Olpe wins field position, game

OLPE -- When the battle of field position doesn't go in a team's favor, it's difficult to win.

This was the position Uniontown found itself in during the Class 2-1A Regional Playoff Game against Olpe here Saturday night. And Olpe's advantage in field position gave it the edge it needed to take a 23-6 win and remain undefeated on the season.

Uniontown's season ended with a record of 9-2. The Eagles were ranked No. 5 in Class 2-1A after beating Pittsburg Colgan on October 26. Olpe, 11-0, was No. 4 in the Topeka Capital-Journal's poll.

There was only a 10-yard difference in the team's total offensive numbers, Olpe gaining 254 total yards while Uniontown had 244. But these numbers here will tell the majority of the story:

* -- Olpe's average starting field position was Uniontown's 46-yard line. On it's four scoring drives, the average was the Uniontown 40.

* -- Uniontown's average start was at its own 31 1/2. The Eagles found themselves at or inside their own 30 six times.

"Which is exactly the kind of thing we saw on film," Uniontown head coach Jim Mason said when asked about field position. "That was one of the things we were concerned about. They have the good kicker and punter and we were afraid field position might be a problem and as it turned out, it was."

Also give credit to Olpe as being the only team that could truly contain Eagle tailback Gage McKinnis this season. The bigger and more experienced home team (also known as the Eagles) held McKinnis to 35 yards rushing on 16 carries.

McKinnis came into the game with over 1,000 yards in his last six games and a little over 1,800 for the season. At halftime, however, he had minus-four yards on six carries.

Olpe had a larger line and a more experienced team. It has 13 seniors on its roster, 10 of whom start on either offense or defense.

"When we got something going, it seemed like we'd come up with an untimely penalty (nine for 75 yards)," Mason said. "That was a factor but another factor is that Olpe is pretty darned good. The have 13 seniors and…they've been together and successful for a long time, through junior high and high school. Maybe it's their time."

Olpe's had the ball first and drove from its own 34 to Uniontown's 24 in 12 plays. But McKinnis intercepted a pass intended for Seth Pargman in the end zone for a touchback.

But the Eagles went three-and-out and Olpe returned the ball to Uniontown's 36. Dallas Burenheide kicked a 34-yard field goal with 2:43 to go in the first to give Olpe a 3-0 lead.

Uniontown got on the board with one of its few big plays of the night as Chad Hays found McKinnis streaking down the middle of the field and hit him for a 66-yard score with 5:04 left in the first half. The PAT kick was unsuccessful.

Olpe's Colton Stueve brought the ensuing kickoff back to the Uniontown 43. Eight plays later, Drew Pettitjohn scored from three yards out and Burenheide's PAT kick put the home squad up 10-6.

Uniontown was able to get a drive going despite starting from its own nine with 7:50 on the clock in the third quarter. The Eagles made it to midfield before Andrew Haag intercepted an option pass by McKinnis.

Olpe converted the turnover into a score in just four plays as quarterback Tanner Coble found Pettitjohn from 24 yards out to make it 16-6. The PAT kick sailed wide left.

Down by 10, the Eagles found themselves facing fourth-and-12 at the Olpe 37 early in the fourth quarter. With time running down, they had to go for the first down by Olpe got pressure on Hays and forced an incomplete pass.

The Eagles forced a punt but had to take over at their own 37. They were unable to advance the ball and gave it up on downs there. Olpe then got the clinching score when Stueve ran in from 18 yards out with 2:45 remaining in the contest. Burenheide's kick was good.

Hays was Uniontown's leading rusher with 66 yards on 14 carries. The Eagles had 99 yards as a team on 35 attempts.

Hays completed nine of 17 passes for 145 yards. McKinnis was the leading receiver with two catches for 56 yards (his other reception was a screen for minus-10). Jamie Shelton had two catches for 39 yards, Shawn Pritchett had two for 24 and Clinton McAnulty had two for 19.

Coble began the game just one of five for minus-two yards for Olpe but hit six of his final eight to finish with 94 yards in the air. Seth Pargman caught two passes for 37 yards, Pettitjohn two for 22 and Jordon Pargman two for 15.

Stueve ran for 82 yards on 19 carries for Olpe while Pettitjohn finished with 57 yards on 12 rushes.

Uniontown will lose only six seniors: Hays and linemen Travis Stewart, Chris Lamb, Heath Clayton, Dominick Robinson and Corey Townsley.

"The good thing (abut this season) was getting to work with this group of kids and this group of coaches," Mason said. "It's been good chemistry and we all worked well together. It's been a fun group to be with. I wouldn't trade them for anybody.

"We've got to build off of how good this season was. It depends on, like it always does, hanging together, getting in the weight room and doing your off-season work. We'll see how things will go from there."

NOTES -- Olpe will play Lyon County League rival Lyndon in the Sectional round Friday night. The Tigers are just 7-4 but have beaten Leavenworth Immaculata and Centralia in their playoff games....

Olpe had just three juniors on the roaster, so the Eagles will be depending a lot on this year's sophomores next season. They have 11 sophomores....

Uniontown had a couple of players get hurt during the game. Townsley was hurt in the first quarter but went back in. Receiver Brandon Boyd suffered a painful injury to his right shoulder when he made his only catch of the night. After some treatment, he toughed it out and went back in on defense despite his obvious discomfort....