Penney Hornets head to state
Class 1 football will see a new state champion crowned this year.
The decade-long string of memorable playoff matchups between the Valle Catholic Warriors and Penney High School Hornets added another chapter on Saturday afternoon, with the KCI Conference champions from Hamilton dominating both sides of the line of scrimmage in a 33-19 win in Ste. Genevieve, improving Penney to 14-0 and sending the Hornets to the Class 1 state title game.
The loss is the first in the semifinal round in the history of the Valle Catholic program, dropping the Warriors to 17-1 all-time in the state semifinal round. The result avenges a 62-36 loss suffered by the Hornets to Valle Catholic last year in St. Louis. The Warriors, during an 11-2 season, had their 51-game winning streak broken (in a week 7 loss to Lamar) before falling seven weeks later to their new rivals from northwest Missouri.
Valle and Hamilton developed a bit of a history in recent years as the Hornets defeated the Warriors in 2009 and 2012 in the state championship games, but Valle got a measure of revenge last season and triumphed over Hamilton last year on their way to their third straight Class 1 state title.
In the first quarter of this match up, Valle was first to score the only points.
Second quarter was a different story; the Hornets came back and scored twice. Once by Jaran Richman with a 24 yard run, but the 2 point conversion failed. Next, the mighty Brock Swindler ran for 62 yards and that 2 point conversion also failed. At the half, Hamilton was in the lead 12 to 6.
Valle came out in the third and scored making the touchdown and the extra point, giving them the lead by one point.
It took time for the Hornets to score again, but that’s how they like to do things. They like to eat up they clock. Richman ran 3 yards in for the touchdown with Derek Dixon making it in for the 2 point conversion. The score was then 13 to 20 in Hamilton’s favor.
Fourth quarter, Richman scored for another Hornet touchdown and T.C. East kicked for the extra point making the score 13 to 27.
Swindler ran down the sideline for a 45 yard run for the last Hornet touchdown, with East kicking the extra point which failed. At this point the score was 33 to 13.
Valle scored one last time. Ending score was Valle 19, Hamilton 33.
Hamilton will go to State Thanksgiving weekend!
Hamilton improved to 14-0 and will try to complete a perfect season on Saturday at 3 p.m. when it meets Monroe City at Springfield’s Plaster Stadium. Monroe City triumphed over Lincoln 34-28 in the other Class 1 semifinal game.
