Paul Steinke Sets State Records

From CatchItKansas
Rossville exchange student breaks records

Nearly 5,000 miles from home, Paul Steinke set state records in his first season playing football

POSTED: 11:00 AM CST Dec 01, 2014 

Football is a very Americanized sport. Other sports such as soccer, basketball, and even volleyball to an extent, are much more globalized. For Rossville, the game of football has given one player a very unique experience in his first months in the United States.

Paul Steinke is a foreign exchange student from Hamburg, Germany, who arrived in the small town of Rossville this last August. Steinke’s 4,800 mile journey began before that, as the process to becoming a foreign exchange student is fairly thorough.

Steinke had to submit an application, write an essay explaining what it would mean to become a foreign exchange student, and proving proficiency in the English language on an English exam. Steinke’s host family selected him last spring to come to Rossville, a town dwarfed in comparison to the nearly 2 million people that live in Hamburg.

After arriving in Rossville, Steinke wanted to have as American of an experience that was possible. What a better way than to join the football team.

But what did Steinke even know about football?

“I knew what a touchdown was,” Steinke laughed. “And I knew that the kicker needed to kick it through the uprights.”

That basic understanding would foreshadow one of the most surprising stories for the Rossville football team this season.

“For somebody who doesn’t really understand the game, you don’t have a whole lot of expectations at all,” said Rossville Head Coach Derick Hammes. “But we could tell real early that he could really kick it and kick it very accurately.”

Steinke has been more than accurate, he has been lights out for the Bulldogs. Stenkie has had a record breaking season, setting the state record for the most consecutive extra-point kicks (101), the most total extra-points in one game (13) and the most extra-points in one season (101). All are accolades that don’t seem like such a big deal to the humble boy from Hamburg.

“When I did it, I was like, ‘What, I did that?’”  Steinke said.

Without realizing his own ability, Steinke said he did not know he was doing anything special until his teammates asked him how he never missed any kicks at practice.

Steinke’s foot has added an often over looked commodity that many smaller schools do not have. Consistency and reliability in the kicking game is an asset that contributes to any successful football team.

He was so successful in earning confidence and trust from his coaches as Rossville was ready to look to Steinke to win the 3A state championship game.

As Rossville was setting up a Steinke field goal inside the opponent’s 20 yard line with one minute remaining in a tie ball game, a Scott City penalty gave Rossville a first down.

“He was incredibly accurate all year, he didn’t miss an extra-point all year,” said Hammes. “We were more than prepared to have Paul kick the winning field goal if that’s what we needed to win.”

With such a potent offense, Steinke had only had two field goal attempts all season, but of course he made them both.

Two of Steinke’s biggest fans have been watching his unorthodox rise to football success via the internet. Steinke’s parents have been fortunate enough be able to watch Paul kick for Rossville thanks to the school streaming the games on the internet, even if that meant the games normally start at 2 a.m. in Hamburg.

“They know that football is a big deal here, they will be celebrating this,” Steinke said of the state title victory.

Steinke has a history of playing soccer, also known as the other football, and is a very talented golfer. Coach Hammes believes both of these sports have attributed to Paul’s incredible season.

“His soccer background helps of course, but the golfing helps as well. I think the pre-shot routine and mechanics of the golf swing helped,” Hammes said.

One thing his previous athletic experience did not prepare him for was how to make a tackle. Steinke recorded one tackle on the season, but admitted that it definitely is not the best thing he can do but he got the job done.

At the start of the school year, Steinke wanted to join a team to get an American experience all while meeting new people. He got that and so much more.

“The team is awesome, we celebrate and support each other and help each other out. It really has been a great season,” Steinke said.

Written by Ryan Tarletsky, CatchItKansas Web Producer

Rossville Dominates Colgan 56-19

From the Capital Journal Online:
PITTSBURG — It was only one play and the very first play of the game, but there were none bigger for Rossville on Friday night at Carney Smith Stadium.
    Rossville senior Thatcher Horak took Colgan’s opening kickoff and weaved through the Panther defense for a 95-yard touchdown and the Bulldawgs never looked back en route to a 56-19 Class 3A quarterfinal victory.
    “They got down to the ball quick and about the 10-yard line I thought they were going to light me up and all of a sudden I hit a hole and I don’t know what happened, I just went to the house,” Horak said.
    “We knew how big of a game this was, and who gets the opportunity to play on Pitt State’s field? What an opportunity and we knew they were a really good team and we knew we had to come out and play our best.”
    Horak’s kick return was the catalyst of a huge first quarter that saw Rossville, now 12-0, open up a commanding 28-7 lead. By halftime it was 35-13 and Colgan was unable to challenge the rest of the way as the Bulldawgs punched their ticket for the state semifinals.
    “Getting a big spark like that, it’s huge in a big game like this,” said Rossville junior quarterback Tucker Horak, who followed his older brother’s lead and turned in a monster night. “With these guys’ offense and how competitive they are and their tradition, you give them any life at all there’s always a chance they can come back on you, so we just knew we wanted to get ahead of them early and try to stay on top of them.”
    The Horak brothers scored all eight Rossville touchdowns, including six TDs from Tucker, who scored on five runs and an interception return. Paul Steinke went eight of eight on extra-point kicks.
Rossville forced Colgan (9-3) to punt on its first possession and the Bulldogs put together a seven-play, 87-yard scoring drive to go up 14-0 with 7:31 left in the first, with junior Tucker Horak capping things with a 27-yard run.
    Colgan answered with an 18-yard scoring pass from junior Ryan Cedeno to junior Sawyer Esch with 3:43 left in the opening quarter, but Rossville scored 14 more points before end of the quarter.
Rossville went 70 yards in nine plays for a Tucker Horak 1-yard TD plunge, then Tucker Horak picked off Cedeno on Colgan’s next play from scrimmage and returned the pick 44 yards for a touchdown with 22 ticks left in the first.
    Colgan got back within striking distance on a 4-yard Cedeno run, but the Bulldawgs blocked the extra point try and then Tucker Horak scored his fourth touchdown on a 68-yard run with 6:59 left in the half.
    Thatcher Horak scored his second TD of the game on a 35-yard pass from Tucker in the third quarter, then Tucker Horak scored from 4 and 17 yards out to end the Bulldawgs’ explosive offensive night.
    Tucker Horak finished with 198 rushing yards on 16 carries and was 5-for-6 passing for 95 yards and a TD.
    Colgan senior Austin Commons had a big night in a losing cause, rushing for 191 yards on 29 carries. The Panthers hurt themselves with four turnovers.

Rossville (12-0)     28   7   14    7    =     56
Colgan (9-3)            7   6     6    0    =    19

Rossville — Thatcher Horak 95 kickoff return (Steinke kick)
Rossville — Tucker Horak 27 run (Steinke kick)
Colgan — Esch 18 pass from Cedeno (Cason kick)
Rossville — Tucker Horak 1 run (Steinke kick)
Rossville — Tucker Horak 44 interception return (Steinke kick)
Colgan — Ryan Cedeno 4 run (kick blocked)
Rossville — Tucker Horak 68 run (Steinke kick)
Rossville — Thatcher Horak 35 pass from Tucker Horak (Steinke kick)
Colgan — Cedeno 3 run (pass failed)
Rossville — Tucker Horak 4 run (Steinke kick)
Rossville — Tucker Horak 17 run (Steinke kick)

GAME IN FIGURES
                                  Ross       Col
First downs                 15          19
Rushes-yards           31-316   57-233
Passing yards              95          70
Passes                       5-7-1     5-11-1
Fumbles-lost              0-0          6-3
Punts-avg.               1-33.0      1-37.0
Penalties-yards         8-80 3-      25

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — Rossville: Tucker Horak 16-198, Thatcher Horak 4-58, Steckel 7-51, Reesor 2-6, Hammes 1-2, Woodcock 1-1. Colgan: Commons 29-191, Cedeno 10-19, Stewart 11-16, Dellasega 2-7, Hayes 2-4, Wilson 1-(minus)-2, Dickey 2-(minus)-2.
PASSING — Rossville: Tucker Horak 5-6-1, 95 yards; Woodcock 0-1-0, 0. Colgan: Cedeno 4-10-1, 64; Dickey 1-1-0, 6.
RECEIVING — Rossville: Corbin Horak 3-47, Thatcher Horak 1-35, Roduner 1-13. Colgan: Duncan 1-44, Esch 1-18, Normand 1-7, Brown 1-6, Commons 1-(minus)-5.
PUNTING — Rossville: Woodcock 1-33.0. Colgan: Cason 1-37.0.

• 
  

Paul Steinke Sets PAT Record

From WIBW.com

ROSSVILLE, Kan. -- The NFL experimented with removing extra points, or point after touchdowns (PATs), during the preseason. They've become nearly automatic for professional kickers.

Not including the 2014 season, according to the NFL, there is a 99.1 percent success rate on PATs since 2004.

One local kicker has been even better; he set a state record for extra points, kicking 100 percent so far this season.

"That's awesome. I feel awesome. Before the game started, I didn't know I was about to break the record," Rossville kicker Paul Steinke said. "But then I made the PAT and the guy who commentates the game said Paul broke the state record and I said 'Oh, Cool!' It's awesome."

Steinke, a junior foreign exchange student from Hamburg, Germany, has made 87 consecutive PATs. In Rossville's last game, Steinke broke the previous record of 82.

"I wasn't aware of it until it was announced at the game after he kicked it," placeholder Tucker Horak said. "I was kind of surprised but I figured he had to be close to breaking some records."

Steinke's background in other sports helped him excel in football.

""I thought, I play soccer in Germany so I want to try football because it's the American thing," Steinke said. "I can come back and say 'yeah, I played American football in America.'"

His coach, Derek Hammes, said Steinke's golf background improves his accuracy.

"He's got a routine about every kick that he has and I just think that the pre-shot, or in this case the pre-kick, routine that he has has been very helpful," Hammes said.

Steinke has only attempted two field goals all season. He made both.

He'll look to extend his PAT success streak on Friday against St. Marys Colgan.

Video of Paul can be viewed  at:  http://www.wibw.com/sports/headlines/Rossville-Football-Player-Kicking-Down-Records-282334631.html

Rossville Win Over Pleasant Ridge Statistics

Pleasant Ridge (5-6)   0       0       0     0     =       0
Rossville (10-0)         14     28     14     0     =     56


Rossville scoring:
Tu. Horak 67 run (Steinke kick)
Th. Horak 57 run (Steinke kick)
Reesor 1 run (Steinke kick)
C. Horak 73 pass from Tu. Horak (Steinke kick)
Roduner 6 pass from Tu. Horak (Steinke kick)
Reesor 37 pass from Tu. Horak (Steinke kick)
Reesor 51 run (Steinke kick)
Rubio 35 pass from Woodcock (Steinke kick)

GAME IN FIGURES
                          PR           RV
First downs          6              14
Rushes-yards  39-132       25-324
Passing yards      5             196
Passes             2-7-0       10-12-0
Fumbles-lost      0-0             0-0
Punts-Avg.       7-31.4       1-31.0
Penalties-yards  2-10          3-30

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — Pleasant Ridge: Holmes 15-35, Haack 10-19, Bridges 3-43, Broddie 11-35. Rossville: Tu. Horak 4-104, Th. Horak 3-72, Balch 2-6, Reesor 6-107, Hammes 4-4, Woodcock 1-19, Lovejoy 5-12.

PASSING — Pleasant Ridge: 2-7-0, 5 yards. Rossville: Tu. Horak 9-11-0, 161 yards; Woodcock 1-1-0, 35 yards.

RECEIVING — Pleasant Ridge: Bridges 1-5, Broddie 1-0. Rossville: Th. Horak 3-19, Roduner 4-32, C. Horak 1-73, Reesor 1-37, Rubio 1-35.

PUNTING — Pleasant Ridge: Holmes 7-31.4. Rossville: Woodcock 1-31.0.

Dawgs Overpoer Centrailia 42-6

From CJ Online.com

Horak, Rossville overpower Centralia 42-6

Bulldog QB racks up 425 yards total offense in battle of 3A unbeatens

By Brent Maycock

brent.maycock@cjonline.com

CENTRALIA  The comment was made somewhat in jest, but there was a hint of truth to what Larry Glatczak had to say about Rossville quarterback Tucker Horak.

"We could have put 22 (players) out there tonight and not been able to stop him," the Centralia coach said.

Indeed, Horak and Rossville's offense just had that kind of night — one the host Panthers hadn't experienced against them in quite some time. After falling behind 6-0 midway through the first quarter, the Bulldog offense put on a clinic, scoring on five straight possessions on its way to a statement-making 42-6 victory in a battle of ranked Class 3A teams.

Coach talked all week about the tradition that they had,"  Horak said of the Panthers, who were last year's Class 2-1A state champions, their third title in five years. "We just knew we had to show up and play and prove that we were the better team and it showed in the end."

Rossville, ranked No. 2 in 3A, stayed unbeaten at 6-0, while Centralia, No. 5 in 3A, fell to 5-1 and saw a 28-game regular-season winning streak snapped.

The last team to beat the Panthers in the regular season? Rossville, in 2011.

The Bulldogs didn't exactly blow out of the gate in this one, going three and out on their first two possessions. But once Horak hit Christian Roduner over the top of two Panther defenders for a 45-yard touchdown strike, Rossville found its flow.

Horak scored on runs of 5 and 68 yards on Rossville's next two possessions before Thatcher Horak got into the act with a 5-yard touchdown run and 42-yard touchdown pass from Tucker Horak. Run or pass, Rossville moved almost at will as Tucker Horak racked up 172 yards on the ground and 166 through the air in the opening half in leading the Bulldogs to a commanding 35-7 lead.

The best quarterbacks we've played against was the Smiths from Colgan (Nick and Mark), and he was better than them,"  Glatczak said. "He's so hard to tackle  he runs well and is quicker than heck. And then he can throw it a little bit. He's a player, and they've got a lot of good ones around him."

To put Rossville's first-half performance in perspective, Centralia had allowed just 34 points through its first five games this season before giving up 35 to the Bulldogs in the half. In its last 18 games, Centralia had allowed just 14 first-half points.

We were going to try to find some holes in the defense and then attack them,"  Horak said. "Once we found something that worked, we stuck to it and were off to the races."

While the offense stole the show, Rossville's defense also was up to the task. After giving up a 59-yard touchdown run to Wyatt VanDorn to start the game's scoring, the Bulldogs clamped down. Centralia finished with 242 yards rushing with VanDorn getting 106 of those, and the Bulldogs held standout back Darrian Turner to just 87 yards, 38 of those coming on the final drive of the game.

Tucker Horak added an 11-yard touchdown run in the third quarter for the only scoring in the second half and finished the game with 219 yards rushing and 206 passing. Corbin Horak had six catches for 97 yards and Thatcher Horak had a combined 85 yards rushing and receiving.

Rossville (6-0)   14   21    7    0   =    42

Centralia (5-1)     6     0    0    0   =      6

Cent  VanDorn 59 run (pass failed)

Ross  Roduner 45 pass from Tu. Horak (Steinke kick)

Ross  Tu. Horak 5 run (Steinke kick)

Ross  Tu. Horak 68 run (Steinke kick)

Ross  Th. Hatcher 5 run (Steinke kick)

Ross  Th. Horak 42 pass from Tu. Horak (Steinke kick)

Ross  Tu. Horak 11 run (Steinke kick)

GAME IN FIGURES

                                Ross          Cent

First downs                20             10

Rushes-yards        42-300       51-242

Passing                   206               0

Comp-Att-Int        14-20- 0        0-4-1

Punts                     4-39.0        7-27.2

Fumbles-Lost          1-1              1-1

Penalties-Yards     8-106          3-20

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING  Rossville: Tu. Horak 20-219, Reesor 5-16, Th. Horak 9-43, Hammes 5-13, Balch 3-9. Centralia: Turner 20-87, VanDorn 17-106, Mars 8-22, J. Johnson 4-26, B. Johnson, 2-1.

PASSING  Rossville: Tu. Horak 14-20-0, 206. Centralia: VanDorn 0-4-1, 0.

RECEIVING   Rossville: C. Horak 6-97, Roduner 4-56, Th. Horak 3-42, Reesor 1-11. Centralia: none.

Brent Maycock can be reached at (785) 295-5662 or

Dawgs Move Past Centrailia In Playoffs

From the Capital Journal
By Brent Maycock

ROSSVILLE — In Rossville football lore, it will simply go down as “The Catch.”

Tied 14-14 with Centralia late in the third quarter of Saturday night’s Class 3A playoff rematch, Bulldog quarterback Tucker Horak lofted a ball in the direction of older brother Thatcher Horak, hoping he could make a play on the jump ball. Problem was, Centralia’s Darrian Turner was right there waiting with perfect coverage.

The two athletes went up together and as they battled for the ball, it popped up and came down right into Thatcher Horak’s hands. The Bulldog senior raced untouched the rest of the way for a 65-yard touchdown that sent Rossville on its way to a 35-14 victory.

“He played that pretty well and he’s a heck of an athlete,” Thatcher said of Turner. “It was a lot of luck. When it popped in the air, I had no clue where it was. But I held my hand out and it fell right into it.”

No. 1 Rossville (11-0) will hit the road for the quarterfinals, traveling to Pittsburg for a showdown with Colgan (9-2). The Panthers rolled past Galena 35-18 earlier Saturday.

No question “The Catch” played a big role in Rossville fighting off a major challenge by Centralia, which was dominated 42-6 by the Bulldogs in their early October meeting. But so too was “The Stop,” and Horak had a hand in that as well.

After having an answer for everything Rossville threw at it in the first half, Centralia was poised to respond once again on its possession immediately following Horak’s acrobatic touchdown grab. Nice runs by Trevor Mars and Turner moved the ball to the Panther 46 and set up a third-and-1.

Centralia never got the yard it needed. Mars was stuffed for no gain on third down, and on fourth down Thatcher Horak tracked down Turner on the edge for another no gain, giving the ball back to Rossville. The Bulldogs needed just seven plays to make it a two-score game with Nick Reesor rumbling in from 10 yards out.

Rossville’s defense, gashed by Centralia for 147 yards and nine first downs in the first half, gave up just 49 yards and three first downs in the second half, including no first downs and three yards in the fourth quarter.

“When we went in at halftime, we just realized what was on the line and what we were playing for,” said senior lineman Terrance Sowers, who helped set the tone for the defensive stand by teaming with Dawson Hammes for a huge 12-yard sack of Centralia’s Wyatt VanDorn on fourth-and-4 at the Bulldog 15 on the Panthers’ first possession of the second half. “We didn’t want it to go down the drain. We just started clicking and had a bunch of fire.

“That just added juice to the tank.”

Thatcher Horak added a late 17-yard touchdown run for the final margin of victory, finishing the night with 49 yards rushing and 105 receiving with a pair of touchdown grabs. His first was a 36-yarder where he slipped all alone behind the Centralia defense for an easy score that gave Rossville a 14-6 lead early in the second quarter.

Centralia came right back, however, and tied it when Turner hauled in a 10-yard slant pass from VanDorn and then ran in the two-point conversion. Tied at halftime after being completely out of it at the break in the first meeting, Centralia was in position.

But the Panthers couldn’t convert on fourth downs in the second half after also seeing a drive deep in Rossville territory end with a Christian Roduner interception on fourth down in the end zone.

“We’re right there,” Centralia coach Larry Glatczak said. “A tipped ball for a touchdown, a couple fourth-down conversions. It’s a game of plays, a game of inches and that’s what this game was.”

Tucker Horak finished with 106 yards rushing and 134 passing, throwing for two touchdowns. Reesor added 69 yards on the ground and two touchdowns, getting the Bulldogs on the board first with a 31-yard scoring burst up the middle in the first quarter.

Rossville kicker Paul Steinke also set a state record in the game, converting all five extra-point kicks to give him 87 consecutive makes. The old mark was 82, set by Salina Central’s Alex Parker in 2005-06.

Centralia finished the season 9-2, both losses to Rossville and was led by Turner’s 78 rushing yards. Trevor Mars had the Panthers’ other touchdown on a 1-yard run late in the first quarter.

Centralia (9-2)      6    8    0    0     =     14
Rossville (11-0)     7    7    7   14     =     35

Ross — Reesor 31 run (Steinke kick)
Cent — Mars 1 run (pass failed)Ross — Th. Horak 36 pass from Tu. Horak (Steinke kick)Cent — Turner 10 pass from VanDorn (Turner run)Ross — Th. Horak 65 pass from Tu. Horak (Steinke kick)
Ross — Reesor 10 run (Steinke kick)
Ross — Th. Horak 17 run (Steinke kick)

GAME IN FIGURES

                                Cent           Ross

First downs           12               16
Rushes-yards   51-186      36-199
Passing                  10               134
Comp-Att-Int   1-5-1          7-12-1
Punts                 2-39.0        3-37.5
Fumbles-Lost    0-0             0-0
Penalties-Yds    2-15           2-20

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — Centralia: Mars 6-25, VanDorn 15-39, Turner 20-78, J. Johnson 9-36, Deters 1-8. Rossville: Tu. Horak 18-106, Reesor 9-69, Th. Horak 8-49, Team 1-minus 17.

PASSING — Centralia: VanDorn 1-4-1, 10, Deters 0-1-0, 0. Rossville: Tu. Horak 7-12-1, 134.

RECEIVING — Centralia: Turner 1-10. Rossville: C. Horak 1-minus 3, Th. Horak 4-105, Roduner 3-32.

Rossville Wins War On 24

By Brent Maycock

brent.maycock@cjonline.com

ROSSVILLE — There have been times this season when the Rossville defense has had issues.

Nothing major, mind you. The Bulldogs didn’t get to 8-0 entering Thursday’s War on 24 showdown with Silver Lake having serious deficiencies on that side of the ball.

Whatever minor troubles the Bulldogs have had, when the stakes have been highest the Rossville defense has more than answered the bell. They did it against Centralia midway through the season and were arguably even better in the Class 3A No. 1 vs. No. 2 clash with arch rival Silver Lake.

Rossville held the visiting Eagles to zero points and just five first downs through three quarters. By the time Silver Lake found some offensive rhythm, the Bulldogs were in full control on their way to a 24-14 victory.

Mobile users, here are the game highlights from the War on 24.

“I definitely say we stepped it up this week,” Rossville senior linebacker Nick Reesor said. “Throughout the year, we’ve had our lapses where everything wasn’t clicking right. It all came together tonight. Coach (Derick) Hammes put a great defensive scheme in and we got the job done.”

Rossville (9-0) wrapped up its second straight Mid-East League title and the 3A District 4 crown and will play host to Pleasant Ridge (5-4) in Tuesday’s playoff opener. Silver Lake (8-1) fell for the first time and takes on Maur Hill (7-2) in the first round.

Physical dominance has been Silver Lake’s calling card in its domination of the series in recent years, but on Thursday night, Rossville was not only the Eagles’ match, but perhaps even more. After yielding a pair of first downs on Silver Lake’s opening drive of the game, the Bulldogs buckled down and Reesor knocked down a fourth-down pass at the Bulldog 25.

The Eagles didn’t get another first down until their second possession of the second half.

“We certainly played hard and I don’t know how you measure that,” Hammes said. “Our kids did all the intangible things. They tackled pretty well and when we needed to in the second half, we blocked well. Those are the things it takes to win.”

In a defensive slugfest like Thursday’s first half was, it also takes a little bit of offense and Rossville finally found some late in the half. After three punts and an interception halted their first four drives, the Bulldogs got a spark from a 38-yard scamper from quarterback Tucker Horak and drove to the Silver Lake 4.

Rossville had to settle for a 19-yard field goal from Paul Steinke with 20 seconds left in the half for a 3-0 halftime lead, but the momentum was there.

“It usually takes awhile to kind of find our groove and tonight it just took us a little longer than normal,” Horak said. “Once we found it, we started hitting it hard.”

Rossville scored on three of four possessions in the second half to take control of the game. Horak found Reesor for a 28-yard touchdown strike to cap the opening drive of the half and, after Silver Lake missed a 19-yard field goal, Horak finished off an 80-yard march with a 15-yard touchdown run on the second play of the fourth quarter to build a 17-0 Bulldog lead.

Silver Lake finally found an answer as Zach Boyd scored from 10 yards out to make it 17-7 with 10:24 to go, but Rossville responded with a 77-yard drive that ate up seven-plus minutes with Horak scoring from 26 yards out on fourth and 4.

Horak finished with 192 yards on the ground and Rossville pounded out 299 as a team.

Ryan Matzke threw for 149 yards for the Eagles, and scored on a 2-yard run with 45 seconds left for the final margin.

“We didn’t take advantage of short fields,” Silver Lake coach C.J. Hamilton said. “We missed a field goal and couldn’t get one in the first half and you have to do that against good teams. ... We just have to get better and learn from this. They’re a good team — No. 1 vs. No. 2 — and I thought we played well and both teams put on a show. They deserved what they got.”

Silver Lake (8-1) 0 0 0 14 — 14

Rossville (9-0) 0 3 7 14 — 24

Ross — Steinke 19 field goal

Ross — Reesor 28 pass from Tu. Horak (Steinke kick)

Ross — Tu. Horak 15 run (Steinke kick)

SL — Boyd 10 run (Klein kick)

Ross — Tu. Horak 26 run (Steinke kick)

SL — Matzke 2 run (Klein kick)

GAME IN FIGURES

SL Ross

First downs 12 19

Rushes-yards 22-66 50-299

Passing 149 58

Comp-Att-Int 13-24-1 6-11-1

Punts 4-35.8 3-28.0

Fumbles-Lost 1-0 1-1

Penalties-Yards 5-33 5-40

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — Silver Lake: Matzke 12-49, Boyd 10-17. Rossville: Tu. Horak 22-192, Th. Horak 16-41, Reesor 7-34, Hammes 5-32.

PASSING — Silver Lake: Matzke 13-24-1, 149. Rossville: Tu. Horak 6-11-1, 58.

RECEIVING — Silver Lake: C. Baird 4-57, Wolfley 3-43, K. Baird 1-2, Byers 2-25, Freeman 2-19, Boyd 1-3. Rossville: Th. Horak 3-16, Roduner 1-5, Reesor 2-37.

Rossville Wins State!!!!

From CJOnline:
HUTCHINSON — The situation seemingly was anything but a comfortable one for Rossville.
For the first time all season, the top-ranked Bulldawgs were behind in the fourth quarter of a game. Not just any game, mind you, but Saturday’s Class 3A state championship game, trailing undefeated and No. 2 Scott City by a touchdown with eight minutes to play.
    One key starter was out with an injury. Another was limited by injury as well.
    And the offense that had put up the most points in 3A all season was finding yards almost as tough to get as points.
    Tough spot, right? Well, not exactly.
    “It was kind of a good feeling,” Rossville quarterback Tucker Horak said. “We got to show what we were all about and that we were made of something.”
    Given the opportunity, Rossville proved it had the makeup of a champion. The Bulldawgs scored the game’s final 14 points, rallying past Scott City for a 21-14 victory on Horak’s 5-yard touchdown run with 28 seconds to play at Hutchinson’s Gowans Stadium. The win capped a 14-0 season for Rossville and delivered the program’s first state football championship.
    “The thing I’ve loved about Rossville from the get-go was the simple fact that they have a passion for football,” Rossville coach Derick Hammes said. “Gosh dang it, that’s what a coach wants. He wants to go somewhere where they love football and don’t run away from challenges and hard work. This just means so much to me and them.”
    Rossville had to face a challenge square on almost immediately from the start of Saturday's title contest. In the span of a few plays, the Bulldawgs lost starting lineman Isaac Luellen to an elbow injury that required him to be carted off the field, and then Thatcher Horak — the Bulldawgs’ second-most productive offensive player and standout defensive back — to a hip bruise.
Luellen didn't return and Horak was available only on a limited basis and their absence was noticeable, particularly when Scott City used a pair of second-half touchdown passes to erase Rossville’s 7-0 halftime lead.
    Trey O’Neil hit Chantz Yager behind the Rossville secondary for a 30-yard score to tie the game late in the third quarter. After Rossville fumbled it away at the Scott City 17 on its next possession, the Beavers marched down the field and O’Neil hit Sloan Baker all alone for a 34-yard strike with 8:45 left in the game that gave Scott City a 14-7 lead.
Trailing for the first time in the fourth quarter all year, Rossville had met its ultimate challenge.
    “What I saw in the kids in a couple timeouts was I saw them get determined,” Hammes said. “When I saw that, I knew we were going to be OK. It was kind of calming for everybody that, ‘Hey, we’re going to be OK. We’re still in this.’ We weren’t playing our best, but we were still in position and they believed in each other. Ultimately, that got it done for us.”
    The Bulldawgs answered Scott City’s go-ahead score almost immediately. Tucker Horak hit Christian Roduner for a 25-yard gain and then busted runs of 14 and 16 yards to set up Nick Reesor’s 2-yard touchdown plunge, capping a drive that took just 1 minute, 25 seconds. After holding on defense, Rossville got the ball back with 4:24 left and 78 yards from paydirt and a state title. Horak covered 23 on Rossville’s second play and the Bulldawg march was on.
    Methodically, the Bulldawgs moved closer and closer and time ticked off the clock. Runs of 16, 10, 3 and 4 by Horak got the ball to the Scott City 14 and a 1-yard gain by Steckel set up a fourth-and-2 at the Scott City 13.
    Instead of putting the game immediately on the foot of kicker Paul Steinke, the state’s most accurate kicker this year, the Bulldawgs lined up to go for it and Scott City jumped offsides. After a 3-yard run by Reesor, Horak scored up the middle on a 5-yard run and Steinke booted the PAT to cap a year where he went 101 of 101 on kicks.
    “Our line has been dominating all year and I just trusted them,” said Horak, who finished with 212 yards rushing and two touchdowns. “We stuck to our system and pulled it out in the end. ... I knew they had a good defense, but there was really no doubt in my mind we were going to go down and score.”
    There was still the matter of stopping Scott City in the final 28 seconds. O’Neil had thrown for 179 yards, but hurt his right arm on a defensive play on Rossville’s first scoring drive of the quarter.
The Beavers completed a reverse pass from Brett Meyer to Yager for 21 yards on first down, but O’Neil’s next pass was picked off by Lake Schultz-Pruner, sealing the victory.
    “I knew it was the last 20 seconds I was ever going to play football so I was going to give it my all, and it might have been the best feeling I’ve ever felt,” said Schultz-Pruner, who also had a fumble recovery and 15 tackles in the game. “It’s about as big of a defensive performance as it gets. State championship game, and we held them to 14, that’s pretty good. I’m proud of our effort.”
    Both Rossville and Scott City entered the game with high-powered offenses, but defense ruled the opening half. The only score of the half came after Schultz-Pruner recovered a fumble at the Bulldawg 18 and Rossville went 82 yards in 14 plays with Horak scoring from three yards out.
Even though the Bulldawgs had struggled the rest of the half to move the ball, Hammes felt at ease.
    “I felt like we weren’t doing things as well as we could have and didn’t execute like we could, but we’re still up 7-0,” Hammes said. “I told the guys at that point, we were in a good spot. And then again at the quarter. It just seemed like toward the end when we needed the focus the most and make some plays when we needed to, we did it.”
    Scott City lost for the first time after a tough playoff run. O’Neil was 16 of 21 passing for 179 yards and also ran for a team-high 41. But Rossville bottled up the Beavers’ tandem of 1,000-yard rushers as Wyatt Kropp and Cooper Griffith managed just a combined 63 yards as Reesor finished with 17 tackles, Ethan Woodcock added 12 and Roduner and Dawson Hammes each had 10.
    “It was two very good teams,” Scott City coach Glenn O’Neil said. “We knew Rossville was very good and we went through some good teams to get here. I’m proud of our effort, but we were just a little short.”

Rossville (14-0)    0 7  0 14 — 21
Scott City (13-1)   0 0  7   7 — 14

Ross — Tu. Horak 3 run (Steinke kick)
SC — Yager 30 pass from O’Neil (Portes kick)
SC — Baker 34 pass from O’Neil (Portes kick)
Ross — Reesor 2 run (Steinke kick)
Ross — Tu. Horak 5 run (Steinke kick)

GAME IN FIGURES
                               Ross          SC
First downs              17            20
Rushes-yards        49-283     42-120
Passing                    54             211
Comp-Att-Int       4-14-0      18-26-1
Punts                    4-38.8       5-36.4
Fumbles-Lost         1-1            3-1
Penalties-Yards      0-0           3-15

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — Rossville: Tu. Horak 27-212, Reesor 10-43, Steckel 6-13, Th. Horak 2-11, Hammes 2-6. Scott City: O’Neil 11-41, Kropp 16-38, Griffith 9-25, Yager 6-16.
PASSING — Rossville: Horak 4-14-0, 54. Scott City: O’Neil 16-21-1, 179, Meyer 2-3-0 32.
RECEIVING — Rossville: Roduner 2-33, Th. Horak 1-11, Reesor 1-10. Scott City: Baker 7-99, Meyer 5-35, Yager 4-64, Kropp 2-13.

Remember When? Paul Steinke Record

   A little over 5 years ago,  a German exchange student decided to try American football and tried kicking for Rossville High.  Paul Steinke performed flawlessly from the first game and broke the existing Kansas high school record of 82 continuous PAT kicks.  He finished the year with over 100 consecutive kicks,  all in one year without a miss.  Oh, and he didn't miss any field goals either.

Here is a video about Paul:
https://video.search.yahoo.com/yhs/search?fr=yhs-symantec-ext_onb&hsimp=yhs-ext_onb&hspart=symantec&p=rossville+kansas#id=76&vid=253bae23ac1d341e9f65bab6afb61f95&action=view

An article from CatchItKansas about Paul:
https://rossvilleksalumninews.blogspot.com/search?q=steinke

Golf Team Third In Wameo Invite.

    The Rossville boys golf team came in third in the Wamego Invitational behind Wamego and Abilene on April 7.     Led by Paul Steinke,  the four man team finished ahead of Clay Center, Chapman, Sabetha,  Concordia, Perry Lecompton, St. Marys, and Marysville,  in that order.
    Beside Paul Steinke,  the four man team consisted of  Gabe Marney, Colby Hadsall, and Alex Bird.
    The six man team,  composed of the above four,  also included Cole Davoran and Andrew Hudson finished seventh.  
    The top six individuals were all from Wamego (3) or Abilene (3)..   Paul Steinke actually was tied for sixth with an 83,  but lost with  tiebreaker, whatever it was.
    For complete torunament results,  go to:
http://www.kawvalley.k12.ks.us/schools/rjshs/athletics/boys_golf/15/15_wamego-inv.pdf

Dawgs Defeat Eagles 21-14

From CJOnline:
SILVER LAKE — Well after the scoreboard hit 0:00 in Friday night’s War on 24 Class 3A state semifinal, Rossville players and fans remained on Silver Lake’s C.J. Hamilton Field not quite ready to leave.
    So many times before, the hugs being shared were those of condolences after the Bulldawgs’ season had come to an end at the hands of their archrivals.
    Not this time.
    This time — and for the first time in program history — Rossville was able to enjoy the moment and celebrate it to the fullest, knowing its season wasn’t done. After losing eight semifinal games to Silver Lake in the last 12 years, the Bulldawgs finally turned history on its head, pulling out a nerve-wracking 21-14 victory.
    “It’s always in doubt when you play these guys,” Rossville coach Derick Hammes said. “For our community, this is big. Over the years, we’ve had so many good players and coaches. To get the program over the hump, I’m just thrilled and proud of the guys.”
    No. 1 Rossville (13-0) will play in the 3A state championship game for just the second time in program history, the only other appearance ending with a 3-0 loss to Hesston in the 1992 title game.      The opponent next week in Hutchinson is still yet to be determined with No. 2 Scott City (12-0) and Halstead (10-2) meeting the other semifinal at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in Halstead.
Silver Lake has had Rossville’s number in the playoffs — the Bulldawgs had never beaten the Eagles in the postseason — and the longer Friday’s game stayed tied, the longer it looked like the Eagles were going to get it done again. Silver Lake locked up the Bulldawgs defensively in the second half and the moment appeared to be engulfing Rossville.
    Instead, the Bulldawgs were merely biding time until they could seize the moment, and when Thatcher and Corbin Horak got it in their clutches, they didn’t let go.
    Two weeks ago, Thatcher had “The Catch,” an acrobatic touchdown grab that sparked the playoff win over Centralia. Friday night, he delivered “The Run.”
    With Rossville’s offense sputtering in the second half after scoring on two of three possessions in the first half, the Bulldawgs hardly appeared ready to break out taking over at their own 15 with 2:31 left.
     Instead, Horak took the handoff, cut inside and then bounced outside. Sprung by a block from Corbin, he sprinted down the Bulldawg sideline, shedding a tackle attempt by Silver Lake’s Cody Renfro near midfield and going 85 yards for the game-winning touchdown.
“I give it to my guys, they blocked the heck out of it,” said Thatcher, who had just five carries, but ran for 101 yards. “If Corbin doesn’t have that block on the edge, I wouldn’t have scored. I saw that green grass and I was like, ‘I’m not going down.’ ”
There was still the matter of coming up with a defensive stand to preserve the win, however, and Silver Lake had had plenty of success moving the ball under the direction of backup quarterback Cole Baird.
    Baird’s 19-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-2 earlier in the quarter had tied the game and the junior, filling in for injured Ryan Matzke, finished the night with 132 yards rushing.
After an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on the kickoff following Horak’s run set Silver Lake up at the Rossville 46, the Eagles were in business.
    But one play after an 11-yard run by Baird, he lofted a pass to the Rossville 2 that Corbin Horak and Silver Lake receiver Logan Wolfley battled for. Horak won the battle, yanking the interception down to deny the Eagles.
    “I just saw him scrambling and I knew he was going to throw to the left,” Horak said. “I saw the guy over there and got under it. I was nervous at first, but I thought I had the ball first.”
Rossville was able to run out all but seven seconds and Silver Lake’s final play from its own 46 fell incomplete, setting off Rossville’s long-awaited celebration.
“I thought our kids stepped up and played well,” Hamilton said. “We had opportunities to score right before the half and right at the end of the game at the 2-yard line and they made plays. That’s what the game’s about. It was a great high school football game. I’m proud of this group, and I’m proud of them (Rossville).”
    Both teams scored on their first possessions of the game with Tucker Horak scoring from 13 yards out for the Bulldawg touchdown and Zach Boyd getting the answer for the Eagles on a 4-yard run. Rossville added a second touchdown on a Tucker Horak-to-Nick Reesor 10-yard touchdown pass to take a 14-7 halftime lead, preserved when the Bulldawgs stopped Baird at the 2 as the half expired.
The defenses took over in the second half before Thatcher Horak sent the Bulldawgs home with a season sweep of the Eagles — a first for Rossville. Silver Lake, which had played in 11 of the last 12 state championship games, finished 11-2, its only losses to the Bulldawgs.
    “We just needed to make a play and that was my thought going into the week,” Hammes said. “We have a talented team and we just needed to put ourselves in a position to make a play when we needed to do it. We kept sawing wood and popped the big one that was the difference in the game.”

Rossville (13-0)          7 7 0 7 — 21
Silver Lake (11-2)       7 0 0 7 — 14
Ross — Tu. Horak 13 run (Steinke kick)
SL — Boyd 4 run (Klein kick)
Ross — Reesor 10 pass from Tu. Horak (Steinke kick)
SL — Baird 19 run (Klein kick)
Ross — Th. Horak 85 run (Steinke kick)

GAME IN FIGURES
                                 Ross            SL
First downs                 11             15
Rushes-yards            32-219     47-201
Passing                        92             41
Comp-Att-Int          7-11-2       9-13-2
Punts                       3-29.0        3-29.0
Fumbles-Lost               0-0         0-0
Penalties-Yards          7-61         4-35

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — Rossville: Reesor 6-18, Tu. Horak 14-85, Th. Horak 5-101, Hammes 1-12, Steckel 6-3. Silver Lake: Renfro 11-38, Baird 26-132, Boyd 10-31.
PASSING — Rossville: Tu. Horak 7-11-2, 92. Silver Lake: Baird 9-13-2, 41.
RECEIVING — Rossville: Roduner 2-14, Th. Horak 3-62, Reesor 1-10, C. Horak 1-6. Silver Lake: Byers 8-33, Freeman 1-8.

Dawgs Clobber Rock Creek

The Dawgs picked up another easy win last night with a 45-0 stomping of Rock Creek.

ROSSVILLE 45, ROCK CREEK 0

Rossville (3-0)       14 21 7  3   =  45
Rock Creek (0-3)     0  0  0  0   =   0

Rossville scoring: 
Horak (2), 29 run, 59 run
Steinke 27 field goal
Horak 67 run
Woodcock 7 pass from Horak
Reesor 15 run
Steckel run.
PAT   ---  Steinke 6 Kicks.

Video of the game is available at:  http://www.wibw.com/sports/ksprepzone/headlines/Week-3-Rossville-at-Rock-Creek-275811071.html

No Mid-East video at Kansas First News.


Other Mid-East League Games:

Silver Lake   42     Riley Co.    7
St. Marys      27     Wabaunsee 0

Perry-Lecompton Golf Tourney

Below is the team's standing at the Perry-Lecompton Invitational golf tournament on May 7.

1.    Wanegi

2.    Maur-Hill

3.    Basehor-Linwood

4.    Rossville

5.    Perry-Lecompton

6.    DeSoto

7.    Jeff West

8.    Atchison

9.    Mill Valley

10.  St. Marys

11.  Immaculata

12.  Tonganoxie

Paul Steinke of Rossville was the second high individual and Gabe Marney came in 13th.

   

Dawgs Win Mid-East Tourney

    The Dawgs won the Mid-East League golf tournament this year in very convincing fashion with a 28 stroke advantage over runner-up  St. Marys.

Team Standings were:
1.    Rossville         352
2.    St. Marys        380
3.    Silver Lake     418
4.    Riley County  419

Individual standings were:

1.  Colby Hadsall  81
2.  Paul Steinke     83
4   Alex Bird         92
6   Gabe Marney   96

Dawgs Bury Bears

Rossville beat St. Marys 56-12 at the Friday night homecoming game at Rossville.

Rossville (5-0)            7   28   21     0     =     56
St. Marys (2-3)           6     0     0     6     =     12

Rossville scoring:
Reesor (2), 3 run, 1 run; Horak (2), 50 run, 57 run;
Hammes (2), 5 run, 39 run
Roduner 33 pass from Horak
Horak 36 pass from Horak.
PAT — Steinke 8 Kicks.

You can watch video of the game at    http://www.wibw.com/sports/ksprepzone/headlines/Week-5-St-Marys-at-Rossville-277975221.html

Football Frenzy has about 60 seconds of game video starting at the 4:44 mark in the following broadcast:  http://kansasfirstnews.com/2014/10/03/football-frenzy-recap-10314/

Horton Invitational Golf Tournament

    The RHS boys 4 man golf team won the Horton Invitational tournament on April 20th at the Lakeview Country Club, beating out Atchison (245), St. Marys (214), Norton (269) and Maur Hill-Mt. Academy (206) with an excellent (196).
    The Rossville team was composed of Gabe Marney (46 for 6th place),  Paul Steinke (47 for 7th place), Colby Hadsall (50 for 9th place), and Alex Bird (53).
     Each school fielded a 2 man team and 4 man team.  Some of the schools put their best golfers on the two man team whereas RHS put their best golfers on the four man team which helped their standing in the results for the four man teams.
     The complete results can be read by clicking on  Horton Invitational at:
http://www.kawvalley.k12.ks.us/schools/rjshs/athletics/boys_golf.htm

Dawgs Win St. Marys Invite

The Dawgs won the St. Marys Invitational golf tournament at Rolling Hills with a ten point victory over number two Nemaha Valley.

1.    Rossville       358
2.    Nemaha Vly  368
3.    Sabetha          373
4.    Jeff West       377
5.    Perry-Lec      379
6.    Frankfurt       382
7.    St. Marys       391
8.    Council Gr,    418
9.    Lyndon          423
10.  Silver Lake    440

    Top Individual overall was Paul Steinke with an 80.  Gabe Marney was #10 with an 89.

3A State Golf Tourney

Kansas 3A  State Golf Tournament At Hesston GC

Team scores

Wichita Collegiate 297, Sterling 330, Burlington 335, Hesston 344, Fredonia 344, Eureka 351, Nemaha Central 355, Rossville 359, Cheney 361, Cimarron 368, Phillipsburg 369, West Franklin 389.

Individual medalists

1. Chugg, Wichita Collegiate, 67; 2. Watson, Caney Valley, 71; 3. Trebilcock, Wichita Collegiate, 72; 4. Schissler, Sterling, 74; 5. Barnhart, Hesston, 75; 6. Percy, Central Heights, 76; 7. Reed, Wichita Collegiate, 77; 8. Sellman, Humboldt, 78; 9. Burnett, Lakin, 79; 10. Epple, Sabetha, 79; 11. (tie) Solander, Fredonia; Puetz, Garden Plain and C. Powelson, Wellsville, 80; 14. (tie) Leach, Jayhawk-Linn; Larsen, Wichita Collegiate; Steinke, Rossville and Fort, Osage City, 81; 18. (tie) Lankford, Jayhawk-Linn; Bradley, Nemaha Central; Mrkwa, Fredonia; Holecek, Ellsworth; Kellerman, Phillipsburg; Link, Burlington and Sloyer, Burlington, 82.

Year Of The Dawg

From  CJ Online

According to the Chinese Zodiac calendar, the Year of the Dog won’t occur again until 2018.

Locally, however, the argument could be made that 2014 was the Year of the Dawg.

Rossville began the calendar year with senior Tagen Lambotte becoming just the 31st wrestler in Kansas high school history to become a four-time state champion. The Mid-East League school finished the year as undefeated Class 3A state football champions, the first state title in program history.

“It’s really just the best feeling I could ever imagine,” Rossville senior linebacker Lake Schultz-Pruner said after the Bulldawgs knocked off Scott City, 21-14, in the 3A football state championship game. “I just know I’m going to remember this forever.”

Rossville's history-making feats combined with a couple other “Top Dogs” rank No. 9 in The Capital-Journal's 2014 year-end review.

Indeed, the 2014 Rossville football squad will be one the community will hold in high regards for quite some time.

Over the years, the program has fielded some good teams, some really good times. Since the inception of the playoff system in 1969, Rossville has had eight one-loss seasons and another 10 teams that lost just two games.

And the Bulldawgs have had some great teams, namely the 1979 and 1992 teams that each saw their seasons end with 3-0 losses. The ’92 squad fell 3-0 to Hesston in the 3A state championship game, while the ’79 squad lost 3-0 to Smith Center in the semifinals — the only points that Bulldawg team allowed in a record-setting defensive performance.

But none of those past Rossville squads could deliver a state title. Until this year.

The Bulldawgs finally solved archrival Silver Lake in the state semifinals and then rallied from seven down with two touchdowns in the final 7:15 with Tucker Horak’s touchdown run with 28 seconds left the game-winner.

“To finish it off just feels amazing,” said Horak, the junior quarterback who ran for 212 yards and two touchdowns in the championship game, capping an All-State season. “I’ve had some of the guys who were on both of those teams (1979, 1992) come up and talk to me today and it’s just an outstanding feeling knowing we finished something that they started long ago.”

Horak posted his second straight monster season under center, rushing for 2,089 yards and throwing for 1,651 yards, amassing 50 total touchdowns. Bulldawg kicker Paul Steinke, a foreign-exchange student from Germany, set a state record by making 101 of 101 PAT kicks.

History had already been made by Lambotte earlier in the year. Already a three-time state champion in Class 3-2-1A, it seemed all but a forgone conclusion Lambotte would add his name to the history books with his fourth.

His 152-pound title match against Centralia’s Andrew Beck, however, held plenty of nervous moments but Lambotte pulled out a 4-3 victory to finish the season.

I’m not happy at all,” Lambotte said after the match, which gave him titles in three different weight classes (one at 135 and two at 145). “I just didn’t execute.”

Later, however, he acknowledged his accomplishment, keeping an eye on his future wrestling at Division I powerhouse Iowa.

“It’s a check mark on the bucket list,” he said. “Now I have to start working for the next one.”

Lambotte was joined as a state champion by freshman Bryce Gfeller, who won at 106, and the Bulldawgs finished second as a team — the highest finish in program history.