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Stevenson, mistakes too much for Sidney in playoff loss

Seward High running back Chance Stevenson was just too much for Sidney on Friday night at Concordia University Stadium.

He ran for 143 yards and two scores on offense and intercepted two passes on defense as the Bluejays defeated the Red Raiders 24-14 in the first round of the Nebraska Class B playoffs.

Sidney certainly didn't help itself with four turnovers – three of them interceptions – as well as a series of short kickoffs that handed the Bluejays free yards on nearly every possession.

The Red Raider defense played tough all night and only surrendered 347 total yards to an offense that had averaged almost 40 points per game coming into Friday night. The Bluejays never scored on quick-strike plays – rather, they went on long, but slow drives that ate up large chunks of clock.

"It was our last game," senior linebacker Kevin Jurgensen said. "I wish we had one more and I wish I could have played harder. It's going to sit with me for a long time. But overall our defensive lineman really stepped up in this game and they played good.

We didn't play bad, we just needed to make more plays."

Seward senior quarterback Reid Karel was held in check, only going 8-for-22 passing for 135 yards, a touchdown and two INTs. But he made big throws in opportune moments. In the end, the Bluejay offense just made more plays.

Sidney head coach Todd Ekart said his defense wasn't as sharp as it has been in the past.

"We made some plays, but had too many coverage busts and missed tackles," Ekart said. "I thought we did some things well, but also had some missed assignments."

Simultaneously, Sidney's running game wasn't quite itself.

Senior Chance Anglin struggled, picking up 57 yards on 12 carries and was never able to find that one big run. The Red Raiders' change-of-pace back Michael Muggli was limited to just two yards on two carries.

Junior Jake Heeren was spectacular – accounting for 110 rushing yards and a score on 16 carries, as well as two catches for 37 yards – but he didn't get enough help, as the Bluejay defense keyed in on Anglin from the start.

"In the first half, I got the ball a couple of times and they (the Seward defense) were eyeing me," Heeren said. "So we tried to give the ball to Chance and got a few plays outside. Then in the second half we came in started pounding the ball with me inside and out. I knew I had to run hard to keep us in the game."

Sidney began the game with the ball and started its first drive decently. Heeren picked up 14 yards on his first three carries and it appeared as though the Red Raiders' power running game might establish itself. But quarterback Lane Harvey was picked off by Stevenson on a pass toward the sideline and Seward took over at their own 30.

The Bluejays then drove 14 plays and 70 yards for the score, capped off by Stevenson's eight-yard TD run.

Two possessions later, Stevenson robbed Harvey again – after Sidney had driven 40 yards to get to the Seward 25. The Red Raiders were unable to take advantage of excellent field position on any of their first three possessions. They started on their own 41-, 43- and 35-yard lines respectively, but the offense stalled quickly each time.

Leading 7-0, Seward was threatening to add to its lead late in the second quarter. On a first and 10 from Sidney's 24, Karel fired a strike to wideout Cale Wagner, who broke a tackle and fumbled the ball on the Sidney 1-yard line. Jurgensen recovered the loose ball for Sidney.

With a new sense of rejuvenation, the Red Raider offense drove 99 yards on 12 plays, as Harvey found Muggli for a 29-yard TD. The two-point conversion failed and Sidney trailed 7-6, with 1:11 left in the first half.

Seward was able to tack on a 24-yard field goal after it started with the ball on their own 47 and picked up 41 yards on a pair of Karel passes. The Bluejays took a 10-6 lead into halftime.

After recovering a Sidney onside kick, Seward opened the third quarter with a 10-play, 50-yard scoring drive that took 4:41 off the clock as Stevenson crossed the goal line for the second time. The Bluejays led 17-6 after the extra point.

Needing a score for his team, Heeren took over on Sidney's next series. He ran the ball four times for 59 yards including a six-yard TD run to get the Red Raiders back in the game. This time the two-point conversion was successful and, just two minutes later, Sidney was back within 17-14.

But the Red Raiders opted for another onside kickoff, which the Bluejays recovered at their own 44.

It was the second time the Red Raiders had given Seward great field position after a score. Ekart says his special teams had been struggling the past few weeks so he wanted to mix things up.

"Our regular kick coverage team was not playing real well, so we put starters on the kickoff team and kicked it short to see if we could get one."

Seven plays and 56 yards later, Seward scored again. This time it was on a 15-yard slant pass from Karel to wideout Ben Klenke with 2:19 left in the third.

On the ensuing kickoff, Sidney's Garrett Deer mishandled the squib kick and the Bluejays recovered on the Red Raider 19 with thoughts of putting the game away. But on the first play from scrimmage, Harvey intercepted his counterpart Karel in the end zone for a touchback.

The rest of the scoreless fourth quarter was a collection of ugly drives marked by turnovers.

 

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