Contributing writer
Goessel traveled to Hope for the final football game of the season. Hope had an undefeated district record, but the Bluebirds put up a fight that would last all four quarters. Goessel’s one touchdown in the second quarter would not be enough as the Lions pulled away with a 38-6 win.
Hope scored once in the first quarter, leading 8-0. Miguel Guerrero carried the ball 19 times and scored in the second quarter on a short run. Goessel trailed at halftime by a score of 22-6. The Bluebirds held the Lions scoreless in the third period, but the district-winning team punched in two more scores in the final period for a 32-point win.
Defensively, Guerrero and Mark Schmidt led the team with 11 tackles each. Trevor Beisel recorded seven stops and Kellen Froese earned six tackles. Brian Hiebert earned four tackles with two of those being sacks of the quarterback.
Offensively, the Bluebirds struggled to gain yardage. Goessel ran the ball 40 times, only gaining 3 yards per carry. Guerrero gained 48 yards; Froese, 42 yards; and Chase Flaming, 23. Flaming completed eight passes with Zach Showalter catching five for 72 yards. Again, Michael Rhoades punted the Bluebirds out of trouble four times, averaging 36 yards per kick.
Four Goessel seniors played key roles in this season. Michael Rhoades played at end on offense and was the primary kicker for the season, punting 33 times for an average of 35 yards. Brian Hiebert played on both the offensive and defensive lines and led the team in total tackles with 67, 14 of them for loss.
Mark Schmidt missed one game due to injury, but led the team with 8 tackles per game. Zach Showalter played on both sides of the ball, leading the team in receptions with 34 catches, averaging 14 yards per catch; coming in third on the team in tackles. This year’s seniors accounted for 43 percent of the tackles for the season.
Goessel ended the season with a record of 2-7, finishing in a tie for fourth place in district play with a 2-4 record. Hope finished the season with a 6-0 record in the district.