Buhler battles past imperfections, beats Augusta

Buhler continued its recent mastery over Augusta on Friday, although the Crusaders’ 35-21 victory left coach Steve Warner wanting a little more.

“I should be proud of the kids because we found a way to win,” Warner said. “We did not play the way I like our kids to play, but they found a way to win.”

Buhler used a 28-point second quarter to fuel its eighth consecutive victory over Augusta. The Crusaders improved to 5-1, 5-0 in Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail Division III. But after committing 12 penalties for 125 yards and surrendering 340 passing yards to Augusta quarterback Chance Whitehead, it was challenging for the Crusaders to savor the win.

“Defensively, we were all over him,” Warner said of Whitehead, who completed 17 of 39 passes, including second-half touchdowns to Kenton Rocheford and Luke Dockers. “We just missed him several times.

“We have a great front four, and it’s a good thing, because when we didn’t put pressure on him, they were either dropping a wide-open pass or catching a pass on us.”

Buhler’s offense was led by quarterback Ethan White, who ran for 128 yards and passed for 118. Running back Dalton Brown added 112 rushing yards on 23 attempts, including a 49-yard touchdown with 5:52 remaining that came one play after Augusta cut its deficit to 28-14.

Buhler finished with 435 yards, 317 on the ground. The Crusaders limited Augusta (4-2, 2-2) to 18 rushing yards on 31 carries.

“Every time they ran the ball in the second half, I was grateful because the clock was running,” Warner said. “They had to throw it because they didn’t run it the way they like to.”

That strategy created plenty of tense moments for Buhler. Whitehead passed for 291 yards after the break, completing a 28-yard touchdown to Rocheford and a 71-yard strike to Dockers. Whitehead also had two touchdown passes negated by penalties, as the Orioles committed eight infractions for 80 yards.

After both defenses dominated the first quarter, Buhler quickly broke through in the second. Facing fourth-and-20 from Augusta’s 32, Crusaders receiver Dalton Smyres ran past Augusta cornerback Clay Wesbrooks on a post, and White connected with him for a touchdown on the quarter’s opening play.

Augusta had an opportunity to tie on its ensuing possession, but receiver Jayden Reynolds dropped Whitehead’s pass over the middle on a third-down play. Buhler made the Orioles pay, as junior Jhet Burkhart raced 73 yards on a counter play to make it 14-0 with 8:43 remaining in the half.

Augusta had a 52-yard touchdown pass negated by a holding penalty on its next possession, and it set the tone for more Orioles trouble. Later in the drive, Smyres intercepted Whitehead’s pass in the flat and returned it 55 yards to Augusta’s 13. Brown scored two plays later on a 7-yard counter play.

Buhler’s defense, which limited Augusta to 76 first-half yards on 37 plays, forced a three-and-out to set up its fourth touchdown of the second quarter. Brown raced 27 yards into Augusta territory on a third-and-18 play. Then White connected with Smyres on a slant pattern for a 25-yard touchdown that stretched Buhler’s lead to 28-0.

This story was originally published October 7, 2016 at 10:25 PM with the headline "Buhler battles past imperfections, beats Augusta."