Raiders swat football team on senior night

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Flushing ruined the football team’s senior night festivities on Friday, Oct. 19, winning 34-7 in a fierce competition.

Putting the Hornets on the board first, sophomore Braylon Silvas connected with junior Ethan Livingston for a 38-yard touchdown pass with 9:48 left in the first quarter.

Livingston also nailed the place kick to give Kearsley a 7-0 lead.

Seven minutes later, the defense allowed a 9-yard touchdown run by Flushing. A successful place kick made it a tied ball game.

Two second quarter scores, one on the pass and one on the ground, put Flushing up 21-7, a lead that was extended by two second-half rushing touchdowns.

Despite their best efforts, the Hornets couldn’t rally back, losing by 27 points.

Flushing didn’t dominate the game on the stats sheet, however. The team collected 255 yards to Kearsley’s 194.

The loss can’t be blamed on ball control, as the Hornets had the rock for 25:11.

Kearsley’s high-powered offense ran out of gas against Flushing, who shut them down repeatedly.

Silvas, who normally serves as the undisputed X-factor for the home squad had a rough night passing, with two total completions for 38 yards. He was also shut down on the run game, averaging only 2.7 yards per carry.

Junior Matt Monroe led the team defensively with five solo tackles, while sophomore Conner Cooper recorded four tackles and assisted on another.

Turnovers hurt the team as much as Flushing’s defense did. Silvas was intercepted once and the team lost a fumble during the game.

Extending drives was a struggle for Kearsley, as the team only converted twice on third down and was unable to convert on fourth down.

Junior Jaylon Burchfield was a bright spot in an otherwise dim night, stomping all over the field for 97 yards on 19 carries.

The loss cements a 2-6 Metro League record for the Hornets, which is good for seventh place. Overall, Kearsley was 3-6.

Flushing, with the road victory, tied Brandon with a record of 7-1 in the Metro League, sharing the title of co-champions with the Blackhawks.

Another losing season shouldn’t deter the young, scrappy squad. As a team full of talented juniors and sophomores, the team has a chance to improve next year and be the first Kearsley team to post a winning record since 1998.

Only time will tell what Coach Kaleb Forr can transform Hornets football into.