The South Hamilton Hawks football team will host home playoff action at Bill Taylor Field for the 2nd week in a row as the 9th-ranked Hawks welcome in the 8th-ranked Eagles of Pella Christian in Class 1A, Second Round playoff action. The Hawks enter at 8-1, following a 54-12 domination of Ridge View in the first round, while Pella Christian also enters at 8-1, following a 23-0 shutout of Iowa City Regina in the first round. South Hamilton’s win on Friday was the program’s first playoff win since 2007, when they defeated North Polk in the first round by a score of 28-14.
Pella Christian enters Friday with one of the top offenses in Class 1A in 2022, particularly on the ground. The Eagles enter Friday ranked 2nd in total offense (3,623) and 3rd in rushing offense (2,660), which trails behind AC/GC and their playoff opponent in South Hamilton. The Eagles star has been senior quarterback Isaac Kacmarynski, who’s thrown for nearly 900 yards and 10 touchdowns, while rushing for another 926 yards and 15 touchdowns. Junior running back Benny Schirz has been the other half of the dynamic duo, rushing for 970 yards and 15 touchdowns. Other key contributors on the ground include Peyton Ritzert, Cooper Spronk and Johnson Morgan, who have all rushed over 200 yards on the season. Through the air, Kacmarynski’s favorite target has been Trevor Veenstra, who’s caught 17 passes for 409 yards and 7 touchdowns, and an eye-popping 24.1 yards per reception. Jack Fancher and Peyton Ritzert have been common targets for Kacmarynski as well. The South Hamilton defense has been an opportunistic one throughout the season, as they have forced 26 turnovers, including 14 interceptions. Teegan Trask has 4 picks on the year, while Noah Gunderson and Landon Gruefe have 3 each. Owen Renaud has become a game-wreckers at defensive end for the Hawks with 7 sacks and 15 tackles for loss.
Defensively, the quarterback of the offense has been the quarterback of the defense in Isaac Kacmarynski. Kacmarynski leads the team in tackles with 57.5, as well as 8 tackles for loss, 2 interceptions and 2 pick sixes. The rest of the linebacking core is made up of productive players in Cooper Spronk and Joshua Diehl, the two have combined for 81 tackles and 9.5 tackles for loss on the season. Junior Trevor Veenstra leads the Eagles defensive line with 4 sacks and 16 tackles for loss from his defensive end spot. The rest of the front four is made up of Drew Van Kooten, Mitchell Van Zee and Keagan Fopma, who have combined for 14 tackles for loss. In the secondary, safety Peyton Ritzert leads the back half in interceptions with 3. Collin Vander Wal and Isaac Kacmarynski each have two picks, with Kacmarynski returning both his picks for touchdowns.
The Eagles will be tasked with the top-rushing offense in Class 1A, as South Hamilton is #1 in rushing yards (3,281) and rushing touchdowns (53). The closest to an option offense the Eagles saw was with Sigourney-Keota and their single-wing offense, which handed them their only loss in a 15-13 game earlier in the season. The interior of the offensive line and fullbacks Noah Gunderson and Blake Harris will look to have a big day loosening up the middle of the Pella Christian defense.
Kickoff is slated for 7 PM from Bill Taylor Field at South Hamilton High School in Jewell on Friday. You can listen to the game on 92.9 FM/1570 AM KZWC or stream it online at kqradio.com.