Photo by Deb Finseth
Fillmore Central school district existed for 29 years and boasted exactly zero state football berths (and a lot of lost section title games). But for the second straight year, Falcon football is headed to state. FC (1-seed, 10-0) withstood Kenyon-Wanamingo (3-seed, 8-2) and its physical running attack in posting 14-0 win in the 1A finals. The Knights’ first possession took 17 plays and went 62 yards only to be stopped on 4th and two at the FC 12 by a Tyler Mayer tackle for loss. Jayce Kiehne then took FC’s first offensive plays 86-yards to the house for a 6-0 lead! It was all the points the Falcons needed. After back-to-back interceptions, FC scored again in the second quarter, as Chase Christianson hit Kiehne for a 15-yard TD pass and catch. With Kiehne conversion run, the Falcons went ahead 14-0. K-W’s first drive was their best. They again made the red zone to start the second half, but a Luke Hellickson interception (his second) ended an 11-play threat. The Falcon defense held them to 138 rushing yards on 50 attempts. The Knights completed just one of 10 passes (for negative yards and the two picks). FC out-gained K-W 241 to 137. Kiehne (4-109, TD rushing, 2-20 receiving) had all FC’s points. Kyle Daniels added 68 yards on 15 carries on the ground. Christianson (4 of 6, TD) only needed to pass for 37 yards. Linebackers Daniels (13 tackles), Kane Larson (12 tackles), and Atlee Hershberger (11 tackles) were busy, as was d-lineman Lincoln Iverson (9 tackles) versus K-W’s running game. Henry Liew and Hellickson teamed up for a punt block and recovery (though a missed field goal was the result). It was FC’s fifth shutout. For the second straight year, Chris Mensinks’s group (11-0) is headed to state undefeated. They will play #7 Springfield (10-1) in the quarters at Jordan High.
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