Ark Valley News - HORNET FOOTBALL: Valley 4-0 with shutout of Newton

Hornet linebacker Jay Shank stops Newton quarterback Landon Moore.

HORNET FOOTBALL: Valley 4-0 with shutout of Newton
By Chris Strunk
Last Updated: September 29, 2016

The Valley Center High School football team started slow but finished strong, recording its first shutout since 2012 and remaining undefeated.

The Hornets beat Newton 21-0 at home on Friday (Sept. 23), improving to 4-0.

"I'm really happy with our defense tonight," coach Caleb Smith said. "Our special teams played better. We've got a really long way to go on offense. I'm frustrated with how we played and how we came out of the game. We've got to do a better job as coaches, and that one's on me. We're going to do a better job preparing our offense."

After a listless and scoreless first quarter, the Hornets got a needed spark in the second, when corner Keyon Saunders jumped a Landon Moore pass and ran for the 54-yard pick-six.

The Hornets led 7-0 at the half.

Valley went to a hurry-up offense in the third quarter as quarterback Wyatt Lange completed passes to Dalton Cross and Thayer Terwilliger to get inside the Newton 45, where running back Caleb Rains took over.

The junior ran for gains of 10, six and five yards before Lange connected with Tyler Brown on the sideline. Rains ran the ball to the Newton 1-yard line.

It appeared to be a wasted trip, however, when a personal foul on the offensive line moved the ball back to the 16. But Rains got all but one back on a single run, setting up his one-yard touchdown run for a 14-0 lead.

Rains scored his second touchdown of the game on first down after a defensive stop in the fourth quarter. Rains found a large hole on the left side of the line and ran for the 26-yard score.

Rains finished the game with 141 yards, a season high. Terwilliger caught three passes for 40 yards as Lange completed nine of 17 for 143.

Valley held Newton speedster Kade Remsberg in check most of the night and pressured Moore in the backfield. Remsberg finished with just 28 yards rushing as Valley forced him to run laterally and prevented him from finding the edge. Moore ran for 24 yards and completed seven passes for 60. Newton had just 112 yards of offense, while Valley racked up 327.

The Hornets' key defensive stops were in the third and fourth quarters. With 6:19 left in the third and clinging to a 14-0 lead, Valley dodged a bullet as a 50-yard run by Moore was negated because of a holding penalty. Still, the Railers got to the Valley 20 on an 18-yard pass and a roughing the passer penalty. But Valley's defensive line got to Moore on fourth down, forcing an incomplete pass.

In the fourth, Valley still led by just two touchdowns and needed another stop as its offense sputtered. Deep in its own end, Newton took advantage of another 15-yard penalty and a few short runs by Remsberg to get some breathing room. Facing fourth-and-third, Saunders hit receiver Nathan Ahrens as he was catching the ball, forcing the incompletion.

Cross secured the shutout with an interception in the end zone with 16 seconds left in the game.

Valley Center will take its undefeated record to Hays Sept. 30. Hays fell to garden City 34-0.