Washington was waiting for a breakout performance on the gridiron and Friday they got just that. The Demons entertained Keokuk for a homecoming bout and exploded for a 45-6 rout in week seven.
As heard on KCII, the Demons marched right down the field on the opening drive, but stalled in the redzone and had to settle for an Ethan Patterson 29-yard field goal. Keokuk (1-6) immediately responded by reaching pay dirt in just three plays on a 56-yard run by Lucas Swainey. Giving up big plays has haunted Washington in 2021, but that was the only magic the Chiefs could muster all night when a 6-3 lead vanished into six consecutive touchdowns for the home squad. Patterson had a rushing touchdown late in the first and then rattled off four passing scores to four different receivers. Those on the receiving end were all seniors playing their final game at Case Field in Lucas Kroll, Jacob Miller, Kasen Bailey, and Ethan Zieglowsky. A 56-yard wheel route to Zieglowsky put an exclamation point to a 31-6 first half and the Demons never looked back. Patterson had good protection all night and sliced the Chief defense for 223 passing yards on 17 of 25 completed throws. The four passing scores went along with two on the ground where he finished with 115 rushing yards. Tayven Stuart carried the rock 16 times for 114 yards and Zieglowsky was the leading receiver with six receptions for 103. In all, Washington out gained Keokuk 455-122 and dominated time of possession with 31 minutes to the Chiefs’ 17.
Kroll recorded three tackles for loss to pace the defense and the senior tells KCII Sports it was an all around team effort. “We just kept things simple and it was working for us. The defensive backs did their job, linebackers filled well, and the d-line was causing pressure all night. Offensively the line did a great job opening up holes for Tayven and Patty. Patty was able to hit his receivers on open routes. It is bittersweet being our last game at Case Field, but it was an amazing night to go out like that.”
The Demons improve to 2-5 overall and 1-2 in class 3A district 5. They travel to Fairfield (5-2) next week.