Flivvers Top Braves To Clinch Playoff Berth, 45-27

GLADSTONE---The Gladstone Braves played their final home football game of the season Friday night with a lot of emotion, but the Kingsford Flivvers posted a 45-27 win at the Marble Athletic Field. Ben Moreau and Trevor Roberts each scored twice as the Flivvers improved to 6-2 on the season and clinched a state playoff berth.

But for the Braves, it was an emotional evening, with 18 seniors playing in their final home game.

All of the boys, except for the injured Kyle Pouliot and Hunter Garling, played.

Gladstone trailed, 31-6, at halftime, but played an emotional second half to prevent the score from becoming lopsided. And Kingsford substituted freely in the second half.

"I really think that the seniors led the way tonight," Gladstone Coach Jeff Hansen said. "We had some setbacks, and there were some positives and negatives that happened. We just kind of got togeher at halftime and decided that we were gonna rally."

"We were gonna keep hiking back up the hill, no matter how steep the hill was. They just continue to play for each other, no matter what. I'm very proud of my team."

Gladstone senior Matt Chenier fought back tears as he walked off the Marble Field.

"You've just got to go out and lay it all out on the line," Chenier said. "You can't have any regrets."

Kingsford drove 80 yards in 12 plays on its first drive, scoring a touchdown on an 11-yard run by Moreau. The Flivvers scored early in the second quarter on another Moreau run, but Gladstone got back in it when quarterback Ben Schwalbach hooked up with senior Jake Greenfield for a 63-yard touchdown pass to make it a 14-6 game.

Then, the turning point.

Kingsford went on another long drive, with Roberts scoring from eight yards out to make it 21-6 with 7:22 left in the half.

The short kickoff bounced near the sideline in front of the Braves bench, but Gladstone senior Ross Miron did not field the ball. It sat there, and Kingsford's Sam Santi picked it up. On the next play, Kingsford quarterback Brandon Kowalkowski threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to Chris Roell.

Dylan DelSanto's PAT kick made it a 28-6 game.

"

He made a mistake," Hansen said about Miron on that kickoff. "We didn't know what he was looking at at first. It's not any different than any other mistake that any other kid may make on the field. We, as coaches, make mistakes with our play calls. Nobody felt worse after that than him, but he continued to play. I'm proud of him."

DelSanto kicked a 25-yard field goal just before halftime to make it a 31-6 game.

Kingsford went ahead 38-6 on a ten-yard Roberts touchdown run just 31 seconds into the second half. But Schwalbach hooked up with Greenfield for another long touchdown pass, this time, a 56-yarder. James Bruce's extra point kick made it a 38-13 game.

Schwalbach completed eight of 11 passes for 232 yards, his best game of the season.

"He probably came out and executed as well, better, than he has all year," Hansen said. "When it came to accuracy and timing. This was really, I think, a statement game for how far his game has come throughout this year. It's starting to slow down for him, and he's seeing, and anticipating, those windows and the timing of the routes."

Another Braves senior, Alex King, made a big play on defense as he picked up a fumble on the next Kingsford possession from the Gladstone nine yard-line.

He returned it to the 30-yard-line before being tackled. That set up a 70-yard drive that included a 23-yard pass from Schwalbach to Jeff Stenson, and a 29-yard run by Carlson.

The drive ended on a four-yard touchdown run by Chenier, making it a 38-20 game.

Kingsford, playing with a mixture of starters and mostly reserve players, then went on a 56-yard drive to answer the Braves touchdown. Gavin Johnston scored from four yards out, and Delsanto made his sixth straight PAT kick, giving Kingsford a 45-20 lead.

Gladstone, again, countered, as Schwalbach led his team down the field with several seniors who normally don't play, in the line-up. One of them was Phil Griffith, a transfer student from Menasha, Wis. He made his first Braves catch for seven yards, and then, Schwalbach found Griffith for a 36-yard pass up the middle. He celebrated.

"It felt great to get out there because I've been working hard all year and it's nice t0 see it pay off," Griffith said. "It's exciting, but it would have been even better if we would have been able to come up with the victory tonight."

When Griffith caught the 36-yard pass, he did an emphatic "first down" signal.

"I was really pumped because that was my first varsity catch for a big gain," he said. "I was really excited and was hoping to get the crowd a little bit excited."

Kingsford had 495 yards of total offense, with 331 of them in the first half. The Flivvers ran 43 offensive plays in the first half while the Braves ran just 11. Gladstone had 122 yards of offense in the first half, and ended up with 344 yards of offense in total.

Individually, Kowalkowski completed 8-of-11 passes for 110 yards and a touchdown. Moreau had 98 yards rushing on 12 carries and two scores. Roberts rushed for 73 yards on nine carries and also scored twice. Mack Hull had 68 yards in ten carries.

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For Gladstone, Chenier had 34 yards on seven carries with a touchdown, and Carlson had 58 yards on five carries. Schwalbach, besides his 232 passing yards, had 17 yards in four carries and a touchdown.

Gladstone (2-6) travels to Calumet to close the season next Friday night. The JV game is set for 3:30, with the varsity game at 7:00. You can listen to the varsity game live on WGKL-FM (105.5), WCHT-AM (600), and on-line at www.rrnsports.com.

Click the thumbnails in the ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS box to see photos and videos taken by Nate Bellville, and to listen to radio replays and interviews.