By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
The last time the Andale football team lost was the 2018 Class 3A state semifinals. The Indians had gone 12-1 under first-year coach Dylan Schmidt in 2017, and were sitting at 11-0 before a 21-19 loss to Pratt. Entering Friday's game at Cheney, Andale had rattled off a nation-best 57-straight wins.
On paper, it appeared Cheney might be a match. The Cardinals entered Friday night with four-straight shutouts and just 21 points allowed all season. But Andale returned the opening kickoff 91 yards and jumped out to a 22-0 lead late in the first half. Cheney never wavered, forcing overtime and ending Andale's win streak at 57 games with a 36-30 win.
"You talk about 6 a.m. workouts in the summer," said Cheney coach Shelby Wehrman. "They show up, they work their tails off, they invest mentally, they invest physically. The community supports us. That's what Andale has been doing the last 20 years. That's why they're so great. I just can't believe we matched that level."
Cheney won the overtime toss and opted to play defense first. The Andale ground attack had been effective early in the game but struggled in the second half. The Indians moved just eight yards in the first three plays of the extra period. Facing fourth down from the 2-yard line, a halfback pass fell incomplete.
That set the stage for someone to be a hero in front of the standing-room crowd that bled out around the fence surrounding the field. Cheney's first play on offense went to senior standout Jackson Voth. He broke a pair of tackles and stumbled into the end zone from 10 yards out to secure the historical win.
"I knew who was getting the ball," said Cardinal quarterback Josh Burdick. "I knew it was going to No. 1, and I knew he would get it into the end zone."
The second half proved to be a wild one Friday night. The junior Burdick and senior Voth are one of the top quarterback-receiver combinations in Kansas this fall. The duo worked together to drive the field before Burdick connected with junior Jase Robertson on an 8-yard strike midway through the third quarter. A 2-point pass worked and Cheney made it a one-possession game at 22-14.
Andale failed to move the ball on its next possession but a great punt pinned the Cards on their own 6-yard line. Burdick found senior Gavin Maass on the very next play, and he ran 83 yards deep into Indian territory before coughing up the ball. The Indians rolled the dice four plays later and turned the ball back over on downs near midfield.
This time, the Cardinals did not come up short. Burdick eventually hit senior Colter McDaniel on a 29-yard touchdown play. Burdick's 2-point pass to Voth leveled the score at 22 with 11:51 remaining in the game.
Andale answered on its next drive with junior Bo Kaiser hauling in a 29-yard yard touchdown pass from sophomore Sam Harp. The Indians pulled back ahead 30-22 with 10:11 remaining in regulation.
Cheney dropped a pass in the end zone on its next drive, but the Cardinal defense held and forced another Andale punt. Cheney needed to drive 48 yards in under four minutes to keep the dream alive. The Cardinals did just that on a 7-yard pass from Burdick to Voth. Burdick's 2-point pass to Maass also worked to again tie the score at 30-30 with just 1:53 left on the clock.
Still plenty of time remained for some dramatics. Out of timeouts, Andale fumbled on one play and ran out of bounds on another. Cheney used a timeout and got the ball back with 28 seconds left and a timeout in the pocket. Burdick was driving toward a potential win before throwing an interception in the final seconds of regulation.
Burdick also closed out the first half with a pivotal drive. Trailing 22-0, he founds Maass in the end zone from 13 yards out with just 13 seconds left in the second quarter to put the Cardinals on the board at 22-6 heading into the intermission. After a cool start in the second half, Burdick completed 12-straight passes at one point, finishing a huge night with 351 yards, three touchdowns, and an interception on 29-of-42 passing.
"My receivers and my O-line did such a great job," Burdick said. "I did not get hit very often. My receivers found open spots and we were able to pick them apart."
Voth caught 11 passes for 97 yards, and Maass finished with 111 yards on his five receptions. McDaniel spoke to both teams before a joint prayer at the conclusion of the game. He caught 10 passes for 143 yards.
"Our faith is first," he said. "We believe a team that puts God first, the doors will be open that no one can shut. We stay humble and trust in Him. We just do our job every single play, 100 percent, and leave the rest up to Him."
Andale needed just 14 seconds to end Cheney's big shutout streak when senior Gage Prosser returned the opening kick 91 yards for a touchdown. After a defensive stop, the Indians drove the field on their first drive with Harp punching it in from a yard out for a quick 14-0 lead just nine minutes into the game. Andale convered a pair of fourth downs and a third-and-long to take its 22-0 lead late in the second quarter. Senior Karson Butts went 34 yards on a Harp pass to cap that drive.
The Indians managed just 138 rushing yards on 49 carries. Harp threw for 123 yards on 5-of-10 passing with two touchdowns and an interception. He also netted 44 yards on 19 carries. Senior Owen Eck rushed for 58 yards on his 15 carries, mostly in the second half.
Cheney moves to 7-0 overall and claims the Class 3A, District 7 championship. Andale falls to 6-1 overall.