Cowboys drop Panthers, 27-8

After opening the game with a 65-yard touchdown drive, the Concordia Panthers were outscored 27-0 over the final three quarters in suffering a 27-8 North Central Kansas League loss to Abilene Friday night at Harold M. Clark Stadium.
Concordia ran 11 plays in marching down the field to score on the opening possession of the game.
Abilene, which had snapped a 25-game losing streak the previous week with a 14-7 victory over Marysville, shut out the Panthers the rest of the way.
Junior quarterback Stocton Timbrook threw for two touchdowns and rushed for one as the Cowboys rallied from the early deficit to hand Concordia its first loss of the season.
“Abilene is much improved. They played a bunch of sophomores last year, who also played as freshmen. They have a lot of experience,” Concordia coach Jordan Echer said.
Concordia, now 1-1 overall and 1-1 in league play, got the ball on its own 35-yard line to open the game.
A pair of runs by junior quarterback Braeden Primeaux gained 21 yards.
Primeaux would hook up with runningback Skyler Hake on a 26-yard gain.
Six plays later, Primeaux scored on a 1-yard run.
Hake ran in the two-point conversion, and Concordia led 8-0 with 6:34 remaining in the first quarter.
The Panthers would not score again.
Abilene, starting from the 45-yard line on its first possession of the game, went 55 yards in six plays.
Timbrook had a 19-yard completion to freshman Taygen Funston on the drive.
Zach Miller scored the Cowboys’ first touchdown on a 7-yard run just 1:25 after Concordia had taken the lead.
The extra point left Abilene trailing, 8-7.
Following an exchange of punts, the Panthers ended up with the ball on its own 44-yard line.
Hake, who finished with 113 yards on 12 carries, broke a long run on first down that set up a first and goal from the Abilene 3-yard line.
Hake and Primeaux each picked up one yard on consecutive runs.
Primeaux was stopped for no gain on a third and goal from the 1-yard line.
A delay of game penalty and then a false start penalty backed Concordia up 10 yards.
On fourth down and goal from the 11, Primeaux was sacked and Abilene took over.
“Between the penalties and missed assignments we put ourselves in bad situations a lot of times,” Echer said. “I think it was nine penalties, but it felt like more than that. All of them were at crucial times.”
Concordia would force a punt and got the ball on the Abilene 44-yard line.
After picking up one first down, the Panthers were unable to convert on a fourth down and 10.
Abilene got the ball on its own 35-yard line, and Miller got loose on a 44-yard run on second down.
Three plays later, Timbrook completed a 5-yard touchdown pass to Weston Rock.
Timbrook kicked the extra point, and the Cowboys led 14-8 with 4:40 to play in the second quarter.
Abilene would take the six-point lead into halftime.
The Cowboys ran 11 plays on the opening drive of the second half, before Concordia recovered a fumble by Funston on its own 10-yard line.
Following a punt, the Cowboys would get the ball on the Panther 47-yard line.
Abilene scored seven plays later on a 3-yard run by Timbrook with 4:36 to play in the third quarter.
The extra point made it a 21-8 game.
“They were fast and athletic. Paired with experience also, that is a dangerous thing in high school football. Speed and experience can take you a long way,” Echer said.
Concordia, which was limited to just 69 yards of total offense in the second half, would be unable to mount a comeback.
Abilene would extend the lead to 27-8 on a 4-yard touchdown pass from Timbrook to Rock with 2:20 on the clock.
“I really thought we were in it, even late when we were down two touchdowns. And then they score the one really late one to go up three touchdowns,” Echer said.
Concordia finished with 262 yards of total offense.
Primeaux completed nine of 17 passes for 96 yards.
Payton Breese had four catches for 32 yards.
Alec Francis made three grabs for 32 yards.
Defensively, linebacker Chayton Alquist-Pennell had 11 tackles and linebacker Dane Cleveland had 10.
The Panthers will play at home for the third consecutive week when they host league foe Wamego on Friday night.
Wamego is 2-0 overall and 2-0 in the league with wins of 45-6 over Clay Center and 34-7 over Marysville.
“We told the kids the sun is going to come up tomorrow just as it does every day. We will make some adjustments in practice this week and get ready for Wamego,” Echer said.