Graham dominates Hillsboro to earn bi-district championship

For going two weeks without a game since the conclusion of their regular season, the Graham Steers sure didn’t look like a team coming off an extended break.

At a neutral site in Aledo Friday night, the Steers crushed all aspects of the game as they defeated the Hillsboro Eagles 56-0 to claim a bi-district championship.

The win gave the Steers a boost of momentum as they look to continue their playoff run. Graham holds a 10-1 record moving forward into next week’s playoff game against West Plains while the season ended for Hillsboro with a 5-6 record.

As they’ve done so many times this season, the Steers’ offense put on a show while the defense locked down the opposing team. Graham has had plenty of high-scoring games this season, but this was their first defensive shutout of the year.

What really got things going was Graham’s special teams. After the Steers forced a three-play-and-out from Hillsboro’s offense, the punt return unit blocked the Eagles’ kick and set up their offense at the opposing 14-yard line.

It took a few plays but Graham got on the board first on a 6-yard touchdown run from junior Rylan Monsey, his first of an incredible five rushing touchdowns in the game. Monsey was the go-to back in this contest as he racked up 182 yards rushing on 16 carries with five touchdowns.

The defense held firm on Hillsboro’s next drive which set up the Steers’ offense with quality field position for a second time. Beginning at the opposing 47-yard line, junior quarterback Ty Thompson connected with senior receiver Peyton Kinman for a long touchdown pass. Kinman ran a post route and made a leaping grab in front of the defender before running away from him and into the end zone to make things 14-0 in Graham’s favor.

Hillsboro’s next drive was one of their best of the night as the Eagles were able to move the ball into Graham’s red zone. But the Steers’ defense held firm after junior Blake Bergeson had a sack on third down to force a fourth-and-long and Graham’s secondary forced an incomplete pass to turn the Eagles over on downs.

Graham scored twice more in the second quarter on a huge 46-yard run from Monsey which was set up by great blocking from the offensive line, and later a 10-yard run from Thompson to put the team up 28-0 going into halftime.

While Graham wasn’t in any real danger of losing the lead, it was a welcome sight for coaches, players and fans when the Steers offense came out of the locker room from halftime and put together a solid scoring drive. The Steers marched 55 yards down the field and built on their lead on a 3-yard touchdown run from Monsey off the left tackle.

Graham’s defense matched the offensive showing on Hillsboro’s next drive as on their second play, junior defensive back Ryder Taylor intercepted the Eagles’ pass around midfield to set up the Steers offense again.

At this point in the game the Steers were in complete control and began to pound the ball on the ground as Monsey took the bulk of the carries and scored again on a 9-yard run during which he hurdled the final defender before hitting the end zone.

By the fourth quarter, Graham coaches were able to pull most of their starters and get backups a lot of time to work. After Monsey scored his final touchdown at the end of the third quarter, backup sophomore running back Isaiah Flores had a hard run 14 yards into the end zone for Graham’s final score of the evening. Flores was stopped about five yards from the goal line but dragged Hillsboro’s defenders with him for the score.

By the end of the game, Graham had dominated Hillsboro in all aspects and ran away with the 56-0 win. While the Steers will celebrate now, they know the road is only just beginning and they’ll face stiff competition against West Plains next week.

The area round playoff game will be held Friday, Nov. 17 at Fair Park Stadium in Childress with kickoff at 7 p.m.