KINNIKINNICK — Despite Zane Trace’s best efforts in the fourth quarter, Logan Elm got the job done down the stretch to start the season with a 33-27 road win.
“I’m really proud of the fight of our guys. We had to have a lot of different guys step up and make plays,” LE coach Terry Holbert said. “I was very proud of our finish and there are a lot of things we can do to get better as well.”
The Braves were in control throughout the first half as they had 213 yards of offense to ZT’s 100.
A balanced mix of runs and passes moved LE 69 yards down the field on its first possession with Aaron Walters connecting with Ne’Miah Waugh for an 18-yard score and a 6-0 lead.
An overthrow on LE’s next possession led to a 55-yard interception return for ZT’s Aaden Dunn and a tied ball game.
Following that setback, LE’s defense helped out with Keegan Diehl twice recovering ZT fumbles in the second quarter with both possessions leading to scores – a 22-yard scoring pass from Walters to Justin Marcum and a one-yard scoring run from Michael Bock — and the Braves led 20-6 at the half.
Opening the second half with the ball, the Braves mounted a 10-play drive that covered 62 yards and finished with an 18-yard scoring pass from Walters to Gavin Hoover. Maggie Wilson’s PAT kick made it a 27-6 lead.
After trading possessions, the Pioneers moved the ball 75 yards on 10 plays and Brice Johnson went the last 12 yards for a score 23 seconds into the final quarter and the score went to 27-13.
A few plays later, it was ZT’s Coen Larson who came up with a diving interception at midfield. A few plays later, Johnson went 39 yards to make it a one score game as the Pioneers had closed to 27-20 with 6:38 on the clock.
The Braves quickly found themselves in a hole after their fourth holding call and 12th penalty of the night had them looking at second-and-18.
After an incompletion, Walters dropped back on fourth down from his own 19-yard line and connected downfield with Waugh for a 50-yard completion.
Holbert sad he had no hesitation in calling that play for his senior quarterback despite the two miscues earlier in the game.
“Aaron’s a great player and a veteran guy for us. He’ll be able to move forward as was shown tonight,” Holbert said. “There were situations where even though we had turned it over a couple of times we had to put the ball in his hands. One I can think of is the third-and-18 when we’re backed up huge.
“That was a monumental moment in the game that we needed.”
Having flipped the field, Walters picked up four yards on the ground and Bock grabbed 16 to set up first-and-goal at the eight. Bock picked up two yards on the next play and then went the final six to give the Braves a two-touchdown lead with 3:44 left.
The touchdown gave Bock 135 yards rushing on the night.
“Michael is a tremendous athlete. He’s a great player and a huge part of our offense. Michael had a great night and that’s attributed to the guys up front,” Holbert sad. “We shuffled in a lot of guys up front. A lot of different guys had to step in and play and we got big yards when we needed.”
Zane Trace wasn’t ready to give in just yet and mounted a seven-play drive that saw backup quarterback Grady Stewart connect with Dunn five times for 65 yards with a three-yard run from Johnson mixed in before Johnson got the final yard to close the gap to 33-27 with 1:37 on the clock.
On the ensuing possession, it looked like LE might not be able to get the first down it needed to run out the clock, but a facemask on third down — ZT’s eighth penalty of the night — gave the Braves a first down. Walters was able to take a knee to close out the game.
Holbert said a big focus in practice next week will be eliminating the penalties and mistakes that kept slowing LE’s momentum.
“I am thrilled that we won, I am thrilled that we finished, I’m proud of our kids, I’m proud of their effort, I’m proud of their fight, but I am also fighting not being really, really frustrated with the lack of discipline in some areas,” he said. “Silly mistakes, silly penalties, some undisciplined areas and we’ve really got to hone in and work on these things.”
Walters was 15-20 passing for 207 yards with Waugh catching six passes for 88 yards.
Johnson led ZT with 20 carries for 153 yards.
Stewart was 8-9 passing for 92 yards ZT with Dunn catching seven of those passes for 78 yards. (Zane Trace starting quarterback Gunnar McCullough left the game in the first half with an injury.)
With the Braves and Pioneers opening the season together since 2013 (the exception being 2020 when COVID messed with schedules), LE now holds a 7-4 lead in the openers. Holbert has coached the Braves to wins in four of the last five meetings.
The Braves return home next week to welcome cross-county rival Westfall — a 29-19 winner over Madison Plains.
Logan Elm 33, Zane Trace 27
By Quarters 1 2 3 4 F
Logan Elm 6 14 7 6 33
Zane Trace 6 0 0 21 27
First Quarter
LE — Ne’Miah Waugh 13 pass from Aaron Walters (pass failed), 5:34.
ZT — Aaden Dunn 55 interception return (kick failed), 0:39
Second Quarter
LE — Justin Marcum 22 pass from Aaron Walters (Maggie Wilson kick), 4:16
LE — Michael Bock 1 run (Maggie Wilson kick), 2:42.
Third Quarter
LE — Gavin Hoover 18 pass from Aaron Walters (Maggie Wilson kick), 7:18.
Fourth Quarter
ZT — Brice Johnson 12 run (Judah Hanks kick), 11:37.
ZT — Brice Johnson 39 run (Judah Hanks kick), 6:38.
LE — Michael Bock 6 run (Maggie Wilson kick), 3:44.
ZT — Brice Johnson 1 run (Judah Hanks kick), 1:37.
TEAM STATISTICS
LE ZT
First downs 16 14
Rushing yards 39-177 39-233
Passing yards 207 92
Comp.-Att.-Int 15-20-2 8-9-0
Total yards 384 325
Fumbles-Lost 0-0 4-2
Penalties-Yards 12-100 8-65
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING – Logan Elm — Michael Bock 26-135, Aaron Walters 7-10, Justin Marcum 1-1, Cameron Drake 4-6, Austin Holbrook 1-25. Zane Trace — Brice Johnson 20-153, Gunnar McCullough 1-(-8), Silas Stewart 16-89, Grady Stewart 1-(-9), Aaden Dunn 1-8.
PASSING – Logan Elm — Aaron Walters 15-20-2-207. Zane Trace — Grady Stewart 8-9-0-92.
RECEIVING – Logan Elm — Michael Bock 1-5, Justin Marcum 2-51, Ne’Miah Waugh 6-88, Joshua Hunter 1-18, Gavin Hoover 2-27, Cameron Drake 1-8, Austin Holbrook 1-2, Keegan Diehl 1-8. Zane Trace — Silas Stewart 1-14, Aaden Dunn 7-78.