Smith Center entered tonight’s game riding a five-game winning streak, and Ell-Saline was on a four-game skid. Both streaks stayed alive tonight, as the Redmen emerged victorious by a score of 46-13.

While the score may have indicated a blowout, the game was much closer than it seemed. Ell-Saline played probably their best game since Sacred Heart in week two.

While they trailed 27-0 at halftime, the offense had multiple good plays, but just could not get any consistency due to penalties. The Redmen also coughed up the football three times on the night, but none led to Cardinal points.

The Cardinals got some late offense from their passing game, as TJ Morrical connected with Taegan Bradley for a touchdown, and then backup quarterback Kade Wilson hit Keenan Drees for a long 60-yard score with under a minute to play.

The Redmen offense was just too powerful tonight for Ell-Saline to stay close. Jake Sasse ran for 243 yards and two scores, and Nate Hendrich ran for three touchdowns, returned a kickoff for a touchdown, and had an interception defensively.

The 6-1 Redmen now face their toughest task yet, facing 6-1 Inman in the regular season finale. Ell-Saline (2-5) hosts Ellinwood for their final game in the regular season.