After a hard-fought season, the Hays High Indians faced off against the Maize Eagles on Nov. 18 in Maize. The Indians came into the 5A state semifinal matchup with a record of 10-1, and the Eagles came in undefeated at 11-0.

At the beginning of the game, the Indian defense started strong with an interception by senior Remy Stull, returning it deep into Maize territory. A couple plays later, senior quarterback Kyreese Groen ran it in for a four-yard touchdown to take the lead, 7-0. Quickly after, Maize responded by marching down the field and tying the game, 7-7.

After a long drive, the Indians came up short on downs inside the Eagles’ 10-yard line. However, the Indian defense later forced a safety on the Maize offense, making the score 9-7. A couple of short drives ensued for the Indian offense, while Maize scored twice to extend the lead to 21-9 at halftime.

On the first drive in the second half, Hays attempted a punt, which was blocked and returned for an Eagle touchdown. The Eagles managed to add on two more touchdowns to stun the Indians, 42-9, ending Hays High’s historic season with a record of 10-2.

24elucio@usd489.com