Football team falls short to Louisburg 31-17

Sydney Hoover

The De Soto High School varsity football team offense prepares for the next play against Louisburg High School on Sept. 16.

The De Soto High School varsity football team fell short in the Sept. 16 game against Louisburg High School, losing 31-17.

LHS was able to hold DHS scoreless throughout the first half, with a score of 17-0 Louisburg at halftime.

Only a few seconds into the second half, junior Bryce Mohl was able to score on a 48-yard run. A PAT added by junior Ethan Rodriguez left De Soto trailing 17-7 with 11:45 left in the third quarter. However, soon after, Louisburg scored again with 11:24 left in the third quarter, making the score 24-7 LHS.

Another big run by Mohl set up Rodriguez for a field goal with 8:01 left in the third quarter, leaving DHS trailing 24-10.

Junior Trevor Watts scored another touchdown for DHS, setting the score at 24-17 with 8:26 left in the fourth quarter.

With three minutes left in the game, Louisburg scored again, making the final score 31-17 Louisburg.

The game against Louisburg was expected to be of the “toughest tests of the season,” according to junior Jack Barger.

Head coach Brian King believed the team could have made a comeback in the second half, but was unable to overcome the mistakes from the first half.

“Coming back in the second half and scoring immediately, Bryce Mohl made a big play and that kind of got us back in the game. We just made too many mistakes, too many errors,” King said.

The Wildcats will be on the road next week, facing Paola on Sept. 23.

“We’ve got a group that’s still growing,” King said. “We have to make sure we’re making the correct reads, we have to make sure we’re being more physical up front … It doesn’t get easier next week at Paola. This is the Frontier League.”