TROJANS FOOTBALL: Trojans win second straight on road

CANBY – Fresh off its first victory of the year a week ago, the Worthington Trojan football team stretched its success into a winning streak with a 15-13 non-conference victory over the Canby Lancers Friday night.

“The kids played hard,” WHS head coach Brad Grimmius said. “They were starving for a second win and they showed that.”

Will Mulder’s 20-yard field goal gave the Trojans the lead late in the fourth quarter and the defense forced the hosts to turn the ball over on downs to seal the victory.

“Our backs were against the wall, but we got things to work out,” Grimmius added. “The kids believe in each other out there.”

Following a first quarter that saw WHS strike first on a one-yard TD plunge by quarterback Blake Schroeder, Canby answered with a score on a 13-yard TD pass from Michael Sisk to Michael Slaba in the second quarter to lead 7-6 at the half.

Brandon Gray (12 carries for 92 yards) regained the lead for the Trojans in the third quarter when he found pay dirt on a 58-yard run.

However, the Lancers responded on their next possession as Sisk ran in a four-yard TD to retake the lead at 13-12, which held up until Mulder’s game-winning kick.

Canby, which was paced by Wyatt Kraus and his 138 rushing yards on 20 carries, outgained WHS by a 263 yard (158 rushing, 95 passing) to 176 yard (92 rushing, 84 passing) margin.

“Canby beat us up hard on the inside by bringing nine guys almost all night,” Grimmius said. “But we didn’t give up on the run. They guessed right against us most of the night, but we were able to get some big plays when we needed to.”

Some of the big plays for the Trojans were provided by Alex Hayenga. The senior back intercepted a pass and returned it to the one-yard line to set up the opening Trojan score and bookended it with a 40-yard catch from Schroeder that gave WHS the field position it needed for Mulder’s kick.

Schroeder finished with 84 passing yards with an interception on 5-of-11 passing. Mulder caught three passes for 22 yards, while Hayenga chipped in 32 rushing yards on nine carries.

“The big thing to take out of this game is that the kids never gave up and kept playing hard,” Grimmius said.

While the Trojans will certainly savor the win through the weekend, Grimmius knows there is still room for improvement for his squad.

“We need to polish some things up,” the coach added. “We need to keep executing and we also need to keep improving on our blocking.”

WHS (2-3, 1-2 in the Southwest Conference) returns home Friday to host the Luverne Cardinals in a conference clash.

WHS 6 0 6 3 – 15

Canby 0 7 6 0 – 13

Tags: sports, prep, football, trojans