Second-ranked Olpe too much for Marion gridirons to handle
Eagles shut out struggling Warriors, 54-0
Staff writer
Heavy rainfall blanketed the area last week, quite symbolic of the way the football season has gone for the Warriors.
But it hasn’t just rained on them, it’s poured, adding up to five straight losses and a 1-6 record.
After playing arguably its best game of the year last week in a crushing 18-14 loss to Hillsboro, Marion found the going too tough Friday at Olpe.
Much like it has several times this year, the game shorted out on Marion the first quarter with the Eagles blowing the game wide open to cruise to a 54-0 shutout.
There’s nothing complexing about the Olpe offense, however, stopping it requires being able to weather the storm of its potent ground attack and slowing down all-state running back Blaine Hinrichs.
That’s a tall order considering Marion’s defense has spent the majority of the season trying to stay within striking distance while surrendering over 400 yards a game.
Hinrichs managed to burn the Warriors on just five carries, but four ended in touchdowns off a game-high 143 yards and Olpe piled up 439 total with 410 rushing.
Kyden Robert put the Eagles on the board 2:00 into the game and the route was on with Olpe speeding to a commanding 28-0 lead after the first quarter.
The Eagles’ defense wasn’t shabby, either, yielding the Warriors their second lowest output on the year, a modest 115 yards and a horrific 1-for-10 on third down.
Olpe swarmed the Warrior offensive line, giving quarterback Chase Stringer no time or room for anything more than 31 total yards with 21 rushing.
Stringer completed five passes out of 11 attempts, which accounted for a meager 10 yards.
Jaxton Tracy paced the usually potent ground attack with 24 of Marion’s 105 yards, but the Eagles allowed the Warriors no closer to the end zone than the Olpe 10-yard line.
Three of Hinrichs’ four touchdowns were runs over 20 yards, a 23-yarder nailed the Warrior coffin shut by halftime, trailing 42-0.
Marion got the relief of a running clock the second half, but Olpe tacked on two more TDs in the third quarter for the final score.
Perhaps the best things that happened to Marion were just two turnovers and a sole penalty, which cost five yards.
The Warriors regroup for the final time this season for a trip to Leon Friday against Bluestem.
Last modified Oct. 17, 2018