Tonganoxie — Tonganoxie took an early lead but was thwarted by three fumbles and two interceptions.
Five turnovers spelled disaster for Tonganoxie as the Chieftains lost, 31-10, to Lansing on Friday night.
The Chieftains lost three fumbles and threw two interceptions against the Lions, who followed four of the turnovers with scoring drives. Tonganoxie also recovered five of its own fumbles.
"We played well," Tonganoxie coach Steve Hughes said. "We just made too many turnovers. You can't win making that many tournovers."
Tonganoxie started the game well with a 7 1/2- minute touchdown drive for a 7-0 lead. A fumble by Lansing's Bryce Baker on a punt return aided the drive. Jacob Sledd recovered the fumble for the Chieftains.
"We were pleased with that," Hughes said. "and we moved the ball well. We felt good about the offense."
Sledd scored the touchdown on a six-yard run off left tackle, after running for 36 yards on the drive. He finished the game with 83 yards on 23 carries.
Tonganoxie couldn't do much more offensively in the first half though. After trading three-and-out drives, Lansing tied the score on a 35-yard run by quarterback Matt Bowers.
Bowers faked a hand-off up the middle and then raced around the right side of the offensive line and down the sideline for the score.
On the Chieftains' next drive, the Lions' Brady Cline picked off a John Barnes pass and returned it to the Tonganoxie 11-yard line. Reed Brown kicked a 32-yard field goal for a 10-7 lead.
Three plays after the ensuing kickoff, Chris Calovich fumbled the ball and Lansing recovered at the Tonganoxie 17-yard line. Two plays after a third-down conversion on a pass from Bowers to Justin Burgoon, Wes Pekarek scored on a reverse for a 17-7 lead.
The bad breaks continued for the Chieftains on their next possesion as Scott Carmichael intercepted a Barnes pass near midfield.
Lansing wasted no time in scoring, running only 50 seconds off the clock before their next touchdown.
Burgoon ran 20 yards on a second-down draw play, and Tonganoxie committed a personal foul after play, moving the ball to the 13-yard line. Mark Bristow scored two plays later from one yard out for a 24-7 lead.
Burgoon had 56 yards on 11 carries and Bristow ran the ball seven times for 38 yards.
"We gave them most of their opportunities," Hughes said. "They had that legit one at first, but we gave them the rest."
Lansing recovered an onside kick but were forced to punt after three plays. An illegal procedure penalty forced them to punt again, which resulted in a bad snap to the punter, Bobby Moretine, who was tackled by Kyle Wedel at the Lansing 40-yard line. Ryan Lowe kicked a 48-yard field goal with 5 seconds remaining to close the halftime gap to 14 points.
Tonganoxie came out strong in the second half as well, recovering a Bowers fumble two plays into the third quarter, but Lowe missed a 37-yard field-goal attempt.
The Chieftains weren't discouraged as their defense forced a turnover on downs on the Lions' next drive. Barnes took advantage of the good field position, converting a third-and-17 with a 38-yard pass to tight end Neil Rieger and then throwing a 12-yard touchdown pass to Aaron Minor for a 24-17 score.
Barnes ended the night 7-of-14 passing for 109 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Rieger finished with five catches for 84 yards.
Tonganoxie's momentum continued as Wedel blocked Moretine's next attempted punt and recovered it at the Lansing 33-yard line. Lowe kicked a 44-yard field goal to close the defiect to 24-20.
The Chieftains forced another three-and-out drive for the Lions, but Sledd fumbled the ball on the first play of the drive. Lansing scored three plays later on a 19-yard sweep by Bristow.
Tonganoxie wouldn't give up, though, recovering an attempted onside kick by the Lions, but luck was still not on the Chieftains' side. Sledd converted a fourth-down play and Barnes hit Rieger for 13 yards on third-and-12, but Sledd fumbled at the line of scrimmage the next play.
The Chieftains had one more opportunity on offense, but Sledd was stopped for no gain, Barnes threw two incomplete passes and fumbled the exchange from center on fourth down.
Lansing 31, Tonganoxie 20
Lansing 7 17 0 7 -- 31
Tonganoxie 7 3 7 3 -- 20
Tonganoxie -- Jacob Sledd 6 run (Chris Calovich kick)
Lansing -- Matt Bowers 35 run (Reed Brown kick)
Lansing -- Brown 52 field goal
Lansing -- Wes Pekarek 4 run (Brown kick)
Lansing -- Mark Bristow 1 run (Brown kick)
Tonganoxie -- Ryan Lowe 48 field goal
Tonganoxie -- Aaron Minor 12 yard pass from John Barnes (Calovich kick)
Tonganoxie -- Lowe 44 yard field goal
Lansing -- Bristow 19 yard run (Brown kick)
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