Defense Leads Way in Minster 31-13 Win Over Sidney Lehman

By Bruce Monnin

SIDNEY — The Minster Wildcats have gotten used to relying on their potent passing offense the last few years. During the first half of Friday night’s game against the Sidney Lehman Cavaliers, Minster’s offense sputtered, and the defense was called upon. The Wildcat defenders responded, allowing only 45 Lehman yards on 28 plays as Minster took a 10-0 halftime lead. The Wildcat offense, led by the running game, came to life in the second half as Minster pulled away for a 31-13 win.

“I liked our defense. We’re not great right now, but I liked our effort,” complimented Wildcat coach Geron Stokes. “They spread you out and put you into tough situations, and our kids fought.”

The first quarter saw both teams trade punts as the defenses ruled. Late in the quarter, Minster took over on the Cavalier 44-yard line, and six plays later scored when Josh Nixon connected with Jacob Dues for a 12-yard touchdown with one second remaining in the period. Jason Schultz kicked the extra point, setting a new school record with his 96th career extra point kick.

The second quarter saw more offensive frustration until the last drive of the half. The Wildcats again started in Lehman territory and reached the 10-yard line with two seconds remaining in the period. Schultz drilled a 27-yard field goal to give Minster a 10-0 lead at intermission.

The Wildcats gained 190 yards in the half but only converted three out of nine third down attempts.

“We were one person away. One guy away,” analyzed Stokes. “They made us keep the ball in front of them and they blitzed us a lot. The points didn’t come up, but I really liked our execution.”

After rushing for only 58 yards in the first half, Minster decided to emphasize the ground game in the second half. On the Wildcats’ opening drive they ran the ball eight times for 54 yards, including Nixon’s three-yard scoring carry. Most of the yards were compiled by Evan Huelsman, who ended the game with 103 yards on 18 carries.

“We thought we could take advantage of some stuff. We wanted to get rolling,” added Stokes about the shift to the running game. “Our guys up front did a nice job and our backs did a nice job. That’s what they (Lehman) were giving us.”

Down 17-0, the Cavaliers responded with a score of their own, moving 74 yards on nine plays. The drive featured several quarterback scrambles by Stephen Monnin and was capped by a one-yard scoring run by Jacob Earhart.

Minster came right back with two scores to seal the victory. The next Wildcat drive featured a 34-yard pass from Nixon to Bryce Schmeissing, followed by five runs for 28 yards by Jacob Stechschulte, including the six-yard score.

Minster took the ball back thanks to a Jacob Dues interception at midfield. The Wildcats returned to the air this drive, including the 13-yard touchdown from Nixon to Schmiessing which made the score 31-13.

With the first-string Minster defense on the sidelines, Lehman mounted a late 75-yard drive which culminated in a 10 yard touchdown pass from Monnin to Dylan Arnold with 10 seconds remaining in the game. Zach Heuker blocked the extra point for the final 31-13 margin.

Minster ended with a balanced offensive output, gaining 208 yards on the ground and 216 through the air, while committing no turnovers for the second week in a row. Lehman also displayed a balanced offense, but only totaled 96 rushing yards and 92 passing yards.

Next week Friday Minster (2-0) remains on the road to visit the 2-0 Coldwater Cavaliers. 0-2 Lehman stays at home to play Graham Local, who was 0-1 coming into this weekend.

Score by quarter 1 2 3 4 Total

Minster 7 3 14 7 31

Sidney Lehman 0 0 7 6 13

First Quarter:

MIN – Jacob Dues 12 yd pass from John Nixon (Jason Schultz kick), 0:01

Second Quarter:

MIN – Jason Schultz 27 yd FG, 0:02

Third Quarter:

MIN – Josh Nixon 3 yd run (Jason Schultz kick), 8:46

LEH – Jacob Earhart 1 yd run (Ian Smith kick), 5:18

MIN – Jacob Stechschulte 6 yd run (Jason Schultz kick), 2:09

Fourth Quarter:

MIN – Bryce Schmiesing 13 yd pass from Josh Nixon (Jason Schultz kick), 10:47

LEH – Dylan Arnold 10 yd pass from Stephen Monnin (kick blocked), 0:12

Team statistics MIN LEH

First downs 24 14

Rushes - yards 44-208 35-96

Passing yards 216 92

Comp - att - int 17-27-0 7-20-1

Total yards 424 188

Punts - average 3-29.7 7-33.0

Fumbles - lost 0-0 0-0

Penalties - yards 6-50 6-40

Time of possession 26:19 21:18

Individual statistics

Rushing: Minster, E Huelsman 18-103, Stechschulte 9-57, J Huelsman 11-53, Nixon 5-(-2), Schmiesing 1-(-3); Sidney Lehman, Monnin 16-48, Earhart 19-48

Passing: Minster, Nixon 17-27-0-216; Sidney Lehman, Monnin 7-20-1-92

Receiving: Minster, Schmiesing 4-72, Dues 4-54, Poeppelman 3-26, Ranly 2-24, Schultz 2-22, Niemeyer 2-18; Sidney Lehman, Arnold 2-35, Sherman 2-32, Barhorst 2-9, Lee 1-16