Football:
The Hays High School varsity football team started their season with an away game against the Derby Panthers.
Coming into the game, Hays High was ranked No. 4 in 5A in Kansas while their opponent was ranked No. 1 in 6A.
In the first quarter, Derby and Hays went back and forth until senior Holden Lind from Hays High found an opening and got a 27-yard touchdown for the team. The Panthers then retaliated by gaining a 53-yard pass to get a touchdown. Hays then turned the ball over on downs, and Derby scored an eight-yard rushing touchdown, with the score being 14-7, with Derby on top.
At the start of the third quarter, Derby went for a 38-yard touchdown and was successful. But, Hays came right back, as Lind scored a 26-yard touchdown for the team. Derby still led at the end of the quarter, 21-14.
In the final quarter, senior Zane Viegra found junior Braxton Basgall, getting Basgall a four-yard touchdown. In a daring gambit to win, head coach Tony Crough decided to go for a two-point conversion. With everything on the line, Viegra sent the ball flying to senior Parker McGuire, and the conversion was good, with Hays winning 22-21.
“I think we played hard,” Crough said. “We were gritty and tough, and we made lots of big plays when it counted. We made lots of mistakes, but so did they. But, I felt like we battled through a lot of adversity and overcame a lot of obstacles to win the game.”
“And we’re just proud of being able to go on the road against the 6A No. 1 team in the state and beat them at their place,” Crough continued. “It’s significant; that was only the sixth win at Derby Stadium by an opponent since, I think, the year 2000. On top of that, I think we’re the only 5A team to beat them there. I believe we’re only the second or third 5A team to beat them, period—home or away—in the last 25 years.”
Hays High returned home to compete on their new home football field on Sept. 12, as they faced the Choctaw Yellowjackets from Oklahoma. Although Choctaw was ranked No. 1 in the 6A division in their home state, Hays High defeated them, 21-19, to move to an early record of 2-0.
On Sept. 19, Hays will travel to Manhattan to face the new No. 1 team in Class 6A.
Cross Country:
The Hays High School cross country team started its season at the Great Bend Invitational on Sept. 4.
Both the boys and the girls raced on the Lake Barton Golf Course. In total, there were 24 teams with an astounding 529 athletes racing that day. The races were separated into varsity, junior varsity and C-team races.
The boys finished in 15th and were led by sophomore Blaydn Werth, running the 5K in 18:26.13 and finishing in 59th out of the 157 athletes in the race.
The girls finished in 16th and were led by sophomore Avrie Branaman, running the 5K in second place in the JV race out of the 62 athletes.
“Overall, I feel that the team competed very well at the loaded Great Bend meet,” head coach Jerold Harris stated. “With multiple teams there qualifying for the state meet the year before, and some teams earning a trophy, this was a tough meet.”
“The team will get stronger as we continue to build a nice base,” Harris continued. “Being able to run distances further than 5 kilometers and being able to work the pace, do fartlek and finish strong, will build confidence throughout the season.”
Boys Soccer:
The Hays High School varsity boys soccer team started its season with its first away game at Salina South against the St. Marys Academy Crusaders on Sept. 9.
In the first half of the game, junior Ivan Maldonaldo scored two goals for his team, while the Crusaders scored no goals during that half.
In the second half of the game, Maldonaldo scored two more goals for his team while the Crusaders scored one goal during that half, ending the game at 4-1, with Hays winning the match.
Junior Brecken Otte, junior Cyler Luck and junior Camden Luck contributed to the game as well, with Otte and Camden Luck getting one assist each while Cyler Luck got two assists for the team.
“We played well overall,” head coach Daniel Kelly said. “We haven’t given up many chances but have struggled with finishing. Going forward, we will continue to work on creating those goal-scoring moments and putting the ball in the back of the net in those moments.”
27bstaleyherman@usd489.com
