The Blaine County Journal News-Opinion - We've Got The County Covered

The Chinook Sugarbeeters got back in the win column Friday afternoon in Hays with a 47-0 win over the Thunderbirds. Chinook was coming off an unscheduled bye the previous week after their contest with Fairview was cancelled.

The Sugarbeeters entered the contest with the Thunderbirds with a 1-1 record. Chinook took down Park City in a thriller and then fell at home to the Shelby Coyotes a week later. The 'Beeters played well in both those contest, both of which went down to the final play of the game to decide the outcome.

The 'Beeters made things tough on themselves in both of those contest while seeming to get the better of their opponent throughout. Turnovers at inopportune times forced the 'Beeters into difficult positions that they weren't always able to overcome. Friday in Hays, Head Coach Mike Jones and the 'Beeters were looking to correct some of those issues.

The game with the Thunderbirds was originally scheduled for Saturday afternoon, but was moved to Friday last week.

The Sugarbeeters wasted little time lighting up the scoreboard. Junior Toby Niederegger returned the opening kick off to mid-field. Junior Hunter Molyneaux picked up 17 yards on first down and then added a 23 yard touchdown run on the next snap for a quick 6-0 lead.

The 'Beeter defense held the Thunderbirds in check on the ensuing possession, sacking the punter to give the offense back the ball.

Molyneaux carried for a short gain and on second down senior quarterback, Benton Elliot found junior Drake Berreth for another 'Beeter touchdown. Niederegger added the kick and Chinook led 13-0 .

Hays/Lodge Pole then controlled the clock for a bit, taking some time off the clock, but eventually their drive stalled and the punter was again unable to get the kick away.

The 'Beeters took over at the Thunderbird 20 yard line and scored their third touchdown two plays later. Sophomore Tyler Schoen ran for 16 yards and Molyneaux punched it in from four yards out. Niederegger added the kick to give Chinook a 20-0 lead at the 2:00 mark of the first quarter.

The Thunderbirds started their next drive at their own five yard line. Senior Ethan MacLeod applied pressure, forcing a fumble that senior Reese Elliot recovered in the end zone for another score. Freshman Riley Jorgenson added the extra point kick to give Chinook a 27-0 lead with 1:33 left in the opening quarter.

The 'Beeters ran just six offensive plays in the first quarter for 85 yards and three touchdowns.

Junior Tyshawn Shambo made several nice plays for the Thunderbirds on both sides of the ball.

Shambo was an effective stopper on defense and strung together several nice runs over the course of the game.

Benton Elliot added a 15 yard scamper and Schoen added a 38 yard touchdown run for Chinook in the second quarter. Sophomore quarterback Levi Jensen capped off the scoring with a 20 yard run in the third putting the finishing touches on a 47-0 Chinook win.

Jones was pleased with his teams efforts, "Last week was a good week for us coming off of our bye week. We are a little injured right now so we were able to get some good film and experience for our young kids and some other kids in different positions."

Sophomore Tyler Schoen runs free for a 38 yard touchdown.

The 'Beeters still have some tough games ahead of them, "We are at the point in the year where we as a coaching staff are going back to fundamentals. We are really focusing up on staying in that focused tough mentality while emphasizing fundamentals," said Jones

Shoring up a few things will be critical to Chinook's success,

"We can't afford games with a lot of turnovers. We need to win that battle each week. Also we are really working on winning our assignment on defense each series. We have a big couple weeks coming up so it was good to see some kids that can step up for us and we were able mix and match where some kids were on the field. We got some good experience for the team going forward," concluded Jones.

Chinook is on the road again this week. The 'Beeters will be in Chester Friday night to take on the Hawks. They will return home, Friday, October 2 when they take on the Simms Tigers.