Bulldogs Undefeated with 24-20 Win over NKC

For two straight weeks, the Kearney Bulldogs have faced top-ranked, class-6 football teams on the road and stopped them cold. The most recent being a 24-20 win over the deeply talented North Kansas City Hornets.

“I saw single high safety right in front of me, so I stopped him outside made my move inside and I knew as soon as I made my break, Carter just connected.” - Kale Tucking. Photo by Eric Stevens.

Kearney has matched up at the highest levels of individual competition coming from the likes of Zach Thomas and Dante Dixon at Park Hill, and Power 5 phenom, Kobe Rhymes at North Kansas City. These are the best players in the state at minimum – players that head coaches build their programs around.

First on the scoreboard, Kearney tight end and place kicker, Drew Nelson drove a 40-yard field goal through the uprights. Those first three points would become increasingly more valuable later in the game.

Northtown quarterback Mehki Fields zipped a 17-yard pass to Kobe Rhymes at 9:03 in the first quarter, and a healthy Bulldog defense with Mason Beaver and Clayton Cowan back in the lineup didn’t allow the Hornets to score again until late in the fourth quarter.

“We were so excited to have everybody back,” said defensive lineman Clayton Cowan. “We've been waiting for this for – what is it week five now – and it was exciting to go out there and perform with everyone back,” Cowan added. “I think we’re ready for the rest of the year.”

With 4:53 to go in the half, Kearney quarterback Carter Temple delivered a perfect 24-yard pass into the outstretched hands of a full-stride, Kale Tucking in the endzone, giving Kearney a 10-7 lead going into the half.

“You know they say as a number three receiver you want to run a seam right up the middle,” said Tucking. “I saw single high safety right in front of me, so I stopped him outside made my move inside and I knew as soon as I made my break, Carter just connected.”

In his customary style, Carter Temple led the Bulldog rushing attack with 125 yards on 17 carries and a touchdown. He was 9 of 17 for 77 yards passing with a touchdown.

Kearney Running back Dryden Hendrix scored early in the second half on a 4-yard carry. Hendrix had 64 total yards on 15 carries as the Bulldogs deployed their rushing attack for 163 total yards.

The Bulldogs scored again on a Carter Temple 32-yard sideline sprint to the endzone, giving Kearney what appeared to be a comfortable 24-7 lead with 8:15 remaining the game.

Dudes with the speed and stature of Kobe Rhymes are the powder keg in explosive offenses. With no timeouts remaining and 4:42 to play, Rhymes caught a pass in heavy coverage from Mehki Fields and wriggled his way 45 yards for the touchdown.

24-14 feels like a relatively safe lead in the fourth quarter of most football games. Rhymes and the Hornets rejected that premise. With 48 seconds remaining, Kobe Rhymes blasted over the goal line, on a 1-yard touchdown carry. A missed extra point and an early, Drew Nelson field goal ensured Kearney would finish the game 24-20 in their victory formation.

“Very proud of our kids in a huge game and beating back-to-back, ranked class-6 schools on the road,” said head coach Logan Minnick. “At the same time, we talked about it after the game, our overall program, the thing we take so much pride in is finish. We did not finish the game the way we wanted to tonight.”

“We hold ourselves to a higher standard than that,” Minnick added. “But at the same time, you’ve got to give North Kansas City credit. Still proud of our kids as ever and glad this was a week-5 game because there were so many coachable moments and there's so many things we can take from this to get better.”

KPGZ News – Mike Davis contributed to this story.

Casey and Landewee Lead Win Over Griffins

Casey was unstoppable at the plate, collecting three hits in four at bats. Photo: David Haggart.

Kennedi Casey and Kate Landewee had standout performances on Monday, September 22, as the Kearney Bulldog softball team cruised to a 10-0 victory over the Winnetonka Griffins.

Casey was unstoppable at the plate, collecting three hits in four at bats. She doubled in both the second and fifth innings and added a single in the fourth, driving the offense forward throughout the game.

Pitcher Kate Landewee was equally impressive, commanding the mound with 15 strikeouts. Over five innings of work, Landewee didn't allow a single hit or run, issuing just one walk in a near-perfect outing. Her dominance ensured the Griffins never gained momentum.

Kearney took control early, jumping ahead in the bottom of the second inning. Reese Narron kicked off the scoring with an RBI single, followed by Casey’s RBI double, and Alyssa Quick’s two-run single. The team built a comfortable lead and never looked back.

On the other side, Winnetonka’s Mackenzie Halderman was tagged with the loss, pitching four and one-third innings and giving up 10 runs—eight of them earned—on 11 hits. Halderman managed to strike out three and walked two, but Kearney’s lineup proved too much to handle.

Kearney racked up 12 hits overall. Casey and Narron each tallied three hits, batting back-to-back and keeping the pressure on the Griffins’ defense. Brooke Paalhar and Casey both drove in three runs, providing crucial support for the team’s offensive surge. Ellie Switzer chipped in with two hits out of three at bats.

The defense was flawless, with Kearney not committing any errors during the game. Caroline Jury anchored the field, handling 15 chances without a misstep, helping secure the shutout win. The combination of powerful hitting, dominant pitching, and precise defense resulted in a memorable game for Kearney. The Bulldogs are now 13-3 on the season.

KPGZ News – Brian Watts contributed to this story.

Bulldogs Shut Down Park Hill Air Attack

During the previous two weeks, Park Hill scored 74 points on the prolific arm of quarterback Zane Thomas and his favorite target, Dante Dixon. The Kearney Bulldogs allowed only one touchdown as homecoming spoilers in a 14-7 win over the Trojans.

Coach Minnick and the Bulldogs put on a clock-management clinic as they ran time off the board and finished in the victory formation for a 14-7 win. Photo by Eric Stevens.

Thomas opened the Park Hill scoring early with a 45-yard strike to Dante Dixon. On Kearney’s follow-up drive, Bulldog quarterback Carter Temple powered his way behind the offensive line for two yards into the endzone. Drew Nelson tied the score at 7-7 with the PAT.

With 5:39 to go before the half, on 4th-down and eight, Kearney’s defense pressured Zane Thomas into an overthrown endzone pass intended for Dante Dixon. The Bulldogs took over on downs, eventually going to halftime with a 7-7 tie.

Park Hill couldn’t score on their first possession of the second half. The Bulldog defense held them to a missed field goal attempt, giving the Kearney Bulldogs the opportunity to capitalize on their ball-control, running offense.

Kearney’s offensive line became their best defense by keeping the explosive Park Hill offense on the sideline. Carter Temple and company drained the game clock by running over the left side of the offensive line for almost nine minutes in the third quarter and into the fourth when Temple broke free to the endzone for his second score of the evening.

With Kearney leading 14-7, Park Hill had a chance to score in the fourth quarter with a first-and-goal at the Kearney 8-yard line. Dante Dixon caught a Zane Thomas pass at the 3-yard line. On fourth down, Kearney cornerback Conner Reid batted down the scrambling Zane Thomas pass attempt and the Bulldogs took over on downs.

“I want to give a huge shout out to the offense on that touchdown drive there in the third quarter, when we took almost nine minutes off the clock,” said head coach Logan Minnick.

“We're always going to play really good defense. They're gonna keep us in every game we play. They gave up one touchdown early and then locked in when we made a couple little adjustments. Then it just comes down to physicality,” Minnick added. 

Coach Minnick and the Bulldogs put on a clock-management clinic as they ran time off the board and finished in the victory formation for a 14-7 win.

The Bulldogs are 4-0 for the season. They’ll face another Class-6 opponent next week at North Kansas City.

KPGZ News – Mike Davis contributed to this story.