San Antonio Express-News (Sunday)
Beavers break through vs. Panthers
ELGIN – Falls City head coach Mark Kirchhoff heard his assistants screaming in his headphones urging him to hurry up.
Unfazed, Kirchhoff patiently sent his plays in with players shuffling in and out — the old-school way — and it led to a drive for the ages.
Quarterback Luke Shaffer connected with Grant Jendrusch out of the shotgun veer for a 17-yard score with 39 seconds left in the fourth quarter to lift the Beavers to a 24-20 victory over Mart in a Class 2A Division II state semifinal Friday night at Wildcat Stadium.
“You gotta believe,” Kirchhoff told his players after a raucous on-field celebration. “Just think about it. The little ole Falls City Beavers — half of you have never been out of the county — are going to play at AT&T Stadium.”
The Beavers (14-1) face Stratford (14-1) for the state championship at 11 a.m. Thursday at AT&T Stadium in Arlington. Stratford beat Albany, 35-14, in the other semifinal Thursday.
Jendrusch’s score capped an 80-yard, 16-play drive that chewed off 7 minutes from the fourth-quarter clock.
“That’s perfect clock management,” Shaffer said. “Coming in into this game, that was one of our strong suits, and we did that right there at the end.”
The Beavers, who won it all in 2010, are making their first state championship appearance since 2013.
It was the fourth year in a row Mart and Falls City had met in this round. The Panthers (14-1) won their previous three meetings. The Beavers finally got their breakthrough.
“Since my freshman year, I’ve been playing these guys, and we just haven’t gotten over this hump,” Jendrusch said. “This offseason we worked tremendously hard. This is the day we had circled on our calendar all year. To get past this hump and get to state is just spectacular.”
The Beavers were ready for the moment. Mart averaged 395.6 yards of total offense and was limited to 292. More importantly, Falls City limited the damage caused by two fumbles from Shaffer.
“No doubt, they are really explosive, but we were able to get back mentally and prepare for the next play and execute,” senior defensive lineman Tristan Niedenberger said. “Seeing the ball go out was pretty demoralizing, but we had to get back up and not give up right there.”
The Panthers led 10-3 at halftime. Mart quarterback Trey Powell lost a fumble at the Panthers’ 5 on their first possession of the second half. Jendrusch cashed it in with a 3-yard touchdown run that tied it at 10.
Mart took a 13-10 lead on Armando Chavez’s 40-yard field goal with 1:53 in the third quarter.
Shaffer fumbled the ball on a bad pitch on the Beavers’ next drive, and that led to a Klyderion Campbell’s 8-yard touchdown catch that gave the Panthers a 20-10 lead at the 11:48 mark of the fourth quarter.
“Coaches tell us to put those things in the back of our heads,” Shaffer said. “That’s just the game of football. You can make mistakes, but you (can make up for it).”
The Beavers did as they made their final run on the ensuing possession on Shaffer’s 14-yard scoring keeper that pulled them to within 20-17 with 10:30 left. Jaxson Pipes provided runs of 19 and 44 yards that fueled the 79-yard drive.
Mart missed a 28-yard field goal on its next possession, and Falls City had its game-winner on the next series.
Senior defensive back Wesley Molina sealed it when he picked off Powell’s desparation heave from midfield on the final play.
“Everybody knew what was happening,” Molina said. “The ball was going to be in the air, so all our DBs were going deep and I just happened to be the lucky one they threw it to and I made the play. Any one of our guys would have made that play.”
After forcing a three-andout to open the game, the Beavers weren’t as lucky on the Panthers’ next possession as Brandon Lundy broke free on a 46-yard catch-and-run touchdown, giving Mart a 7-0 lead with 4:04 left in the first quarter.
Falls City pulled to within 7-3 with a 11:10 left in the second quarter on Shaffer’s 27-yard field goal.
The Beavers stopped Mart on their next two possessions. Niedenberger sacked Powell two straight times to thwart one drive. Elisha Ermis tackled Campbell on an end around for a loss of 5 yards that slowed down the other.
However, the Beavers gave Mart another chance when Shaffer, also the Beavers’ quarterback, fumbled at the 50 on a strip and recovery by Ayden Lane.
Mart turned that into a 24-yard field goal by Chavez with 43 seconds left in the second quarter.