Encampment takes down Red Devils

Tigers move on to semi-final in 1A Six-Man Playoffs to face No. 1 West Farson-Eden

The Encampment Tigers continue to show that they are a force to be reckoned with in their first year of conference play as they exorcised the Hulett Red Devils during the first round of conference play on October 30.

With only two conference losses during their regular season, the Tigers entered the 1A Six-Man Playoffs as the No. 3 West seed to be hosted by the No. 2 East Red Devils. Just two weeks before, Hulett had dealt a regular season loss to the Hanna, Elk Mountain, Medicine Bow (HEM) Miners.

Encampment, however, worked quickly to show that they weren't afraid to dominate the Red Devils' home field.

"The team came out and set the tone early and played a real physical game," said Kegan Willford, head coach of the Encampment Tigers. "We had a little bit of a let down in the 2nd quarter, but we came back strong in the 2nd half to finish the game."

Throughout most of the game, the Tigers were able to get their claws into Hulett and leave them scoreless in all but one quarter. In the 1st quarter, Dalton Peterson put the first 6 points on the board with a 6 yard rush. A 37 yard rush from Caysen Barkhurst and a conversion from Peterson put Encampment up 13-0. Peterson would score a third time in the 1st quarter with a 49 yard return following an interception to lead 19-0 at the end of the first 10 minutes.

The 2nd quarter saw the Red Devils work to try and outscore Encampment as they put 20 points on the board. The Tigers, however, would put an additional 12 points to Hulett's 20 points. Barkhurst took Encampment to 25-0 with a 17 yard rush, which was answered by Hulett with a 4 yard rush. Barkhurst then ran 60 yards to add another 6 points and increase the lead 31-6. That would be the most that Encampment would score as Hulett completed a 14 yard rush, a point-after-touchdown and a 6 yard pass to bring the score 31-20 at halftime.

As they entered the second half, the Tigers appeared determined as they put up double digits in the 3rd and 4th quarters while Hulett never scored again.

In the 3rd quarter, Barkhurst rushed again, going 37 yards to increase the Tigers' lead by 17 points, 37-20. A 25 yard pass from Peterson to Koye Gilbert put Encampment up 43-20 and a conversion from Barkhurst increased the score 44-20 as the 3rd quarter ended.

The final quarter saw Peterson rush for 37 yards for a touchdown and pass to Koye Gilbert to go 51-20. Barkhurst ran 30 yards to score another touchdown and a point-after-touchdown from kicker Michael Anderson put Encampment in the lead as the game ended 59-20.

With their nearly 40 point lead against the Red Devils, Encampment knocked Hulett out of the playoffs and moved on to the second round to face the No. 1 West seeded Farson-Eden Pronghorns. The Pronghorns hosted HEM on October 30 and dealt a 0-70 loss to the Miners.

Farson-Eden will host the semifinal round, making it the second time this season that the Tigers will face the Pronghorns on their home field. When Farson-Eden hosted the Tigers in September, they dealt Encampment a 32-74 loss.

"Farson is a tough team, but if we can limit turnovers and get some stops on defense, I feel like we can play with them," said Willford.

Farson-Eden will host the Encampment Tigers at 1 p.m. on November 7. The winner will move on to face the winner of the Meeteetse Longhorns and Kaycee Buckaroo semi-final round on November 14.

 

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