In a sport where it pays to have a short memory, the recollection of a season-ending loss is a hard one to shake. Sometimes, the only way to exorcise such demons is by going out again and getting it right the second time.
Not every team gets that chance. But for the Clinton-Massie Falcons, the chance became reality on Friday night as they dismantled undefeated Wyoming 42-14 in the 16th Region semifinals, avenging last season’s playoff loss to the Cowboys with emphasis.
The upset earned the fourth-seeded Falcons a date in the Division IV regional final next week and some much-needed catharsis for its players.
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“It felt amazing. We’ve been waiting 365 days for this,” said senior running back Carson Vanhoose. “It’s the best game we’ve had.”
Vanhoose was one of three seniors with multiple rushing touchdowns in the game for Clinton-Massie, joining quarterback Kody Zantene and running back Colton Trampler. The Falcons nearly doubled Wyoming’s offensive output, netting 442 total yards despite not completing a single pass.
“We’re a running wishbone team, and that’s what we want going into December,” Massie coach Dan McSurley said. “You might be able to stop one or two kids, but it’s hard to stop all four.”
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As it turned out, Wyoming wasn’t able to stop any of them. Clinton-Massie’s 42 points doubled the previous high allowed by the Cowboy defense this season, a perfect 12-0 until now. In the past five years they’ve allowed 22 or more just five times, two of which came in season-ending losses to Clinton-Massie.
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The Falcons got on the board early in this one with a 29-yard run by Zantene in the first quarter. After allowing a 63-yard touchdown pass from Wyoming’s Quaid Hauer to receiver Sam Prangley, they responded with two more scores by Vanhoose in the second, including a 62-yard breakaway scamper. They took a 21-8 lead into the half at Little Miami’s Hi-Five Stadium.
It was more of the same in the third quarter, as Massie controlled the ball with a pair of lengthy drives, culminating in another keeper by Zantene from 22 yards out and a five-yard score by Trampler that made it 35-8. In the meantime, Hauer and the Cowboys were unable to generate anything offensively, as their first drive of the half ended in an interception at midfield.
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They were able to break through at the start of the fourth quarter with a 10-yard pass to tight end Tony Blair, but that would be the extent of their scoring for the night as the two-point pass attempt dropped incomplete. Star junior C.J. Hester, who ran for 176 yards and two touchdowns in last year’s contest, was held to just 62 yards and two points.
“When a team beats you, you remember that, and that’s kind of what you work for in the offseason,” said McSurley. “That’s what you look at coming into the playoffs, you want to have an opportunity to – not so much revenge, but you know, show them that this is a different ballclub this year. That’s the way we played tonight.”
For Clinton-Massie, Vanhoose led the way with 157 rushing yards and his two scores. Zantene had 118, and Trampler, who scored the final touchdown with three minutes to play, ended up with 119. It was the first time this year that three separate Falcons eclipsed the 100-yard mark in a game.
They’ll face third-seeded Archbishop McNicholas in next week’s regional finals, after the Rockets took care of Eaton. The two teams haven’t faced each other since 2014, when Massie sent McNicholas home with a 28-14 victory in the semifinals.
Clinton-Massie – 7 14 14 7 - 42
Wyoming – 8 0 0 6 – 14
CM – Zantene 29 run (McGuinness kick)
W – Hauer 63 pass to Prangley (Hester run)
CM – Vanhoose 1 run (McGuinness kick)
CM – Vanhoose 62 run (McGuinness kick)
CM – Zantene 22 run (McGuinness kick)
CM – Trampler 5 run (McGuinness kick)
W – Hauer 10 pass to Blair (pass attempt failed)
CM – Trampler 1 run (McGuinness kick)
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