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TYLER – It was a crisp, damp night for the opening round of the playoffs, with #4 seed Russell-Tyler-Ruthton facing off against #5 seed Tracy-Milroy-Balaton. RTR came into the game with a 5-3 record and had just beaten the Panthers a month ago 35-8. TMB was 4-4 and looking for revenge to continue their season. It was a game of costly turnovers and penalties on both sides, but RTR came away with an 18-8 victory to advance to the next round.
The Panthers kicked off, and Garrett Elton returned it to the 42-yard line. But three plays later, RTR had to punt. TMB took over on the 35-yard line, but they also went three-and-out and were forced to punt. RTR started their drive in good field position at the 46-yard line. On second down, Elton gained seven yards to give RTR a first down. A holding penalty made it 2nd and 15, but Braden Nibbe hauled in a 13-yard reception, followed by a run for 12 yards by Brayden Chandler. Chandler would pick up eight more yards, then Micah Johnson skirted around the right side for 18 yards and a touchdown. The extra point was missed, but RTR had an early 6-0 lead.
On TMB’s next possession, they were forced to punt, and ball went out of bounds at the 39-yard line. Chandler picked up 18 yards, and Micah Johnson gained another 9 yards. But Ty Yackley intercepted freshman quarterback Gavin Hook to stop a potential scoring drive by the Knights. A couple of short gains saw TMB facing fourth and four, and sophomore quarterback Jackson Kruse picked up the first down with a 25-yard scamper. A couple of good runs picked up another first down, and the quarter ended with RTR still leading 6-0.
Three plays later, TMB was facing a fourth and one, but the RTR defense rose up and stopped Kruse short, and TMB turned the ball over on downs. RTR took over deep in their own territory, but on second down, Hook connected with Tucker Schrunk for a 74-yard reception to put the ball at the 24-yard line. On third and one, Brayden Chandler took it in for a touchdown to make the score 12-0 after another missed extra point. TMB started their drive at the 23-yard line, and a pass interference call moved them to the 38-yard line. But three plays later, the Panthers had to punt, and RTR took over at the 45-yard line. Chandler had a 14-yard run, but on fourth and two, Hook carried the ball for four yards and a first down. With the ball on the 19-yard line, Elton hauled in a pass for 15 yards, putting the ball on the four-yard line. But Aiden Sanow recovered a fumble to stop the scoring drive. The drive stalled, and TMB punted the ball back to the Knights. On the first play of the drive, RTR completed a pass, but the ball was fumbled and TMB recovered on the 38-yard line. Quarterback Kruse then turned into a receiver, and the pass completion was good for 18 yards. But the clock ran out on the play, and RTR took a 12-0 lead into the locker room.
Tracy-Milroy-Balaton started the second half on their 15-yard line, but punted the ball back to RTR after a three-and-out. A couple of short runs brought up third and eight, and Braden Nibbe had an 18-yard reception to give RTR a first down. RTR was driving, but once again, a fumble inside the five-yard line turned the ball over to the Panthers. On second down, a pass from Kruse to Sanow gained 25 yards, and a couple of short runs had TMB facing fourth and three. The RTR defense held again, forcing an incompletion to take over on downs.
Brayden Chandler picked up 17 yards, and on the next play, Lane Wichmann hauled in a pass from Hook for a 20-yard touchdown to make the score 18-0. Ty Yackley returned the kickoff 15 yards, and two 5-yard runs gave TMB another first down. On fourth and eight, Emery Xiong picked up nine yards and a first down. Unfortunately, Aiden Sanow, the Panthers outstanding receiver, suffered a leg injury and was unable to return to the game. A screen pass gained eight yards, but on fourth down, an incomplete pass gave the ball back to RTR. The third quarter ended with RTR still leading 18-0.
On the first play of the fourth quarter, Chandler took a reverse for 22 yards. On the next play, RTR fumbled after a reception, and the Panthers recovered the ball. Two plays later, Lane Wichmann stepped in front of a Kruse pass and returned it 38 yards for an apparent touchdown. But a targeting penalty after the interception placed the ball back at the 35-yard line. RTR went for it on fourth down, but they were stopped short and TMB took over on downs. With a little over nine minutes left, TMB started their drive, and Braden Morgan gained 35 yards on a pass from Kruse. Two incompletions, and a short gain brought up fourth and eight, and Kruse was sacked to turn the ball over to the Knights once again.
RTR was not able to move the ball and they punted to the 38-yard line. On the first play, Tucker Schrunk outwrestled the TMB receiver for an interception. Garrett Elton gained 25 yards on a pass from Hook, but after a couple of short gains, they were forced to punt the ball back to TMB. A 24-yard pass completion to Morgan, followed by a 31-yard reception by Xiong, put the Panthers in scoring position with just a couple of minutes remaining. Morgan had another 13-yard gain, and a pass interference call on RTR in the end zone put the ball at the five-yard line. With less than a minute to go, Kruse ran the ball in to make it 18-8 after the successful extra point try. But the onside kick was recovered by Schrunk, and RTR ran out the clock for the win.
For TMB, Kruse was their leading ground gainer, with 51 yards. He was 19 for 32 for 197 yards. Morgan was the leading receiver, with 74 yards, followed by Xiong with 56 yards. Brayden Chandler led the Knights with 112 yards on 22 carries, followed by Micah Johnson with 31 yards and Gavin Hook ran for 20 yards. Tucker Schrunk was the leading receiver for RTR with 74 yards. Elton had 57 yards, Braden Nibbe added 28 yards, and Lane Wichman finished with 20 yards.
RTR now faces Springfield on Saturday afternoon at 3pm in Springfield