By: Dylan Sherwood, KSHSAA Covered Contributor
TOPEKA — St. Thomas Aquinas coach Randy Dreiling etched his name into history in the Class 4A state championship game against Andover Central.Dreiling won his ninth state championship and tied former Kapaun Mt. Carmel coach Ed Kriwiel for most all-time state titles by a head coach in Kansas in a 35-7 victory at Hummer Sports Park. I
t was Aquinas’ first state championship since 2018 when the Saints defeated Wichita Northwest for the Class 5A title. Dreiling said winning this state championship was a little bit snowier, due to snow that fell for a majority of the game. However, he added each one is totally separate in of itself.“They all feel pretty good,” said Dreiling, who won his second state title with Aquinas. “This was a special journey for these seniors. It’s awesome that they were able to put this together and get it done.“We had a lot of guys that persevered.”Aquinas went to its specialty in the flexbone — running the football — with snow falling to the ground, and the Saints ran for 367 of their 397 yards of total offense.
No matter what the weather is doing, the Saints will run the football. “If it’s 105, it’s pound time,” Dreiling said. “That’s what we do. It’s been pretty successful.”After returning for the postseason following an early season injury, Aquinas senior Gianni Rizzi put on a show in his final high school game. Rizzi ran for 171 yards on 24 carries and two touchdowns of five and eight yards, both coming in the second quarter after Andover Central cut the deficit to 13-7.
St. Thomas Aquinas senior running back Gianni Rizzi runs the ball against Andover Central during the Class 4A state championship game at Hummer Sports Park in Topeka.“I wanted to go out on a high note and we did,” Rizzi said. “We knew we were the tougher team. They’re a great team. They played hard, but we had the talent and we have the courage and everything we wanted to go through and win.” Dreiling said when Rizzi returned from injury, he made an impact helping the Saints knock off Bishop Miege in the regional round. “When Rizzi came back, (that’s) why we got everything going again,” Dreiling said. “(Hunter) Richardson and (Gavin) Middenhorf did a good job filling in when he was gone.”
Aquinas jumped out to a 13-0 lead in the first quarter thanks to a 1-yard touchdown run by senior Aiden Skinner and a 15-yard touchdown run by junior William Callahan. Andover Central made it 13-7 with 10:16 left in the second quarter on a 14-yard touchdown run by junior Maddox Archibald. Aquinas got a second touchdown from Callahan, with a 7-yard run with 37 seconds left in the third.Andover Central threw three interceptions on the afternoon that resulted in 14 points for Aquinas.
Even though it was Andover Central’s fourth state runner-up in program history and second since 2021, coach Derek Tuttle was proud of his team making it back to state.“The best thing they showed throughout the month of November I thought was their heart (and) playing with a lot of energy,” Tuttle said. “Playing with heart and desire. There are a lot of great kids here.“We had a little trouble cutting in the snow with some of the routes and stuff. They had to play in it too. Just (a) tough day all around for us.”
Andover Central finished with 111 yards of total offense with Archibald having 43 yards on 11 carries and a score. After a two-year stint as a Class 4A program, the Saints will return to being a Class 5A program in 2024. Andover Central will regroup looking for its first ever state championship in program history in 2024.