A great season comes to an end

In the playoffs, everyone’s hungry. Every game is a battle of mental toughness and shear will.  On Monday, Nov. 3, the No. 1 Lions (10-0) played the No. 4 Sioux Center Warriors (9-1) for the chance to move on in Class 2A playoff action. The top-tier teams were both proven to be heavy hitters on offense and nearly impenetrable on defense. Unfortunately for the Lions, the night belonged to the Warriors.

The air was electric as anxious fans lined the perimeter of Lion’s field as the teams squared off. Momentum changed frequently. Opportunities were missed and big plays made. 

The Lions kicked things off with a strong defensive effort forcing a quick three and out, putting the team in great field position. After a fourth down and five, it looked as though it would force a coffin kick, but the Lions went for it and got the first down with additional yardage. A couple plays later, Brock Adams connected with Chandler Diercks in the back of the end zone on a 20-yard pass. The M.J. Mixdorf PAT kick was good, putting the Lions up by a quick seven. 

After a few Sioux Center passing attempts came up empty handed, they gave the run game a try. A long, grinding drive was eventually brought to an end on fourth down, falling short on the Lions’ own 25.

Sioux Center responded with its own defensive stop, giving the Lions a three and out and ending the first quarter 7-0.

The Warrior offense surged at the beginning of the second quarter, moving the ball, converting on fourth and driving into Lion territory. But a bad snap resulted in a loss of yards too severe for the drive to be recuperated, bringing about a punt that soared into the Lions’ end zone. 

Strong Warrior defense lead to an unsuccessful drive by the Lions, who relented possession to Sioux Center with 6:21 to go in the half. 

The pass game was working well for Sioux Center on the next drive, with a strategic mix of runs that kept the Lion defense honest. The Warriors shredded the secondary as they marched the length of the field into the red zone.  Sioux Center Quarterback Chris Borchers lofted the ball to 6’4” Marcus Winterfeld who fueled the long drive.  The drive ended in the Lions’ end zone on a four-yard touchdown run by Abel Duden and PAT kick by Alfonso Reyes, making the score 7-7 with 31 seconds left in the half.

On a drive to nowhere, the Lions came up five yards short of the end zone before the clock expired for a 7-7 halftime score. 

The Warriors dominated the clock in the first half, hoarding the ball for 18 minutes to the Lions’ six.

“The defense is playing well, but we will look for adjustments,” said Clear Lake Head Coach Fred Wieck as he headed to the locker room at halftime.

The Lions started the second half with a strong return that was called back as a result of a penalty. The team subsequently punted the ball on a three and out.

A muffed punt resulted in a Tucker Tusha fumble recovery giving the Lions the ball at the Sioux Center 30. Keeping the chain gang busy, the possession arrow switched again as an Adams turnover gave the ball back to the Warriors on the very next play.

This offensive bout was brought to an end by a determined Lions defense, which applied pressure and good coverage, stifling the Warriors’ offense, leading to a punt.

Immediately following was a strong Lions drive that ultimately came to a close on a failed fourth down conversion. 

An early turnover from the Warrior’s offense felt promising enough, but the Lions couldn’t capitalize and had to punt on a three and out, bringing a close to the third quarter with a stagnant score of 7-7. 

Sioux City matched Clear Lake’s quick possession with one of their own, punting the ball and sticking the Lions back on their own one. 

On the following play, Adams checked down to slot receiver Ernie Miszewski, who beat the blitz and turned it up for a 99-yard touchdown and a new state record.  The Lions took the lead, 14-7. 

The Warriors weren’t about to give up. They showed everyone they meant business as they ran the ball down the Lions’ throat, going the length of the field in a matter of minutes to punch it in and tie up the score with 8:35 left in the forth.

A great return by Miszewski got the Lions to midfield. The drive fell short and the team opted to play the battle of field position rather than attempting another forth-down conversion. 

Sioux Center showed heart. They converted on several big downs to keep the drive alive until Graham Zomermaand broke through on a 30-yard touchdown run. Reyes kicked the PAT to tie the game again at 14. 

The Lions couldn’t match the score and were forced to punt away the ball. After a few plays from the Warriors’ offense, a breakaway run resulted in a footrace with Miszewski.  The ball popped out at the one-yard-line, but fell out of bounds, keeping the possession in favor of the Warriors. The team eventually broke through into the end zone to give the Warriors the 20-14 game advantage. 

“They played good ball, and we just couldn’t stop them,” said Wieck. “I’d love to have a couple of those calls back but we can leave with our heads high.”

Clear Lake finished the night with 327 total yards to Sioux Center’s 387. The Warriors proved their offensive prowess by capturing 22 first downs and 244 yards rushing to Clear Lake’s eight first downs and 136 yards on the ground. While both teams had similar completion percentages passing nine of 15 and nine of 14, respectively, the airfield advantage belonged to Clear Lake, who passed for 191 yards to Sioux Center’s 143. 

The Lions were lead on offense by Adams who passed for 191 yards on nine of 14 passing for two touchdowns. His primary receivers were Miszewski with two catches for 116 yards and a touchdown, Tucker Tusha had 44 yards on one catch, while Diercks had five catches for 19 yards and a touchdown. Tamarik Lee had one catch for 12 yards. 

Adams also lead the ground game with 75 yards rushing. Diercks contributed 29 yards on six carries and Lee had 20 yards on five touches.

  Sioux Center went on to defeat Spirit Lake on Friday, Nov. 7, in the quarterfinals by a score of 14-0. Sioux Center will play again on Saturday, Nov. 15, in the Semi Final round of playoffs against Albia (13-1).