Friday, Sept 20 the Wildcats traveled to Taft and picked up their third straight win against the Greyhounds making their overall record 3-1. Yorktown overcame Taft, 30-19.
The Greyhounds were first on the scoreboard but only a few seconds later the Wildcats would put on their own points as Rylan Rau blocked the extra point and ran it back for a two point conversion, 6-2. Matthew Olguin would punch it in from one yard out and Kason Sullivan would tack on the extra point to give the Wildcats the lead with two minutes remaining in the first period, 9-6. But in this back and forth battle, the Greyhounds reclaimed the lead with six seconds, 13-9.
Brody Metting found the end zone and once again Sullivan put the ball through the uprights, 16-13. Taft scored with an eight yard run by their quarterback but missed their extra point attempt, 19-16. Metting connected with Brayden Knostman for five yards giving the Wildcats their first passing touchdown of the season. Sullivan’s kick was good, 2319. At this point the lead had exchanged between both teams a total of six times. A defensive highlight in the first half was an interception by Cameron Willis and a forty yard run.
The third period was a strong defensive test as neither team put points on the board. Yorktown’s defense would remain impenetrable, not allowing a score in the second half but the Greyhounds would be cracked open by the Wildcats with a little over 10:oo minutes remaining in fourth when the game’s leading rusher, McKenzie Yanta, jetted 21 yards into the end zone. Kicker Sullivan went four for four for the night, 30-19.
“I am extremely proud of the heart and determination the guys showed tonight. We had a lot of guys step up and make some big plays,” Head Coach Ryan Knostman said.
Stat highlights include receivers Willis and Olguin each having three catches tallying 38 and 40 receiving yards, respectively. Yanta was the leading rusher with 120 yards in 17 carries. Metting accumulated 89 rushing yards in 18 carries and totaled 87 passing yards. Knostman connected on three passes out of five for 27 passing yards.
The Wildcats will be back in action at Wildcat Stadium on Friday, Sept. 27 against Bruni with kickoff set at 7:00 pm.
