Spartans Start Playoff Run With 54-0 Victory

It took less than a minute for the Scobey Spartans to get on the scoreboard, and they never looked back in their dominating 54-0 opening-round playoff win over Sheridan on Saturday afternoon.

Playing in front of their hometown fans, the Spartans struck first on a 34yard touchdown pass from Reese Tande to Asher Handran with 11:07 left in the opening quarter.

Scobey’s defense then took over as a tackle by Cam Cromwell helped force the Panthers into a punt. Quinn Axtman accounted for a nice return to the Sheridan 38.

After a 21-yard gain by Kolten Machart to the 17, Scobey picked up another first down on a screen pass from Tande to Handran that gained seven yards to the six. On the next play, Axtman raced in for a touchdown. Tande passed to Machart for the two-point conversion and a 14-0 advantage.

Strong defensive plays by Handran and Aydan Stentoft forced Sheridan into another punt, and Axtman made the Panthers pay by going 47 yards for a touchdown on the return. Axtman, a sophomore, also ran in the conversion for a 22-0 lead with 4:19 left in the first quarter.

Scobey struck again in the opening minute of the second quarter when Tande hit Cromwell with a shovel pass and the junior receiver raced the distance for a 38-yard touchdown play. Axtman scored the conversion for a 30-0 lead.

The Panthers received their first break of the game when Jarom Munns recovered a fumble on the Scobey 38. The running and passing of quarterback Grady Elser led Sheridan to a first down at the two.

After tackles by Machart and Handran kept the Panthers out of the end zone on the next two plays, Scobey turned things around when Machart intercepted a pass and went 78 yards for a touchdowns with 2:24 left in the half. Axtman’s conversion dash put the score at 38-0.

Sheridan’s final drive of the half ended with an interception by Cromwell.

A sack by Stentoft was a defensive highlight for the Spartans on Sheridan’s first drive of the third quarter. When the Panthers attempted a fake punt, Tate Johnsrud and Blake Lekvold made the tackle short of the needed yardage.

On first down at the Sheridan 32, the Spartans reached the end zone on a touchdown pass from Tande to Cromwell with 6:11 left in the quarter. A run by Axtman increased the margin to 46-0.

After a punt return by Axtman down to the Sheridan 16, the Spartans accounted for their last touchdown on a throw from Tande to Lekvold with 1:10 left in the third quarter.

The Spartans will host Chinook for a quarter-final round game at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 7.