CUNNINGHAM, Kan.—
The Pretty Prairie Bulldog football team cruised past Heart of the Plains League rival Cunningham Friday evening for a 40-12 road win over the Wildcats.Despite having senior starters Tyler Markus and Justin Haflich sidelined in the early stages of the game, the Bulldogs rolled to a 26-0 halftime lead.
And while the scoreboard may have indicated the offense never missed a beat, Bulldog head coach C.T. Young saw it otherwise.
“It was our special teams and our defense. Our special teams did good early and our defense did a good job. But I was not pleased with our execution in the first half from our offense,” said Young. “It did get better in the second half.”
Much of that improvement came in the form of a pair of touchdowns from senior Mark Schnittker. During the Bulldogs’ first possession in the first half, Schnittker blew past the Wildcat defense on a 53-yard carry, followed by another 2-point conversion from Schnittker to bring the Bulldog lead to 34-0.
He scored on a 6-yard run around the three-minute mark, but with a failed PAT and the Wildcats unable to answer, the quarter closed at 40-0.
Cunningham finally capitalized with 9:46 remaining in the fourth quarter as Wildcat senior quarterback Nick Huhman connected with senior Jordan Schaller for a TD.
Young soon cleared his sidelines, and Cunningham nearly got in the on the scoreboard again as freshman Jacob Earley reached the end zone on a 28-yard run. But with a flag on the play, it was back to the drawing board for the Wildcats.
As the Wildcats reached the 18-yard line, Bulldog sophomore Chris Ladd foiled their momentum on the next down, tackling Cunningham’s Hunter Westerman for a loss of yardage. Huhman connected with Earley for a TD with 7.8 seconds remaining in the game.
Both Wildcat PAT attempts failed.
Young hopes to have both injured players healthy next week and the offensive kinks worked out as they prepare to face Fairfield at home. The Falcons shut out Burrton on Friday evening 52-0.
“Fairfield will be a huge test,” said Young. “They are a very good, experienced team. They’ve got the size and they’ve got the skill.”
