For the second time in as many games against Canton, the West Central Trojans were stopped at the goalline by the C-Hawks defense.  This time the stop came in the semifinals of the 11A playoffs in Canton on Friday, November 6th, preserving a 14-6 win for the C-Hawks.

Canton had stopped West Central on the goalline in the last game of the regular season on Thursday, October 22nd.  That stop then led to a 99-yard game-winning drive by Canton for a 12-7 victory.

On Friday night the Trojans trailed 14-6 late in the game and had a first and goal from the Canton one-yard line needing a score and two-point conversion to tie the game.  The first two attempts by West Central were on successful.  On third down, however, the Justin Zirpel and the Trojans thought Zirpel crossed the goalline prior to Zach Richardson of Canton forcing a fumble.  After the officials deliberated, the call was a fumble recovered by the C-Hawks in the endzone with just over a minute to play in the game.

West Central did force Canton to punt, but the Trojans were unable to to get a last second score to tie the game, and the Canton C-Hawks advanced to the championship game.

The game was another strong defensive battle between the two teams.  Canton scored late in the first quarter, but West Central held them the remainder of the first half.  The Trojans’ lone touchdown came on a Zirpel run in the third quarter.  Canton responded with a scoring drive of their own immediately after the Trojan touchdown.

Zirpel finished the game 2-6 passing for 34 yards along with 75 rushing yards and a touchdown.  Ryan Healy added 78 rushing yards.

West Central has their season come to an end with an overall record of 6-5.

For the second year in a row the West Central Trojans and the Dell Rapids Quarriers met in the quarterfinals of the 11A playoffs.  Last year the Trojans traveled to Dell Rapids, but this year, the Trojans hosted the Quarriers on Thursday, October 29th.

Derek Eidsness hit the game-winning field goal in 2019 with a second left on the clock to help advance the Trojans to the semifinals.  It was another late score for West Central that gave the Trojans a 16-14 win over Dell Rapids and send them to semifinals again this year.

West Central defeated the Quarriers 34-0 less than two weeks ago on October 16th, but the Trojans didn’t plan on this game being anything like the one earlier this year.

“We knew it was not going to be like the first time we played Dells. They are such a well-coached team, and their kids play so hard all the time. I have nothing but respect for their players, coaches, and program,” said head coach Vincent Benedetto.

The Trojans electrified the home crowd on the opening drive of the game.  After getting the kickoff to start the game, West Central was in the endzone two plays later.  Justin Zirpel had a 49-yard run, and Ryan Healy followed with a 19-yard touchdown run to give the Trojans a 7-0 lead just thirty-eight seconds into the game.  The offense didn’t come quite as easily the rest of the game.  After Dell Rapids tied the game with 3:03 to play in the second quarter, the Trojans were able to get a scoring drive together prior to halftime.  Eidsness made a 20-yard field goal with :09 to go in the second quarter to give the Trojans a 10-7 lead heading into halftime.

Dell Rapids seemed to find some momentum in the second half.  The Quarriers got the ball to start the third quarter and had an almost seven-minute opening drive that resulted in touchdown to give them a 14-10 lead.  Both defenses continued to play strong in the second half, but the Quarriers looked to be making a move in the fourth quarter.  They had the ball on the Trojan 40 yard-line with just over eight minutes to go in the game after a big run by Landon Ruesink.  The Trojan defense, however, did not break.  West Central was able to force a turnover on downs and took possession with 7:24 to play in the game.

“It was battle against a really good opponent. When we needed to, we made plays. We had not made those plays in previous games this season in our close losses to Dakota Valley and Canton,” said Benedetto.

The Trojan offense put together a 10-play, 66-yard drive that lasted five minutes and thirty-five seconds.  Zirpel scored on a quarterback sneak from the Quarrier one-yard line with 1:49 to play.  The extra point was no good, but West Central regained the lead 16-14.  The last drive by the Quarriers was another turnover on downs as the West Central defense held strong for the win.

“This win is a testament to the character of our players- the hard work they put in during the off-season and season showed on the field tonight. I am very proud to be a part of this team, we have a special group of kids,” added Benedetto.

The two teams ended with nearly identical stats for the game.   West Central had 231 yards of total offense, while the Quarriers had 227 yards.  Neither team had a turnover in the game.  Both teams punted four times, committed three penalties, had 11 first downs, and finished with a sack.

Zirpel had 20 carries for 129 yards and a touchdown in the game.  Healy finished with 14 carries for 77 yards and a touchdown.  Healy and Carter Sandholm both had eight tackles in the game.  Brayden Traub-Jensen and Logan Maras both finished with seven tackles each.

West Central (6-4) will travel to play Canton in the semifinals on Friday, November 6th with a trip to the championship game on the line.

The West Central Trojan football team had their three-game winning streak come to an end in the final regular season game on Thursday, October 22nd.  The Trojans lost on the road to the Canton C-Hawks 12-7.

Canton scored on their opening possession of the game that lasted four and a half minutes.  Seth Peterson threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Payton Eben with 7:38 to play in the opening quarter.  The extra point was no good, and Canton led 6-0.

The Trojans took a small lead in the second quarter.  Justin Zirpel scored on a four-yard touchdown run.  The extra point was good, and West Central led 7-6.  The score remained 7-6 at halftime.  Neither team would score in the third quarter as well, and the Trojans maintained a 7-6 lead heading into the final quarter.

The Trojans looked as if they were going to put the game out of reach as they had the ball inside the Canton 10-yard line late in the fourth quarter.  Canton’s defense was able to make a goal-line stand and forced a turnover on downs on their own one-yard line with about two minutes to go in the game.  The C-Hawks were able to convert on a fourth down on the ensuing offensive drive to keep hopes alive.  With :19 to go in the game, Peterson and Eben connected again on a touchdown pass to get the come-from-behind win.

Zirpel was 2-2 passing for 53 yards.  Derek Eidsness had both of those catches.  Zirpel also had 20 carries for 91 yards and a touchdown.  Ryan Healy had 21 carries for 81 yards.  Eidsness also had nine carries for 53 yards.

West Central finishes the regular season with a 5-4 record.  The Trojans will be the #3 seed in the 11A playoffs and will host the #6 Dell Rapids Quarriers on Thursday, October 29th.

The West Central Trojans football team had every aspect of their game working in a 34-0 victory over the Dell Rapids Quarriers on the Quarrier’s Homecoming night on Friday, October 16th.

The Trojans finished with a total of 391 yards of offense, all of those coming on the ground, while holding Dell Rapids to just 145 yards of total offense.  The West Central defense also force two turnovers in the game.

Derek Eidsness got the scoring started on the Trojan’s opening drive of the game.  Eidsness scored on a 41-yard carry with 9:24 to play in the opening quarter.  Justin Zirpel also had a first quarter touchdown, scoring from 37 yards away with 4:10 to go.  West Central led 14-0 after the first quarter.

Ryan Healy scored on a six-yard touchdown run with 7:23 to play in the first half to push the lead to 21-0.  After a fumble recovery by the defense, Eidsness hit a 32-yard field goal with :11 in the first half to give West Central a 24-0 lead at halftime.

Eidsness made another field goal in the third quarter with 2:30 to go, this time from 38 yards away to make the score 27-0.  The final touchdown came with 8:37 to go in the game on a 39-yard run by Zirpel.

West Central nearly had three players with 100 yards or more on the ground in the game.  Zirpel finished with 11 carries for 140 yards and two touchdowns.  Eidsness had six carries for 110 yards and a touchdown.  Healy finished with 21 carries for 97 yards and a touchdown.  Seth Gabbert had seven tackles in the game.  Eric Bowden had six tackles, and Jacob Krempges had four tackles.

West Central (5-3) will travel to Canton to end the regular season on Friday, October 22nd.

The West Central Trojans held off a third quarter rally by the Madison Bulldogs and won their final home game of the season on Friday, October 9th.  The Trojans defeated the Bulldogs 33-14.

The first half of the game belonged to the Trojans.  West Central scored 17 straight points in the first two quarters.  Derek Eidsness made a 33-yard field goal with 2:17 to play in the first quarter for a 3-0 lead.  The first touchdown came on a four-yard run by Justin Zirpel with 7:15 to play in the second quarter.  Ryan Healy added a four-yard touchdown run of his own with 5:55 to play in the half.  West Central led 17-0 at halftime.

Madison put together a rally in the third quarter.  Nate Ricke connected with Carter Bergheim on a 35-yard touchdown pass with 9:19 to play in the third quarter.  Ricke then had a five-yard touchdown run with 7:24 to go in the quarter to pull the Bulldogs within three points at 17-14.  The score remained 17-14 heading into the fourth quarter.

Eidsness led the Trojans in the fourth quarter to keep them in front.  Eidsness made field goals of 31 yards, 33 yards, and 35 yards all in the fourth quarter to give the Trojans a 26-14 lead.  Eidsness then put the game out of reach when he intercepted a pass by Ricke and returned it 30 yards for a touchdown with 1:28 to play in the game.

West Central finished the game with 301 yards of total offense, 253 rushing yards and 48 passing yards.  Madison was held to just 168 yards of offense, 116 rushing yards and 52 passing yards.  The Trojans also had three interceptions and two fumble recoveries in the game.

Zirpel was 2-4 passing for 48 yards and an interception.  Seth Gabbert had a catch for 30 yards, and Braden Dierickx had a catch for 18 yards.  Healy finished with 26 carries for 126 yards and a touchdown.  Zirpel had 28 carries for 83 yards and a touchdown.  Eidsness had seven rushes for 35 yards.  Logan Maras had six tackles in the game.  Healy and Eidsness both had four tackles.  Jacob Krempges had two interceptions.

West Central (4-3) will travel to Dell Rapids on Friday, October 16th.

The West Central Trojans football team bounced back a week after a tough loss to beat the Vermillion Tanagers 35-19 in Vermillion on Friday, October 2nd.

The Trojans held a slim one-point lead after the first quarter 7-6.  Vermillion took the lead by halftime with two scores in the second quarter.  The Tanagers lead 19-15 at the half.  West Central regained the lead in third quarter with a touchdown to make the score 22-19.  The Trojans added a couple of more scores to put the game away in the fourth quarter.

West Central had 350 yards of total offense, 325 rushing yards and 25 passing yards.  Vermillion finished with 401 yards of offense, 388 passing yards and 13 rushing yards.

Justin Zirpel was 1-2 passing for 25 yards and a touchdown.  Derek Eidsness had the 25-yard touchdown reception.  Zirpel also had 22 carries for 214 yards and two touchdowns.  Zirpel’s touchdown runs were of 66 and 47 yards.  Eidsness had eight carries for 59 yards and a touchdown.  Ryan Healy had 14 carries for 52 yards and a touchdown.

Eidsness also had an interception in the game.  Mason Berens also had an interception.  Healy finished with two sacks.  Tommy Berg, Jacob Loger, and Jaxon Skinner all had a sack.  Berg also had a fumble recovery.

West Central (3-3) will host Madison in their final home game of the season on Friday, October 9th.

The Dakota Valley Panthers stole a win away from West Central on the Trojans homecoming game on Friday, September 25th.  The Panthers won the game by a score of 15-14.

The Trojan defense held the Panthers to just 205 rushing yards and 16 passing yards, but Dakota Valley scored on the first and last drives of the game.  West Central’s offense had 326 yards, but turned the ball over six times in the game.

Justin Zirpel had 25 carries for 199 yards and a touchdown.  Ryan Healy added 19 carries for 108 yards and a touchdown.

“We played a great game with the exception of the first and last drive on defense and six plays on offense when we turned the football over. We cannot expect to win big football games making the amount of mistakes that we made Friday night. Our kids and coaches took the loss hard; we are not satisfied with playing close. We expect to win and did not do that. There are positives to build off of, and we need to make corrections to accomplish what we set out to accomplish this season.  Our kids work hard, and as a coach that is what continues to drive our optimism for this season. This group is capable of being very good team, but that means nothing if we do not prove it on Friday nights. Excited for an opportunity this Friday night at Vermillion,” said head coach Vincent Benedetto.

West Central (2-3) will be on the road at Vermillion on Friday, October 2nd.

The West Central Trojans hosted the #1 team in Class 11A, the Tea Area Titans, on Friday, September 11th.  Unfortunately for the Trojans, the game did not go their way as the Titans went home with a 41-0 victory.

Tea Area used a big first half, scoring four touchdowns, to secure the victory.  The Titans finished with a total of 424 yards of total offense, 319 rushing yards and 105 passing yards.  The Trojans were held to just 56 yards of offense.

Justin Zirpel finished with eight carries for 21 yards.  Ryan Healy had five carries for 19 yards.

West Central (1-2) looks to rebound when they travel to Tri-Valley High School to play the Mustangs on Friday, September 18th.