Hamilton Heights broke a long drought on Friday when it traveled to Maconaquah for a first-round game in Class 3A Sectional 28.
The Huskies broke away from the Braves late in the first quarter and then roared to a 51-18 victory. It was the first sectional win for Heights since 2017 and sends them into next Friday’s semi-finals.
“I’m very proud of the effort tonight,” said Huskies coach Jon Kirschner. “Very proud all the way around.”
Maconaquah got on the board first with a 41-yard touchdown pass less than two minutes into the game. But after that, Heights took over, as the first quarter and a half became the “Trey Ehman and offensive line show,” said Kirschner.
Ehman dominated the first quarter, scoring three touchdowns. His first was a 71-yard streak into the end zone at the 9:26 mark to tie the game, and a Teigan Scoles extra-point kick put the Huskies in front. Ehman scored again midway through the period on an eight-yard run.
Maconaquah quickly struck back, scoring on a 76-yard pass from Kaleb Shleton to Braxton Birner. The Braves tied for two-point conversions both times, but didn’t get either one, so Heights led 14-12.
Maconaquah got the ball back, but tried to punt. The Huskies’ Kaleb Murray blocked the punt, which led to a safety. Heights now led 16-12, and that became a 23-12 lead after Ehman scored on a 12-yard run with 1:37 left.
If the first quarter belonged to Ehman, then the second quarter was the Bodie Derrer show. The quarterback was responsible for three touchdowns and for powering the Huskies to a 44-12 halftime lead.
Derrer’s first TD was a 30-yard throw to Vincent Harley early in the quarter. Derrer then ran the ball in from 12 yards to score, and followed that with a nine-yard toss to Tyler Champion. Derrer than began the third quarter with one more touchdown pass, a 30-yarder to Evan Tilton. That completed the scoring, and the Huskies were up 51-12.
“It was a good night,” said Kirschner. “Very dominating night for the Huskies. I’ll give Maconaquah credit. They’re young. They’ve got some very talented receivers.” Kirschner also noted that the Braves have some good skill players coming up as well.
Heights’ defense also played well. Jaylyn Pugh caught an interception in the end zone in the final minute of the first half. Carson Fettig “played extremely well,” said Kirschner. “Probably had one of his top two or three games of the year. We had several batted balls. We knocked down a lot of passes tonight.” The coach noted that Dean Mason “had a couple pass breakups.”
Ehman finished the game with 224 yards rushing, with Owen VanHaaren collecting 155 yards on the ground. Derrer was 3-for-5 passing, but all three of those completions resulted in touchdowns. Scoles was 7-for-7 in extra-point kicks.
The Huskies are 8-2 and host Bishop Chatard in next week’s Sectional 28 semi-finals.
HAMILTON HEIGHTS 51, MACONAQUAH 18
Score by Quarters
Heights 23 21 7 0 – 51
Maconaquah 12 0 0 6 – 18
Team Stats HH LC
First Downs 9 9
By Rush 9 1
By Pass 0 7
By Penalty 0 1
Rushes-Yards 38-381 9-minus 1
Yards Passing 69 322
Comp-Att-Int-TD 3-5-0-3 23-44-1-3
Fumbles-Lost 4-1 1-0
Penalties-Yards 7-70 3-28
Punts-Average 2-35.0 4-31.0
Heights Scoring
First Quarter
9:26 – Trey Ehman 71-yard run (Teigan Scoles kick)
5:58 – Ehman 8-yard run (Scoles kick)
2:24 – Safety, 2:24
1:37 – Ehman 12-yard run (Scoles kick)
Second Quarter
9:57 – Vincent Harley 30-yard pass from Bodie Derrer (Scoles kick)
6:36 – Derrer 12-yard run (Scoles kick)
3:12 – Tyler Champion 9-yard pass from Derrer (Scoles kick)
Third Quarter
11:40 – Evan Tilton 30-yard pass from Derrer (Scoles kick)
Heights individual stats
Rushing: Ehman 15-224, Owen VanHaaren 12-155, Kyle Michael 3-11, Derrer 4-minus 2, Joey Sigler 4-minus 7.
Passing: Derrer 3-5-69.
Receiving: Harley 1-30, Tilton 1-30, Champion 1-9.