It didn’t take long for coach A.B. Stokes and the Larned Indians to recover from a heartbreaking loss to Hoisington two weeks ago.

Last week’s 40-12 beating of LaCrosse (1-1) showed just how determined the Indians are at rebounding from previous disappointments.

So much so that Larned took that aggravation out early against the Leopards with a 28 yard option pitch from quarterback Evan Skelton to Landon Erway less than four minutes into the game.

LaCrosse scored soon after but failed on the PAT and trailed the Indians, 7-6.

Larned then commenced on a 33-point barrage that included 34-6 favor at intermission. The Indians allowed the Leopards into the end zone in the closing moments of regulation for the 40-12 victory.

The Indians finished the game with 256 yards rushing on 34 attempts. Skelton had 115 yards rushing on nine attempts and Erway led Larned with 122 yards on 19 carries. Skelton completed 12 passes out of 16 attempts for 143 yards.

The Indians even their season mark at 1-1 with the win over the visiting Leopards.  

Larned will compete in a critical Central Kansas League bout tonight as the Indians travel to Kingman.

The Eagles are undefeated at 2-0 following 26-20 and 40-13 victories over Nickerson and Lyons. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Other area competition:

Macksville (0-2) @ Central Plains (1-1)

The Mustangs and Central Plains do battle tonight in the Oilers home opener.

After a 16-12 season opening setback to Victoria Central Plains took their wrath out on Kinsley Coyotes last week.

Jacob Warnken scored the first three touchdowns for the Oilers en route to a 66-0 shutout win. Bryce Miller, Michael Ryan and Devin Ryan also scored for the defending 8-man state champs.

Devin Ryan intercepted a pass and returned it 61 yards for the score to begin the second quarter. Less than a minute later, Trey Schulte recovered a fumble and returned it eight yards for a touchdown. Dalton Beck and Jacob McAtee would then score on the run as the game ended at half.

Macksville is still trying to piece things together following last Friday’s 66-20 loss to Ness City in the Mustangs’ home opener.
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Hoisington (2-0) @ Pratt (2-0)

A showcase of two undefeateds pitches the Cardinals against a Greenback team coming off a 28-6 victory over Plainville a week ago.

For Hoisington, free safety Cameron Davis sported three pics and a fumble recovery highlighting a 22-6 victory over Nickerson in the Cardinals’ first road match of 2015.

Hunter Hanzlick put the first points on the board for either team early in the second quarter on a two-yard scamper. Hanzlick added the two-point conversion on a run giving Hoisington an 8-0 lead heading to the half.

Steffan Dolechek shined for the Cardinals’ special teams unit with an 84-yard kick return late in the third quarter.
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Victoria (2-0) @ St. John (0-2)

The Tigers are trying to keep their team together following a 54-12 road loss to Otis-Bison last Friday.

St. John ran low on players which necessitated last week’s game being called in the third quarter.

The Tigers’ Eddy Ibarra connected to Keven Neri-Leon on a 24-yard touchdown strike with 9:29 left in the opening quarter. The extra point try failed with OBHS leading 24-6. Ibarra then scored late in the second quarter on a three-yard trot. The PAT missed as the Cougars went on an unanswered drive for the 54-12 win.

The Knights are fresh off a 38-12 stinging of host Ellinwood. Victoria played their first game minus all state quarterback Brady Dinkel who suffered season ending lacerated liver in the Knights opening win against Central Plains on September 4.
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Otis-Bison (2-0) @ Ness City (2-0)

Another battle of unbeatens takes place this evening as the Cougars storm into Ness City off the heels of a 54-12 victory over a low-on-numbers St. John team.

OBHS’s Brad Lightfoot scored five touchdowns, all on the run, in the win.

The Eagles picked up their second straight win against Macksville, 66-20. Ness City opened the season with a 50-0 routing of visiting Kinsley.
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Kinsley (0-2) @ Ellinwood (1-1)

The Eagles suffered their first setback last week against state-ranked and undefeated Victoria in a 38-12 decision.

For Ellinwood Tyson Martinez completed 13 of 26 passes for 100 yards and a touchdown strike to Jordan Duvall. Martinez suffered two interceptions in the effort. Duvall led the running game with 17 carries for 55 yards. Martinez registered an 11-yard touchdown run against the Knights.

Duvall and Kaleb Schartz paced the defense with 11 tackles each.

Meanwhile the Coyotes are looking for their first win of 2015 following last week’s 66-0 shutout loss to visiting Central Plains. Kinsley has not scored a point this season as the Coyotes were shutout in a 50-0 loss at Ness City to start the season.
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Stafford (1-1) @ Hutchinson Central Christian (1-1)

Stafford recovered quickly following a season opening shutout loss at Pretty Prairie with a 28-12 victory over Burrton on September 11.

Stafford dominated with a 16-1 first down margin. Josh Harter rushed for 137 yards off of 25 carries and two touchdowns while quarterback Logan Shocklee posted two touchdowns with 11 carries and 137 yards.  

Caleb Hildebrand led the Trojan defense with 11 tackles.

The Cougars are coming off a 32-22 loss to Norwich in the home opener for HCC. The Cougars began 2015 with a 22-18 win at Canton-Galva.