Highland 8-Player Football shuts Out Kickapoo/LaFarge 44-0

By John Dalton

The Highland Cardinals played a solid, overall game Friday night on Senior Night and blanked Kickapoo/LaFarge 44-0 at Tyler Field in Highland.  

It was another strong performance from Senior Quarterback and Defensive Back Kaden Washa accounting for five touchdowns.  He tossed three TD passes, ran for one, and returned an interception for one. 

In the first quarter, Cardinal Jack Tarrell caught the first touchdown pass of the night, a 25-yard pass from Washa, and after a Brady Nankey two-point conversion, the Cardinals had an 8-0 lead.  

On Kickapoo/LaFarge’s next possession, Washa picked off a pass and ran it back 32 yards for a touchdown.  He then ran it in for the two-point conversion and a 16-0 Cardinal lead.  Still in the first, on their next possession, it was Washa through the air again, this time he found Koyer Zadrazil on a 36- yard pass and Zadrazil went untouched to the end zone.  Washa again ran it in for the conversion and the Cardinals were in control at the end of the first quarter with a 24-0 lead.  

It was 30-0 in the second quarter after Washa scrambled for a 32-yard touchdown and later in the quarter, Washa heaved a bomb and found Ben Ford who got behind the defense for another touchdown to put the Cardinals up 36-0 at halftime. 

The Cardinal defense was tough all night, allowing only 52 total yards in the game which pleased Highland Head Coach Jasen Scanlon.  “Defensively, we played an aggressive game and tackled much more effectively than we have this season.  The defensive staff of Clint Havlik, Gary Allen, Colton Frost, and John Linscheid spent a lot of time this week reviewing our fundamentals on defense, and the players carried that work over into the game,” he said.   “Although we always look to improve each week, we are encouraged by how much improvement we have shown as a team on defense over the past 6 weeks. We also forced two turnovers in the game, including an interception return touchdown, which always provides an emotional lift to a team. Our special teams’ units also showed much improvement, with a blocked punt by Brady Nankey and strong, consistent kickoff coverage all night.” 

There was no scoring in the third quarter, and able to rest some starters in the second half, freshman Bryler Draves would score on a 5-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, and freshman Trapper Hoffman converted the two-point conversion to complete the scoring for Highland.  

“As a coaching staff, we felt as though our Senior Night win over Kickapoo/LaFarge was our most complete performance of the season. It was another special night at Tyler Field, as we paid tribute to our outstanding class of nine senior players and two senior managers.  They have been a great group to work with all season, and have provided strong leadership to the younger guys in our program. We hope to continue to improve as a team so that we can stretch out their senior season as long as possible,” Scanlan said.  

Highland had 295 total yards offensively, 146 passing and 149 on the ground.  Washa only threw five passes, but he completed four of them for 104 yards and three TDs.  He ran the ball twice for 49 yards for a TD, and an interception that he returned for a TD.  Jack Tarrell led Highland with three receptions for 37 yards and a TD.  Tanner Degenhardt was credited with five tackles and a sack to lead the Cardinals on defense.  

“Our starting offense was efficient and created a lot of big plays. Quarterback Kaden Washa did a very good job of distributing the ball in the passing game, as we had 3 different receivers catch touchdown passes.  Jack Tarrell turned in another strong game, with three receptions and a touchdown,” said Scanlan.  

Highland is now 4-1 in the season with three games left in the conference.  This week, they travel to play Wonewoc-Weston, who is 1-4 in the season, for a Friday evening game, and Coach Scanlan knows not to overlook them with a Homecoming game coming up against current undefeated North Crawford on October 4th.

“If I have ever seen a team whose record does not reflect their level of play, it is Wonewoc/Weston.  Despite their 1-4 record, they are a very impressive team, with a good mix of strong linemen and athletic, physical skill players.  They played very well in a close defeat to an excellent Belmont team last week,” he said.  “Our last three games will be a real test to see just how much we have improved from the beginning of practice until now.  We will continue to focus on getting better day-to-day and preparing for that week's opponent. If you look ahead in our conference, you will regret it,” he said.