Great season ends with loss to Mancelona in playoffs
by Richard Lamb– Advance Editor
Although the football season ended too soon for Huron players and fans, the RCHS football team had another great year on the gridiron. The team won eight games on the field (with one taken away, due to participation by two ineligible players) and made the playoffs for the second consecutive season under coach Mike Kosiara.
The 36-14 loss to Mancelona in the first round of the MHSAA Division 7 playoffs Friday at Gilpin Field marked the end of the line for an outstanding senior class, with 11 members contributing to the 14-6 record over the past two seasons. ?These guys have played integral roles in the last two or three years getting us to the playoffs. They will be missed. I have at least one story for every one of them,? Kosiara said. ?When you look at the time we have spent together in the weight room, at practice, and at games, it?s not hard to have a story.?
Seniors on the squad included receiver and cornerback Alex Matthews, quarterback and linebacker Chase McLennan, wide receiver and cornerback Bret Karsten, running back and linebacker Dustin Hein, running back and nose guard Chris Cornett, lineman and kicker Joe Finch, lineman Jordan Waibel, receiver and linebacker T.J. Sobeck, guard and linebacker Jerome Gapczynski, and linemen Henry Dietlin, Ryan Darga, and Derek Schleben.
FRIDAY?S GAME started off slowly as each squad lost the ball on downs. The Hurons? second possession looked to be ending on a punt, but when the snap from center sailed over punter Joe Finch?s head, he spun around and flung a pass to Bret Karsten, who turned it into a first down reception. That drive ended on downs at midfield, setting up the first score by the Ironmen. All-state candidate Adam Duerksen took a handoff and raced around right end for a 47-yard touchdown run on the first play of the ensuing drive. A two-point conversion pass made it 8-0 Mancelona with 1:20 left in the first quarter. The run around right end would be a play the Hurons saw over and over again as Mancelona rushed for 336 yards on the night. ?We had to be balanced, but they brought three backs and a guard to one side or the other. Also, they had a few more kids and ours eventually wore down,? coach Kosiara said. A steady rain made for slick conditions making ball handling difficult for both teams.
THE HURONS started a drive at their own 12 with 6:12 left in the half, following a Mancelona punt. Runs by Kevin Fairbanks and Dustin Hein moved the ball out of the shadow of the goal posts, and then McLennan connected with Hein for two first down passes to move the ball to the Huron 37. Two runs up the middle by McLennan got another first down before a pass to Karsten picked up 25 yards. Four plays later, with 52 seconds left in the half, the Hurons called timeout after McLennan appeared to be hurt in a pileup on a no-gainer. Refusing to come out of the game, he dropped back on the next play and hit Karsten with a jump ball TD pass in the right corner of the north end zone with 43 seconds left in the half. The two-pointer failed, but the Hurons had cracked the scoreboard trailing 8-6. Karsten made a great play on a Hail Mary pass attempt to Duerksen to save a TD as time expired in the half.
MANCELONA GOT its next TD on another long run from Duerksen on their second drive of the third quarter. Taking a pitch around the right side, the speedy senior evaded a tackle at the line of scrimmage, then danced on the sideline, appearing to take at least two steps out of bounds before racing by defenders for a 35-yard TD run. With 7:25 left in the third, Mancelona led 14-6. The Hurons punted on their next possession, after a good kickoff return by sophomore Pat Quaine got them good field position at their own 40. A nearly-great punt coverage almost pinned the Ironmen deep in their own end. Finch blasted a punt from the Mancelona 46, which bounced high enough for Sobeck to nearly down it at the one-yard-line. The officials ruled that Sobeck did get to the ball before it rolled in to the end zone, but that his knee touched the goal line. Then, faced with fourth and inches at their own 29, Mancelona quarterback Greg Blanco used a hard count to get RC to jump off sides, to keep the drive alive. The Ironmen drove the field and capped the drive with another Duerksen TD run, this time on a one-yarder with 9:43 left in the third quarter, giving Mancelona a 20-6 lead.
THE HURONS had come back many times in this season, and looked to get right back into this game. Another good return by Quaine, who was the quarterback of an undefeated junior varsity team this season, brought the ball to the Mancelona 48. A 20-yard run by McLennan, and a pass to Fairbanks, set up McLennan?s four-yard TD run. Hein caught the two-point pass to make the score 20-14 with 8:54 left in the fourth quarter. Trying to spark his team, Kosiara called for the onside kick, which failed, giving Mancelona the ball on the Huron 42. The Ironmen took advantage, running nine plays?seven of them runs by Duerksen?scoring on Duerksen?s one-yard plunge at the 5:08 point of the fourth quarter. The two-pointer made the score 28-14. Duerksen finished with 243 yards and four touchdowns in helping Mancelona to its first ever pla
KOSIARA SAID the team molded well as it shut out three teams and came back for three other exciting wins. ?This is a tough group to give up. We were like family. I remember getting back in the weight room last summer and listening to the banter. I remember thinking ?it?s good to have the family back together,? ? he said.
Statistics: Total offense: Rogers City 131 rushing, 122 passing, 253 total. Mancelona 336 rushing, 23 passing, 359 total. Passing: McLennan 11-of-24, 122 yards, 1TD, 3 INT. Rushing: McLennan 22/83/1; Fairbanks 6/36/0, Hein 3/9/0; Cornett 1/3/0. Receiving: Karsten 8/86/1, Hein 2/14/0, Fairbanks 1/22/0. Defensive leaders: Gapczynski 14 tackles, 6 assists; McLennan 11 tackles, 1 assist; Finch 8 tackles, 2 assists; Schleben 6 tackles, 4 assists.