This is the 10th anniversary of my sports column in Our Town. Well, actually, it’s the 11th, but I’m not counting the COVID year. With football season almost upon us I thought it was a good time to look back on those ten-plus years and note the top moments from our two teams, Silverton and Kennedy.
During that stretch both schools have won a state title (the Trojans in 2018, the Foxes in 2021). And both have produced so many memorable moments that it was a severe challenge to keep the list this short. One caveat: To make the list I had to SEE the game, which obviously leaves out even more moments. Here goes!
Silverton
2021 vs. Thurston, The Catch: The Foxes led Thurston 26-20 but faced a 4th-and-17 at the Colts’ 26 with 12 seconds left. The dilemma. Do you run the ball and perhaps give Thurston a play or 2? Do you have QB Jordan McCarty run around to exhaust the 12 ticks? Nope, you have McCarty throw it to Vandon Fessler, who outfought DB Darien Witham for the ball at the 5 for his tenth catch of the day. Game, set and match. Moments later Fessler disappeared into the arms of his father, assistant coach Mike Fessler, which made for a memorable Our Town cover photo of the 5A title win.
2012 vs. West Albany, Buying In: The 2012 campaign was the breakthrough year for coach John Mannion. The Foxes won the Mid-Willamette Conference title and thrashed conference foe West Albany 35-6 in the 5A quarterfinals. As I worked my way through the McGinnis Field end zone mosh pit to get interviews I found junior Cort Martin. His comment: “I’m just glad we could get a win for the seniors in their final home game.” Others said the same. This showed the Mannion influence. He had buy-in from his athletes. And when you have that you can achieve great things.
2022 vs. Central, 6 TDs!: Running back Jackson Pfeifer’s sophomore and junior campaigns ended early with foot injuries. For his senior year he was healthy and ready to dominate. In a 40-35 win at Central, Pfeifer rushed for 244 yards, intercepted a pass and scored all six Foxes TDs, breaking a record he shared after turning in five scores two weeks earlier at Dallas.
2017 vs. Lebanon, The Scramble: The Foxes have played some corkers against the Warriors, as the next three entries will show. In 2017, Silverton rallied to victory with the key play a 4th-and-27 scramble by QB Levi Nielsen. I was standing by the sticks when Nielsen took off running. My thought bubble went from “Oh, no, he’s past the line!” to “wait, he might make it!!” to “I think he DID make it!!!” The Foxes went on to score and won 31-30.
2018 vs. Lebanon, The Relief Pitcher: Nielsen went down with a knee injury in the third period and on came sophomore Aaron Rieskamp, who showed magnificent poise while leading the Foxes on a 65-yard drive to win the see-saw game, 37-36 on a TD pass to Grant Buchheit in the final minute.
2019 vs. Lebanon, The Drive: Another back and forth with the Warriors, who had the Foxes backed up at their own four late in the game. But Silverton, led by its tough offensive line, ground out a 96-yard drive to win 29-25.
Kennedy
2018 vs. Santiam, The Perfect Half: The Trojans, who had lost to the Wolverines 44-0 during the regular season, ran out to a 28-0 lead in the 2A title game, scoring TDs on their first four possessions. Emorej Lynk, who accounted for three first-half TDs, missed the second half with an injury, and the Trojans had to hold on for a 31-20 win.
2022 vs. Santiam Christian, The Flea-Flicker: The Trojans and SC were both 9-0 and battling for the Class 3A Special District II title. Kennedy led 17-0 at the half, but a furious Santiam Christian comeback left the visitors on top 20-17 with 1:12 left. But veteran Trojans coach Joe Panuke had one arrow left in his quiver. With 57 seconds left he sent in a trick play. QB Elijah Traeger handed off to Charlie Beyer for what looked like a sweep to the right. But Charlie Beyer handed it to wide receiver Ethan Kleinschmit coming back the other way. Kleinschmit uncorked a perfect pass to wide-open Luke Beyer down the left sideline for a 63-yard TD that clinched a 24-20 victory.
2021 vs. Monroe, The Improvement Boys: Panuke’s Kennedy teams always are better later in the season than they are at the beginning. That’s the sign of a great coach/program. The 2021 “spring” season was a nightmare for football coaches coping with COVID. How do you practice and make things normal? Kennedy opened with a 45-8 loss at Santiam Christian in a game in which JFK lost QB/DB Dylan Kleinschmit to a shoulder injury. But then that Kennedy grit kicked in. The Trojans, with QB Riley Cantu at the controls, reeled off 4 wins in a row and then traveled to undefeated Monroe for a hastily arranged “showcase week” game. Kennedy took Monroe apart, scoring four TDs in the second quarter and pulling away to a 47-14 victory.
2012 vs. Central Linn, The Drive: This Class 2A quarterfinal in Mount Angel was a total slobberknocker. It rained throughout. The two teams combined for maybe five passing attempts. Central Linn led 6-0 for most of the game. Early in the fourth quarter the Trojans started a drive. And pounded the rock inside the 10 before failing on four tries at the end zone. Ailing Trojans coach Randy Traeger made the long walk to the end zone to talk to his team. He told them how proud he was and how hard they had worked and how much could be learned from such a day.
