Jacob Savage had three second quarter touchdowns to help the Raiders beat Simon Kenton. Photo Provided | Jenny Quinn
It took a few big plays, a steady hand from their stars, and a defense that refused to crack, but Ryle found its rhythm just when it mattered most.
The Raiders captured their third straight regular-season district championship with a 41-13 victory over Simon Kenton Friday night at Clifford R. Borland Sr. Stadium in Union.
With the No. 1 seed in Class 6A, District 6 on the line and potentially two home playoff games at stake, both Ryle and Simon Kenton entered the night 2-0 with double-digit wins over Campbell County and Great Crossing.
Battling adversity and injuries throughout the season, Ryle has done one thing consistently: overcome. Friday was another testament to that.
“We’ve overcome adversity all season,” Ryle running back and linebacker Jacob Savage said. “It may not look the same, but we’ve faced injuries and different things countless times. It’s created a brotherhood and made us really strong. We could crumble, but we stay together.”
Early on, all the momentum belonged to the Pioneers after an interception by Eli Mullins set up a touchdown run by Landon Brown. Simon Kenton then recovered an onside kick and forced a turnover on downs to keep the pressure on. But Ryle didn’t panic.
Behind two-way standout Jacob Savage, quarterback Nathan Verax and a disciplined defense, the Raiders flipped the momentum almost immediately after a key fourth-down stop.
“We had to execute that,” Simon Kenton head coach Joe Wynn said. “When you’re playing a game like this, the smallest things matter. We had good energy, but it kind of tailed off. When you’re playing the best of the best, you have to play perfect and we didn’t.”
From there, Ryle took control. The Raiders forced four Simon Kenton turnovers and held the Pioneers to under 100 rushing yards, just a week after Simon Kenton ran for more than 400 in a district win over Campbell County.
Ryle’s defense forced four turnovers. Photo Provided | Jenny Quinn
“I believe in our defense,” Ryle head coach Mike Engler said. “I think our defense is one of the top defenses in the state. Our defense is going to keep us in games.”
Offensively, after being held scoreless in the first quarter, Ryle erupted for 27 points in the second. Verax connected with Savage for a 32-yard touchdown, then added a rushing score of his own before Savage punched in two more on the ground.
Verax finished with two passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns, while Savage totaled two rushing and one receiving score to go with 100 rushing yards.
Ryle made it a running clock in the third quarter after going up 41-6. Simon Kenton added one final touchdown in the fourth, another Landon Brown run, but the Raiders had long sealed the win.
Landon Brown had both of Simon Kenton’s scores. Photo Provided | Jenny Quinn
The Pioneers (5-4) finish district play 2-1 and will host Oldham County, the No. 3 seed from District 5, in the first round of the Class 6A playoffs following a short week and a regular season finale against Cooper.
Ryle (6-3) closes district play 3-0 and will host Dixie Heights next week before opening the postseason at home against Eastern, the No. 4 seed from District 5.
More photos below, provided by Jenny Quinn:
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RAIDERS 41, PIONEERS 13
RYLE— 0-27-14-0 — 41
SIMON KENTON — 6-0-0-7 — 13
Scoring Plays
1st Quarter
(SK) Brown 3-yard run (6:44) Mullen kick no good
2nd Quarter
(R) Verax 32-yard pass to Savage (7:59) Moses kick
(R) Verax 12-yard run (4:03) Moses kick
(R) Savage 15-yard run (3:07) Moses kick
(R) Savage 19-yard run (2:43) Moses kick no good
3rd Quarter
(R) Verax 1-yard run (10:43) Moses kick
(R) Verax 25-yard pass to Lee (1:46) Moses kick
4th Quarter
(SK) Brown 9-yard run (5:23) Mullen kick
Game Stats
Passing Yards: Ryle 119 (Verax 7/11, Park 0/1, Savage 0/1),Simon Kenton 108 (Webb 12/28, Niare 0/1)
Rushing Yards: Ryle 175 (Savage 14-100, Anness 10-38, Lee 1-18, Verax 7-12, Thomas 2-5, Park 1-2), Simon Kenton 56 (Brown 13-50, Pendleton 1-11, Webb 10-1, French 1-(minus)3, Turner 2-(minus)3)
Receiving: Ryle (Sauley 1-42, Savage 2-35, Lee 3-32, Karwath 1-10), Simon Kenton (Pendleton 4-53, Harris 4-33, Hughes 1-10, Newborn 1-6, Bounds 1-5, Brown 1-1)
