Burgess and the Senators too much for the Railers

By Scott Kirby

[September 28, 2013]  SPRINGFIELD -- The 2013 football regular season is about half over and it hasn't gone the way the Railers would have liked. The Railers entered Friday night's matchup with four losses and no wins. Of course the players and coaches are frustrated and disappointed, but there is still half a season left to play.

This year's football squad doesn't have all the talent that past teams have had, but they do have heart and dignity. Most teams would have folded up and given up on the rest of the season, but not this squad.

The Railers are led by seniors Austin Krusz, Wes White, Sam Tiffany and Keaton Letterle, to name a few. These seniors give it their all at practice and try to keep the rest of the team focused for upcoming games.

The Railers traveled back to Springfield this week to take on the Senators of Springfield High. The Railers have had some recent success against the Senators, beating them 28-21 last year for Lincoln's homecoming. The Senators went on to make the playoffs last year but lost in the first round. The Senators have been struggling this year as well, with their only win coming against the Lanphier Lions. Thiis was the Senators' homecoming, and the Railers were looking to play the part of spoiler. 

The Railers received the ball to start the game and had some success moving the ball up the field on their first possession. Krusz converted on a fourth-and-3 on the Railers' own 26-yard line for a first down. Shawn Cannon followed with an 8-yard run and a 2-yard run to give Lincoln another first down. Lincoln's first drive ate up a lot of the clock in the first quarter but came to a halt with a 15-yard penalty that pushed the Railers back and forced them to punt.

The Senators' offense took the field for their first possession, and on the third play, running back Trey Burgess broke some tackles and scrambled for a 24-yard touchdown. The PAT was good, and with 4:17 left in the first, the score was 7-0.

The Railers weren't able to get anything going on their second possession and were forced to punt. Krusz was able to get a 43-yard punt off to pin the Senators deep in their own territory.

The Senators drove the ball right down the field with Tre Burgess and Brinton Wilkey and were able to get within scoring distance of the goal line. Wilkey handed the ball off to Tony Williams, who fumbled it on the 1-yard line.

The Railers were able to recover the ball, moving up to their own 10-yard line on a run by Chris Doung and giving Lincoln a little breathing room. But that is all they could muster. Krusz tried going for it on fourth but was stopped, and the Senators took over on the Railers' 15-yard line.

Springfield advanced it down to the 5-yard line, and Burgess finished with a 5-yard touchdown, his second touchdown of the game, making the score 14-0.

On the ensuing kickoff, the Senators kicked it out of bounds, which is a penalty, so Lincoln took the ball on the 35-yard line. The Railers were finally able to get in a groove and move the ball. Krusz hooked up with Cook for two 19-yard completions. Krusz would then use his feet to get the Railers down to the 6-yard line.

On the next play the Railers would fumble inside the 5-yard line, and the ball was recovered by the Senators. Springfield ran a couple of plays and got out to their own 26-yard line, then gave the ball to their running back Burgess, who ran for a 74-yard touchdown, his third touchdown of the game. So just like that, instead of a 14-7 game, it was now 21-0 and a 14-point swing.

The Railers tried to get something going before halftime when they ran a hook and lateral from Cook to Cannon for a big gain, but that is all they could get before the half.

The second half started out like the first half ended. The Senators got the ball to start, got a good return on the kickoff and followed that up with a 35-yard touchdown by quarterback Wilkey to make the score 28-0.

The Railers weren't able to find their offense and weren't able to get on the scoreboard. Burgess finished up with two more touchdowns, giving him five touchdowns for the evening. The fourth quarter was played with a running clock because of the mercy rule.

The final score: Senators 42, Railers 0.

The Railers will be at home next Friday night for their homecoming game against the Taylorville Tornadoes. The Tornadoes are 1-3 on the season and played a nonconference game this week against Macomb. Game time Oct. 4 is 7 p.m. at Handlin Field.

[By SCOTT KIRBY]