Photo courtesy of Jenna Hull
The Ell-Saline Cardinals would travel to Claflin to take the Central Plains Oilers on Friday night with a Class 8-man DI District 3 title on the line. The Cardinals would use a huge performance from junior Kas Kramer as they would coast to a 58-12 victory over the Oilers and win back-to-back district championships. Both teams came into the matchup with a 6-1 overall record and were both 4-0 in district play.
Ell-Saline would strike first as they would get the ball with good field position and senior Melvin Lutes would punch it in from 1-yard out to put the Cardinals up 8-0.
The Oilers would answer right back with a 65-yard touchdown pass from sophomore Brodie Crites to senior Joel Schreiber and Central Plains trailed 8-6.
That is as close as the Oilers would get though as the the Cardinals would score the next 5 touchdowns of the game. The first would come on the legs of junior Kas Kramer as he would hit the edge and run it in from 28-yards out to put the Cardinals up 14-6.
Melvin Lutes would add another rushing touchdown on the evening as he would go in untouched from the 30-yard line and the Cardinals would extend their lead to 20-6.
With :46 seconds left in the 1st quarter Ell-Saline would add one more score. Kramer would find the endzone on the ground for the 2nd time as he would take a handoff from junior Reese Krone and dart in on a 38-yard touchdown run and the Cardinals led 28-6 after the 1st quarter.
Then it was time for Krone to get things going through the air. With 8:11 left to go until halftime Krone would find Kramer on a screen pass and he would do the rest as he streaked in from the 23-yard line. Krone would then find junior tight end Trey Williams wide open over the middle of the field with a 47-yard strike and Ell-Saline led 44-6.
Central Plains would not go away though as Crites would find senior Paxton Dody on 40-yard crossing route and the Oilers trailed 44-12 going into the locker room.
Kas Kramer would score the final two touchdowns on the ground as the Ell-Cardinals would coast to a 58-12 victory and secure the district championship.
With the win the Cardinals finish the regular season with a 7-1 overall record and 5-0 in district play and will back at home as they start playoff action next week as they await their opponent. With the loss Central Plains finishes the season with a 6-2 overall record and went 4-1 in district play.
Player of the Game: Kas Kramer (Unofficial stats 19 carries – 167 yards, 4 TD’s, 4 Rec. – 48 yards, 1 TD, 3 interceptions on defense)
H&R Block of the Game: Jacob Tillberg
Box Score
#5 8M-1 Ell-Saline (7-1, 5-0) – 28 – 16 – 8 – 6 / 58
#6 8M-1 Central Plains (6-2, 4-1) – 6 – 6 – 0 – 0 / 8
Ell-Saline Senior Spotlight with Victor Ruiz-Torres
Radio Rebroadcast
