SK beats Ryle to stay unbeaten

INDEPENDENCE, Ky. — Usually, a defense allowing 24 first downs and being on the field for just under 100 plays isn’t a winning combination. But, as northern Kentucky has learned, unbeaten Simon Kenton isn’t your usual team.

Using a balanced offense and a “bend-but-don’t-break” defense, the home-standing Pioneers overcame a slow start and a fast-paced offensive opponent to eventually overwhelm the Ryle Raiders 28-7 in a possible Kentucky 6A playoff preview at Chlorine Menifee Stadium.

“One of the messages I gave them in the pre-game speech was that it was going to take all three phases,” said Simon Kenton head coach Jeff Marksberry, “Our defense did what they needed to do, and it obviously made our offense feel good, the defense kept coming over and being positive on the sidelines as the offense was struggling.”

The Ryle (7-2) offense started quickly, capping a 12-play, 76-yard when junior quarterback Tanner Morgan found senior running back Colin England for a touchdown pass covering six yards, putting the Raiders up 7-0 with 9:20 left in the first quarter.

The first two offensive series for Simon Kenton (9-0) were no better, first going three-and-out, and after stopping the Raiders on a fourth-and-one at the Pioneers’ 34, junior quarterback Cameron Racke was intercepted by Raiders’ senior linebacker Johnny Meiman.

But, after the Raiders’ offense again went on a long drive, the Pioneers defense stepped up again, stopping senior running back Mitchell Bateman on fourth down at the 1. After the two teams traded punts, senior running Dillon Powell back capped a 94-yard, 11-play drive with 8:21 left in the first half to tie the score at seven.

Simon Kenton then seized momentum when kicker Aidan McNamara executed an onside kick, giving the Simon Kenton offense the ball on the Ryle 47. Racke found senior wide receiver Logan Scott from 16-yards out to make it 14-7 Pioneers with 6:05 left in the half.

“He’s (McNamara) a former soccer player, and worse-case scenario, we give them a short field and have to pick it up on defense,” said Marksberry. “But, we we’re in a little bit of a funk, it got our guys motors going, it excited our offense to get the ball back, and our offense feels like we have a chance to score at anytime.”

After the Pioneers stopped the Raiders for a third time on fourth down in the first half, the two teams traded punts. Simon Kenton had taken advantage in the field position battle during the exchange, though, and made it pay off when Racke eluded the defense and scored from 16-yards out to make it 21-7 just 30 seconds before halftime.

Racke capped the scoring on the first offensive series of the second half when he found junior wide receiver Luke Vance in stride down the left sideline from 77 yards out to make it 28-7 with 6:48 left in the third.

“We have been running that play all year,” Racke said. “We saw him (the safety) moving toward the middle on the two previous plays, so we finally ran the play for Luke and we got it”

The Pioneers defense took over at that point, stopping Ryle on two fourth downs, and junior defensive back Trent Kincaid intercepted Morgan midway through the fourth quarter.

“We talked to Trent and those guys all week about staying in coverage, staying on top of things., we didn’t know if we could get a good break on the ball..and he (Morgan) has such a quick release,” said Marksberry.

Simon Kenton’s Cameron Racke.

Racke ended the night with 13-of-26 through the air for 216 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Vance caught five of those for 127 yards and a touchdown. Powell had 117 hard earned yards on 28 carries and a touchdown, and Racke added 56 yards on the ground and a touchdown.

Defensively, Kincaid recorded his sixth interception of his junior year, and his 13th of his career. Linebackers Brian Carter and Dalton Finnell, along with linemen Tucker Mueller and Blake Powell, caused havoc all night, despite defending as a team for so many snaps.

“When we did all the previews before the season, I talked about the strength of our team was our defensive line, “ said Marksberry “When you play 6A football, you better have some people who can get off of blocks and make plays, and these are big guys who can move their feet.”

Morgan completed 28-of-58 through the air for 259 yards, with a touchdown and an interception. Junior tight end Jake Long was the leading receiver for Ryle, hauling in eight catches for 89 yards, while sophomore running back Jake Chisolm had 72 yards on 17 carries. Ryle’s offense totaled 337 yards, but needed 95 plays to get that total, and only converted on 6 of 21 third downs, and were 5-for-10 on fourth down, most of those conversions coming after the game was decided.

Ryle will attempt to end the regular season on a winning note when it takes on Dixie Heights (2-7) next Friday in Crestview Hills. In the meantime, the Raiders will be doing a bit of scoreboard watching Saturday night when Cooper and Conner hook up in Hebron, as district seedings are still at stake for all three teams.

Simon Kenton will go for its second unbeaten regular season in three years when it travels up the road to Taylor Mill to take on Scott in a battle of district champions.

Ryle- 7 0 0 0 – 7
Simon Kenton 0 21 7 0 -28
Ryle- Collin England 6 pass from Tanner Morgan .(Easton Pilyer kick)
SK- Dillon Powell 4 run (Aiden McNamara kick)
SK- Logan Scott 25 pass from Cameron Racke (McNamara kick)
SK- Racke 17 run (McNamara kick)
SK- Luke Vance 77 pass from Racke (McNamara kick)

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