Rockhurst football closed out their regular season in strong fashion, beating St. Louis University High School (SLUH) 40-22 on Oct. 13, 2023. The Hawklets controlled the game on both sides of the ball, with the exception of a stretch in the 3rd quarter. On Senior Night, senior quarterback Ethan Hansen led the team to victory, throwing for 242 yards and 3 touchdowns.
“I trust my teammates to make plays when I give or pass them the ball, and people wanted to make plays on Friday, so props to my teammates,” said Hansen.
Senior fullback Thomas Coppinger, fresh off winning the Great American Rivalry Series Scholar Athlete Award for his performance against Blue Springs, opened the scoring with a 1-yard touchdown run. That was the extent of the points scored in the first quarter.
SLUH started the second quarter by moving the ball down the field, but Rockhurst halted their progress at the 10-yard line, forcing the Junior Billikens to settle for a field goal, making the score 7-3.
After both teams punted, Rockhurst had the ball with two minutes left in the first half. On 3rd & 10, Hansen delivered a long 65-yard touchdown to senior wide receiver Jack Bichelmeyer.
Rockhurst followed that up with an interception by senior defensive back Logan Kuechler on the first play of SLUH’s ensuing drive. After a 19-yard run, Hansen found senior receiver Maeson Tunley in the back of the end zone with 15 seconds left before halftime. In less than two minutes of game time, the Hawklets turned a one-score game into a 21-3 lead at the break.
SLUH came out hot to open the second half. A deep pass and a long run set up the Junior Bills in the red zone. The long drive was capped off with a 7-yard touchdown, however, their two-point conversion attempt failed.
On the ensuing kickoff, Rockhurst was unable to handle the short kick into the wind, giving the ball right back to SLUH at the 35-yard line. They scored another touchdown, but Rockhurst blocked the extra point attempt, keeping the home team’s lead at 21-15.
On the kickoff, Rockhurst muffed the high kick again, giving SLUH the ball on the Rockhurst 44-yard-line.
“I was not happy with how we handled the wind on our kickoff return team,” said head coach Kelly Donohoe.
However, this time, the outcome would be different. Just two plays into SLUH’s third straight possession, senior cornerback Ben Stringer picked off the ball, putting it right back into Rockhurst’s hands close to midfield.
The Hawklets capitalized on their first offensive possession of the second half. Senior running back Aidan Ryan caught a short pass before breaking four tackles, extending the play, and taking Rockhurst down to the 10 yard line. Ryan would eventually finish off the drive with a 3-yard run into the end zone.
The third quarter ended with a score of 27-15 Rockhurst.
The fourth quarter started with Rockhurst making a defensive stop on fourth down to give them the ball at SLUH’s 45-yard line. Two big plays from seniors Coppinger and receiver Mitch Forbes put them in the red zone. From there, Ryan punched in his second touchdown of the night.
“A lot of dudes on SLUH got offers, and I was trying to show coaches I’m deserving of those and better than those guys they offered,” said Ryan.
Holding an 18-point lead with less than nine minutes to play, Rockhurst’s defense held strong, forcing a second straight turnover on downs. After making a diving catch to put Rockhurst back in the red zone, Bichelmeyer caught his second touchdown of the night, putting the game sufficiently out of reach.
SLUH would score one more touchdown to close out the night, making the final score 40-22.
Rockhurst’s defense spent a lot of time on the field during the second half. They were still able to hold SLUH’s five star recruit Ryan Wingo, the No. 2-ranked player in Missouri and a top ten wide receiver in the country, to six receptions and 87 yards.
This win improved Rockhurst to 7-1, however, they will finish the season 8-1 because their last opponent forfeited. This is Donohoe’s best record so far at Rockhurst.
“We are very proud of our guys and the regular season. We won several tough, close games, and we are looking forward to the playoffs,” said Donohoe.
Rockhurst has a total of two weeks off before hosting Lee’s Summit West in the second round of districts.
“We can carry this momentum into the playoffs by attacking every week and every day of practice just like we treated SLUH week,” said Ryan.
As mentioned, it was Senior Night. Ahead of the game, the 35 players and three managers who are in their final year with the program were honored. This year’s senior class came into Rockhurst as freshmen during Donohoe’s first year as head coach.
