Countdown to Kickoff: Conway Springs

CONWAY SPRINGS, Kan. (Catch it Kansas) - After an atypical start to the 2022 season, Conway Springs turned it on en route to seven straight wins, and will look to carry that momentum into 2023.

“The kids are very focused on what lays ahead of them and I think the first three games are gonna pave the way for us to get better each week. We’re gonna have to be battle tested as we go into our district so we really look forward to those challenges,” said head coach Matt Beihler, who enters his 15th year leading the program.

Last year saw the Cardinals start out 0-3, all against bigger schools, but also the same teams they’re set to meet this year.

“I feel like this year’s team is totally different than last years team,” said senior Brayden Kunz, “we took it to another level after those first three games, we kind of kept it at that level this year so we kind of want to keep it that way and want to keep going.”

Kunz will be a focal point on both sides of the ball as the Cardinals expect to contend in Class 1A. As a junior he ran for more than 2,200 yards on the ground while also leading the way with 85 tackles from his linebacker spot.

He’s one of 9 returning starters for this years team, many of which play both sides of the ball. Other key seniors include linemen Gunner Williams and Jacob Osner, and fellow seniors Taylor Wykes and Blake Pauly.

They will look to start this year’s season on the right track with a Thursday night opener against Garden Plain on August 31st before hosting last year’s 2A runner-up Kingman. October 13th will also be circled as they take on Inman, a team they split with in 2022 but that knocked them out in the Class 1A semifinals.

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