Hills-Beaver Creek’s last regular season home football game Oct. 14 was an important one.
It was Parents Night and a chance to end a two-game losing skid, so the Patriots needed to play well in front of the home crowd.
The home team responded with a 24-6 win over the Red Rock Central Falcons, lifting their record to 5-2 and putting an exclamation mark on Parents Night.
The Patriots, in their red-on-red uniforms, took the ball on their opening drive and went 62-yards in 10 plays to score on an option pitch.
Quarterback Oliver Deelstra optioned the defensive end and pitched the ball to running back Cole Baker who scooted 14-yards around the right end and into the north end zone at Patriot Field.
The two-point conversion run by Deelstra was good, and the Patriots’ lead was 8-0 early in the first quarter.
On the ensuing kickoff, the kick coverage team pinned the Falcons deep on their own 15-yard line on a big hit by senior Austin Allen.
After each offense exchanged fumbles, the Falcon offense sputtered again and faced a fourth and nine from their own 9-yard line.
The Falcons’ snap soared over the punter’s hands and out of the endzone. The Patriots held a 10-0 lead after the safety because of the bad snap.
In the second quarter, the Patriots turned the ball over on downs at the Falcons 36-yard line. However, H-BC’s defense held and forced a punt, and the offense started a drive at their own 18-yard line.
Another 10-play drive that covered 82 yards ended with a Cole Baker run from the 4-yard line. A completed pass from Deelstra to Andrew Harris extended the lead to 18-0 for H-BC going into halftime.
The third quarter saw neither team reach the end zone, but the Patriots defense, led by seniors Donovan Leenderts, Ty Bundesen and Cole Baker, shined the entire game.
In the third quarter alone, the Patriots “D” forced a punt and a turnover on downs by the Red Rock Central offense.
The Patriots offense drove for a touchdown in the fourth quarter, but that drive started during the third quarter and covered 61 yards in 12 plays.
Deelstra connected with Austin Allen on a four-yard touchdown pass, extending the Patriots’ lead to 24-0.
The Falcons finally found the end zone in the fourth quarter on a 20-yard run. The extra point was no good, and the Patriots came away with the 24-6 home victory.
In reflecting on the game, Head Coach Rex Metzger said, “We did a nice job controlling the game with our run game,” he said. “With our 19 first downs we were able to keep our defense off the field for the majority of the game.”
The Patriots record stands at 5 wins and 2 losses, while the Falcons dropped to 3 wins and 4 losses on the season.
Hills-Beaver Creek travels to Edgerton to take on the 4-3 Flying Dutchmen on Wednesday, Oct. 20.
Coach Metzger said he looks forward to playing Edgerton in the regular season finale. “It is always a big week when you play Edgerton,” he said. “We’ve had some great games over the years, and we expect it to be another fun game again this week.”
Since 1965, Hills-Beaver Creek and Edgerton have met 71 times in football and HBC has won 44 games and lost 27.
Team statistics
HBC: 236 rushing yards, 138 passing yards, 374 total yards, 19 first downs, four penalties for 35 yards, one turnover.
RRC: 140 rushing yards, 48 passing yards, 188 total yards, nine first downs, three penalties for 15 yards, one turnover
Individual statistics
Rushing: C. Baker 30-135, Ty Bundesen 7-55, O. Deelstra 8-37, Drew Leenderts 1-9.
Passing: O. Deelstra 14-24 for 138 yards.
Receiving: T. Bundesen 8-64, Andrew Harris 3-49, Drew Leenderts 1-24, A. Allen 1-4, C. Baker 1-minus 3.
Defense: Donovan Leenderts 11 tackles, C. Baker seven tackles & one QB sack, T. Bundesen seven tackles & one fumble recovery, Brayden Metzger five tackles, A. Allen five tackles, Drew Leenderts three tackles & one fumble recovery.