Moments before halftime, the Warrenton football team was still in contention. The Warriors were knocking on the door, eager to make the Class 4 District 6 opener a one- possession game. But they …
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Warrenton Concludes Season at Hannibal
Posted
By Derrick Forsythe, Record Sports Editor
Moments before halftime, the Warrenton football team was still in contention.The Warriors were knocking on the door, eager to make the Class 4 District 6 opener a one- possession game.But they failed to convert on fourth down, and on the next drive Hannibal danced 54 yards to the end zone, taking a secure lead en route to a 42-6 victory.“We don’t convert on fourth down in their territory, and next thing you know they pop off a long run,” said McDowell. “That’s tough to come back from.”The cold, rainy night signaled a dismal ending for Warrenton, who struggled to muster any type of dynamic offense.Hannibal’s aggressive nature gradually wore down the Warriors. The Pirates pounded the ball relentlessly, scoring five of their six touchdowns on the ground.“They played good defense and were physical,” said McDowell. “That eventually took its toll on us.”Mitchell Nichols proved particularly troublesome for the Warriors, scoring four touchdowns, including three in the first half.“We knew he was their best athlete coming into the game,” said McDowell. “We knew it would be key to stop him, but we didn’t get it done.”They led 42-0 before junior Alec Tonioli, making his first start since breaking his collar bone in Week One, raced 75 yards down the sidelines for Warrenton’s only score.McDowell says his team’s most effective offensive weapon was its Power-I formation, which came into play three weeks ago. The duo of Corey Eckenfels and Zach Logan was sufficient enough to gain occasional first downs but without any other wrinkles in the offense, sustained drives were rare.“Again we kind of limited ourselves,” said McDowell. “On fourth down we didn’t block when we had opportunities.”Trailing 21-0 at halftime, McDowell had to adjust his initial gameplan of trying to slow the game down when the Warriors found themselves in an urgent situation.“We came out in the second half wanting to run the ball and control the clock,” said McDowell. “But when we weren’t able to put any points on the board, we were forced to start throwing.”Quarterback Braydan Chmiel found himself scrambling out of the pocket on many throws and faced frequent pressure.“We thought we’d be able to come out and spread the ball a little bit and utilize the passing game,” said McDowell. “But we didn’t give Braydan very much time to sit back there and throw.”The most electrifying play of the night came when Chmiel hit Tonioli on a short route that he turned into a 75-yard touchdown a couple of evasive moves and eventual breakaway speed.“What a difference-maker he would have been this year,” lamented McDowell. “Just some of the plays he made in that game on Thursday shows how important he could have been.”He was a hungry player, so it was good to see him back in action,” said McDowell.Fortunately, the Warriors will have Tonioli back for another year.For the 14 seniors on this year’s team, Thursday’s defeat was a dismal ending to an injury-riddled 2-8 season.
Warrenton junior Alec Tonioli scored a 75-yard touchdown reception against Hannibal last Thursday.
