In a re-match of Week 5 from the regular season, the Sedgwick Cardinals defeated the Ell-Saline Cardinals, 33-6. While the victor was the same, the contest was a much different affair from the game of 5 weeks ago.
In the first game Sedgwick senior QB Lance Hoffsommer lit up Ell-Saline throwing 7 first half touchdowns with 5 of those TD strikes going to senior wide receiver Ryan Stucky.
This time around, Hoffsomer only threw one touchdown pass and Stucky did not score. While Hoffsommer’s passing game was held in check, he did contribute a pair of touchdown runs.
The first score of the game was Hoffsommer’s only TD pass of the contest when he hooked up with sophomore Jeff Nold on a play that covered 22 yards. That play occurred less than 3 minutes into the game.
Sedgwick scored again with 1:54 left in the opening stanza when senior Austin Cook scampered 40 yards to put Sedgwick up 14-0 after one.
Ell-Saline nearly answered that score when they mounted a drive that ended up with the Cardinals getting stopped at the 1-yard line on 4th and goal from the 4.
Sedgwick, following the near miss by Ell-Saline, would then mount a 99 yard drive that with Hoffsommer running the ball in from the 14 making the score 21-0 at the break. This compares with a 55-0 scored at half in the previous game.
Ell-Saline got the ball to begin the second half and took nearly 10 minutes off the clock before coming up empty when they were again stopped on a 4th and goal play.
There were three scores in quarter number 4.
Hoffsommer got his second rushing TD of the game with 7:08 left when he powered in from 28 yards out.
Following a misplay by Ell-Saline on the ensuing kick-off, junior Christian Brown capped off a short drive with a 10-yard run. Sedgwick missed both of their PAT attempts in the second half.
Ell-Saline would get the last score of the game when junior quarterback Kade Wilson threw a short pass to senior Garrett Phelps who made a nifty run down the sideline after the catch to score on a play that was good for 38 yards.
Ell-Saline ends their season with 4 wins and 6 losses 5 of which were against ranked teams. Meanwhile, Sedgwick’s play-off run will continue next Friday when they take on the Smith Center Redmen in a game featuring a pair on Top 5 teams in Class 1-A.
