short-handed Bearcat defense, turning a 24-point halftime lead into a 39-point win.
Perhaps most impressively, Southeast did all of this despite four costly turnovers, showcasing how good they can be even on a night plagued with miscues.
Tiernan Ptacek picked up right where he left off in the win over Lyons, marching the opening drive down the field and capping it off with a 2-yard touchdown run.
A Leighton Nutsch interception on Ellsworthâs first drive gave the Trojans the ball back with a short field, and Southeast pounced, this time with Christian Peterson on a one-yard rushing score.
The two sides exchanged turnovers into the second quarter, but it didnât take Southeast long to get back on the board as Tysen Keller exploded for a 41-yard touchdown run to return SES to the scoring column.
Ptacek immediately showed off his two-way utility on the next drive, recording an interception on defense before tossing a touchdown to Keller to put the Trojans up 24-0.
Bo Kyler got Ellsworth on the board with a field goal before half but the damage was done as Southeast cruised through the second half on their way to a third straight win.
Ptacek led the charge, completing 13-of-19 for 176 yards and two touchdowns through the air, while also rushing 16 times for 93 yards and three more scores on the ground.
Tysen Keller broke out in this game as well, leading Southeast in rushing with 99 yards and a touchdown, and receiving with 64 yards and a score on three receptions.
With this win, the Trojans improve to 3-0 for the tenth straight season, while the Bearcats slide to 1-2.
You can watch every minute of this game on demand 100% free below.