| Pirates
beat Wallace 54-6
The state semifinal game against Wallace looked a lot like most of the Prairie Pirates’ regular season games as the Pirates scored every time they had the ball and rolled to a 54-6 win in a game that ended at halftime last Friday, Nov. 13, at the Kibbie Dome in Moscow. 
Wallace was held to just 113 total yards of offense with 82 of that coming in their final possession when Prairie was running in the subs on defense and making sure everyone got in for at least one play. Wallace started the game well as they tried an onside kick on the opening kickoff and came up with the ball at the Prairie 49. They gained 4 yards in two plays running the ball then tried to pass and Conner Rieman and Branden Waller combined to sack Wallace quarterback Tyler Beard for a 7 yard loss. That led to a punt and David Sigler returned it 21 yards to the Prairie 40. Prairie started slow on offense as Kyle Holthaus’ first pass attempt was dropped and Waller was stopped for no gain on second down. Prairie then ran the same play on third down as they did on first and this time Rieman caught the ball and raced up the right sideline for a 60 yard scoring play. Tyrell Langston then easily scored the 2-point conversion as Kyler Shumway, Waller and Sigler blocked open a huge hole in the line. On the next Wallace possession the Miners picked up a first down on what would be their only pass completion of the game. That put them into Prairie territory at the 43. They were then forced to punt though and that was the last time the Miners were on the Prairie side of the 50 until the end of the game. Beard’s punt went out of bonds at the 27 and it took Prairie just 1 play to get on the scoreboard again. Waller came out of the backfield and ran a fly pattern down the left hashmarks. Holthaus’ pass hit him in stride at about the Wallace 40 and Waller raced to the end zone to complete the 73 yard scoring play. Langston again ran through a huge hole on the right side for the 2-pointer to make it 16-0. Wallace picked up another first down thanks to a penalty but got only as far as the 50 before being forced to punt again.  Sigler
returned the punt 21 yards to the 42.
Holthaus tried to hit Sigler with a long pass on first down but the pass was just over Sigler’s outstretched hands. Holthaus then ran the option to the right and wound up keeping the ball for a 40 yard gain to the Wallace 18. On the next play he connected with a wide open Sigler in the end zone for another touchdown. This time the conversion try was stopped leaving Prairie with a 22-0 lead with 2:40 left in the first quarter. Wallace’s junior running back Nathan Cook picked up 21 yards on first down but then Wallace went backward as a false start penalty and a sack of Beard by Derek Schaeffer for a loss of 17 yards led to another punt. Beard’s punt went off the side of his foot and looked more like a squib kickoff than a punt as it rolled dead just 9 yards downfield at the Wallace 30. Langston went up the middle for 16 yards on first down and Waller then went over the left side for 14 yards and the touchdown. Holthaus passed to Sigler for the 2-pointer to make it 30-0 with 28 seconds left in the first quarter. Another sack of Beard, this time by Rieman and Langston, led to another Wallace punt. Since Wallace punted from their own 5, Prairie wound up taking over at the Wallace 32. Two passes fell incomplete by Langston picked up 23 yards on third down to set up first and goal at the 9. He then went over the left side for the score on the next play. Prairie resorted to trickery on the 2-pointer as Waller and Sigler set up as if Waller was going to kick the extra point. Prairie then shifted into a spread formation with Sigler at quarterback and 4 players spread way out to the left. Sigler wound up passing to the 1 player spread right, Rieman, for the 2-pointer. Wallace took over after the kickoff at their own 28 and Cook picked up a first down with a 12 yard gain. Andrew Gabica then ran a blitz from his linebacker spot and sacked Beard for a 9 yard loss. On the next play Beard attempted to pass again and the rush forced him to throw sooner than he wanted and Waller made a juggling interception at the Wallace 38 and returned it to the 35. 
Devin Schmidt then went in for his only 2 plays of the game and showed that his tender ankle didn’t slow him down much as he caught a middle screen from Holthaus and burst through the middle for a 34 yard gain to the 1. Schmidt then went up the middle on the next play for the touchdown. Prairie then ran another variation on the previous extra point attempt as this time Sigler passed to Langston who was in the bunch formation spread wide to the left and Langston followed his blockers into the end zone to make the score 46-0 with 7:37 left in the half. At that point Prairie started subbing players in and Wallace picked up 22 yards before being stopped on 4th down when Gabica tackled Beard for a 1 yard gain on fourth down and 3. Prairie took over at the Wallace 40 and subbed in Brock Heath and Cody Schumacher in the backfield. Heath carried the ball on 5 of 6 plays and gained 41 yards with Shumacher adding 4 more. (they also had to overcome a 5 yard penalty). Heath wound up scoring from the 9 on a sweep to the right with 1:10 left on the clock. Garrett Roush ran in the 2-pointer. Wallace took over on their own 28 after the kickoff return and faced a different Prairie defense on each play. Cook ran the ball on 4 straight plays and got an extra chance after time ran out as Prairie was called for too many men on the field as they were shuttling players in and out. With one untimed play, Cook was able to get around right end and go 50 yards for a touchdown. The conversion try wasn’t even attempted as Prairie would’ve still been ahead by 46 even if they had made it. Prairie ran just 20 offensive plays in the game, scoring on 7 of them. Langston was the leading rusher with 48 yards on 3 carries while Heath added 41 yards on 5 carries and Holthaus had 40 yards on 1 carry. Prairie had 148 yards rushing on 13 attempts. Holthaus was 4 for 8 passing for 185 yards and 3 touchdowns. Waller caught 1 pass for 73 yards, Rieman 1 for 60, Schmidt 1 for 34 and Sigler 1 for 18. Wallace ran 36 plays in the game and gained just 113 total yards. They had 99 yards rushing on 31 attempts even though Cook gained 143 on 23 carries although 82 of that came on his final 4 carries. Beard completed 1 of 5 passes for 14 yards with 1 interception. On defense Gabica had 5 tackles and a sack. Shumway had 4½ tackles. Waller had 4 tackles, 1 sack and 1 interception. Langston and Rieman each had 3½ tackles and a sack. Justin Schmidt had 3 tackles. Holthaus had 2 ½ tackles. Sigler had 2 tackles. Schaeffer had 1½ tackles plus a sack. Joe Schumacher had 1½ tackles and Kaden Perrin had a tackle. The win sets up a rematch of last year’s championship game as both Prairie and Oakley again bring perfect 11-0 records into the game. The game will be played at noon Pacific Time Saturday, November 21, at Holt Arena (the Minidome) in Pocatello. Salmon River will play Mackay for the Division 2 title in the game following the Prairie-Oakley game. Holt Arena will also host the 2-A and 3-A championship games on Friday night. Prairie 30 24 -54 Wallace 0 6 - 6 P-Rieman 60 pass from Holthaus (Langston run) 9:10 1st P-Waller 73 pass from Holthaus (Langston run) 5:57 1st P-Sigler 18 pass from Holthaus (run failed) 2:40 1st P-Waller 14 run (Sigler pass from Holthaus) 0:28 1st P-Langston 9 run (Rieman pass from Sigler) 9:57 2nd P-Schmidt 1 run (Langston pass from Sigler) 7:37 2nd P-Heath 9 run (Roush run) 1:10 2nd W-Cook 50 run (no attempt) 0:00 2nd
It was great preparation for an indoor game as Prairie had to practice in 6 inches of snow Thursday afternoon, their last practice before their semifinal game against Wallace. It’s been many years since Prairie had to practice or play with snow on the ground. 
Amber Holthaus and Cassie Weightman run the flags as the rest of the cheer squad counts off jumping jacks after one of Prairie's touchdowns. The cheerleaders performed 214 jumping jacks in the game. Boosters to have Milk Bowl party Hey there all you Pirate fans, the Prairie Booster Club will be hosting a state football party on Saturday, November 21st at the Prairie High School cafeteria. We will show a live feed of the Milk Bowl via the internet. You will be able to view the game as it is happening. Kickoff is scheduled to happen at 12 noon (our time) and the doors will open one hour prior. Admission is free, but donation is accepted. We will have hot dogs, haystacks, nachos, chili, popcorn, candy, water and soda available to purchase. We will have 50/50 and raffle tickets available before and during the game. We will have power plays and play football bingo through out the entire game. If you would like to donate any items for the raffle or prizes for the power plays or bingo, please contact Loretta Riener at 962-5938 or Chris Kaschmitter at 962-3550. All the proceeds will benefit Prairie High School to assist in travel expenses. Come join the fun for the second annual Milk Bowl and watch the Prairie Pirates. Night shoot week 5 results Week 5 was dealt an interesting hand this Wednesday night. The weather was very intimidating as the white snow flakes added a twist with the already white birds soaring through the air. The wind was slight but bitter and the snow was bone soaking. Amongst the great scores, one shined throughout the crowd with Darrel Uhlorn of Cottonwood Federal Credit Union shooting a perfect 25. The leading team 3 Ol' Farts & 2 Pups may have the winning spot filled as they are 9 birds ahead of NezPerce Construction with a 1049. Third place is slightly behind with a 1028..... Unless the shooters fail to keep their average, it may a very close finish. Can't wait for next week to see how it all plays out. Lets go shooters. We have only one more week to turn the tides! Good Luck! 11-C.V., there, won 58-8 18-Potlatch, here, won 59-8 25-Timberline, there, won 54-6 9-Genesee, there, won 55-6 16-Troy, here, won 48-0 23-Deary, there, won 48-0 30-Kendrick, here, won 52-6 13-vs. Wallace, won 54-6 21-Championship vs. Oakley, Holt Arena, Pocatello, 12 noon PST |
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