Losing was not an option.
The Great Bend High School Panthers, who take on Class 6A defending state champion Wichita Heights this coming Friday night in Wichita, could ill-afford to lose to Garden City Friday night at Memorial Stadium.
Not with Heights looming on the horizon.
Not with defending Western Athletic Conference champion Dodge City coming to the Panthers house in 12 days.
“Coming up short (in a 21-14 season-opening loss to St. Thomas Aquinas two weeks ago), we knew we didn’t want it to happen again,” Great Bend senior quarterback Mitch Kottas said.
The Panthers, struggling offensively against Garden City throughout but hanging tough with a benchmark defensive performance in their home and WAC opener, drove 52 yards for the winning touchdown in the final three minutes, 46 seconds for a 14-7 victory. It was capped on Kottas’ 19-yard scoring pass to Jace Bowman in the end zone with 1:08 remaining after the Buffaloes (1-2) led the entire game.
“It was a post route,” Great Bend head coach Bo Black said. “There was no free safety in the middle field and our guys checked it into a post to Bowman on the quick slant and they had two backers coming and we were able to get some quick protection on it and Mitch made the best throw that he made all night at the right time and Bowman made a great catch on it.”
Bowman, a 6-foot-2 senior wide receiver, got a mismatch, beat 5-7 Buffaloes cornerback Asa Gottsponer and caught Kottas’ aerial for the game-winner.
“It was just an outside post,” Bowman said. “The corner was down over the top and the linebackers were blitzing. It was a really good time to call that play.”
The Panthers defense had kept them in it all night, according to Black.
“It was such a great performance from our defense,” he said. “They kept us in the game all night. Our offense really struggled and we really struggled throwing the ball until the late drive.”
The two teams spent most of the third quarter and nearly all of the fourth quarter canceling each other out.
Garden City, leading 7-6, blew a golden scoring opportunity and some momentum going into halftime after quarterback Jake Curran threw an interception in the end zone. It was his seventh pick in three games this season.
Panthers defensive end Chad Touslee pressured Curran into an errant pass, and Brock Ibarra picked off the pass in the back of the end zone. Great Bend then ran out the first-half clock to only trail by one point at the break.
The Buffaloes had a final chance late in the second quarter after Kottas punted to the Garden City 47. On first down, Curran threw an 11-yard completion to Gerardo Holguin to the Great Bend 42. After an incompletion on first down, Curran hooked up with Holguin again on a 34-yard pass play down the right sideline for first-and-goal at the 8-yard line.
But Curran, trying to avoid a sack, threw to the back of the end zone, where Ibarra was waiting.
After Great Bend deferred on the coin flip, Garden City took the opening kickoff and ate up a chunk of the first quarter with its ground game, featuring running back Zach Lamb. On their second possession, they drove 67 yards in five plays for a score and a 7-0 lead with 5:24 left in the second quarter on a 2-yard plunge by Lamb. The drive was highlighted with a 54-yard completion from Curran to Gerardo Houlgin, who finished with five catches for 126 yards.
Sell had a 39-yard punt return for the Panthers on a drive that stalled at the Buffs 20 on fourth-and-6 late in the first quarter.
Early in the second quarter, Ibarra recovered a muffed punt at their own 29. The Panthers proceeded to go on a 71-yard scoring march, capped by a 6-yard TD pass from Kottas to Spencer Bayless. There was a high snap on the extra-point kick, leading to Mario Espino’s miss and a one-point deficit at 7-6 going into halftime.
HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL
Great Bend 14, Garden City 7
Garden City 7 0 0 0 — 7
Great Bend 0 6 0 0 — 14
SCORING SUMMARY
First Quarter
Garden City — Zach Lamb 2 run (Carlos Chavez kick), 5:20
Second Quarter
Great Bend — Spencer Bayless 6 pass from Mitch Kottas (kick failed), 4:30
Third Quarter
None
Fourth Quarter
Great Bend — Jace Bowman 19 pass from Kottas (Kottas to Bayless), 1:08
TEAM STATISTICS
GCHS GBHS
First Downs 11 9
Total Net Yards 254 203
Rushes - yards 63 49
Passing 191 154
Comp-Att-Int 10-27-1 17-26-0
Punts -Avg. 6-37.8 8-29.8
Fumbles - Lost 1-1 2-1
Penalties 7-47 8-61
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — Garden City: Lamb 19-65, Curran 4 -(minus-13), Steven Fowler 5-11, Brady Bean 1-0; Great Bend: Kottas 14-16, Josh Lopez 12-30, Jeremy Sigler 2-1, Mauricio Uribe 1-7, Brock Ibarra 1-(minus-5).
PASSING — Garden City: Jake Curran 10-27-1-191; Great Bend: Kottas 17-26-0 154.
RECEIVING — Garden City: Gerardo Holguin 5-126, Fowler 2-26, Lamb 1-18, Jonathan Duvall 1-16, Jayden Delarosa 1-5; Great Bend: Mauricio Uribe 3-51, Ibarra 4-30, Bowman 3-30, Sigler 3-20, Bayless 2-14, Connor Sell 2-9.
