Chaffee football team's season ends with loss

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Valle quarterback Michael Wehner lofted a deep pass that a Chaffee defender managed to deflect early in the first quarter.

But Warriors receiver Trevor Klump reeled in the tip and raced to the end zone.

"That play kind of got busted up early," Wehner said. "We got lucky on that one that Trevor was able to make that play."

When a team as talented as Valle (9-1) starts getting lucky, it's going to be a long night.

Wehner threw four touchdown passes in the first half to lead the Warriors past the Red Devils 48-13 in Class 1 District 2 football action Thursday.

"We knew it was going to be a challenge," Chaffee senior Tyson Estes said. "We were willing to step up, and each and every one of our guys played as hard as they can, and that's all you can ask of them."

Valle, which is ranked No. 3 in Class 1, set the tone from the start. Its first drive covered 70 yards in 1 minute, 31 seconds. Its second drive also went 70 yards, but it only took one play and 17 seconds. The third Warriors scoring drive covered 40 yards on two plays and 27 seconds.

"We got some quick guys, receivers and running backs," Wehner said. "Our offense is designed to go fast."

Wehner completed nine of his 11 attempts for 202 yards in the first half, but he gave way to backup Nolan Wood before the second quarter ended. Alec Greminger hauled in three of Wehner's four scoring strikes.

"We were throwing a lot of short stuff," said Greminger, who finished with four catches for 74 yards. "We picked up what coverage they were in pretty early. We knew what was going to go against them good."

The Warriors scored 20 points on eight offensive plays to start the game.

"It seemed like it threw us off our game a little bit," Chaffee senior Jordan Yahn said about Valle's quick start. "We kept getting mad at each other. We needed to stick as a team."

The Red Devils even tried a new defensive scheme against the Warriors, but to no avail. Valle gained 401 yards on 29 plays, an average of 13.8 yards per play, in the first half.

"We've been running a zone and we ran a man," Estes said. "Each person had a specific man. We took out our deep safety. So we gave up a lot of stuff deep, but we figured put one guy on a man, less confusion. Just get on them and play football."

While the Warriors gained yards in chunks, the Chaffee offense found no open spaces. The Red Devils ran the ball 16 times but lost 27 yards in the first half.

"Each and every one of their D linemen is a beast," Estes said. "They were just wreaking havoc up front. They got big kids, explosive kids. Excellent coaching. Their coaches schemed us up very well, and they just have extremely good athletes."

Yahn, the Red Devils' quarterback, did manage to complete four passes for 63 yards in the first half.

"They're a tough defensive team," Yahn said. "They got through every hole. They filled all the gaps. They were on every play, it seemed like."

Chaffee's offense did move the ball in the second half against the Warriors' reserves. Yahn hit fellow senior Zach Dannenmueller with a 35-yard pass for the Red Devils' first score.

Chaffee forced the Warriors to punt, and Estes capped his stellar season on the ensuing drive. He entered the game with 1,340 yards rushing this season, but had been limited to 22 yards on 13 carries until his final run. He flew around the left side for a 67-yard touchdown run.

"It felt good to end on a positive note, but at the end of the day, I would rather have 10 yards rushing and get the win," he said. "It's not all about me. It's about the team. That's why I play. I don't play for Tyson, I play for the team."

Yahn, a three-year starter at quarterback for the Red Devils, gave way to Peyton Montgomery in the fourth quarter. Yahn, whose eyes were filled with tears after the game, said he tried to savor his final snaps in a Chaffee uniform.

"I tried to enjoy it as much as I could," he said. "It's the last game with my brother [Devon]. I hope he just does the best he can."

The Red Devils finished 5-5 after dropping their final two games.

"This game it seemed like we didn't come out as hard as we could," Yahn said. "We were just a little too much intimidated of them."

The Red Devils finished the season 5-5.

Scoring Summary

Valle 20 28 0 0 -- 48

Chaffee 0 0 13 0 -- 13

First Quarter

V -- Alec Greminger 11 pass from Michael Wehner (kick fail), 10:29

V -- Trevor Klump 70 pass from Wehner (Kevin Abts kick), 8:26

V -- Greminger 25 pass from Wehner (Abts kick), 5:49

Second Quarter

V -- Abts 12 run (Abts kick), 11:31

V -- Greminger 30 pass from Wehner (Abts kick), 8:57

V -- Kurt Bahr 5 run (Abts kick), 5:52

V -- Eric Meyer 3 run (Abts kick), 3:23

Third Quarter

C -- Zach Dannenmueller 35 pass from Jordan Yahn (Yahn kick), 7:58

C -- Tyson Estes 67 run (kick fail), 1:56

Team Statistics

First downs (Valle-Chaffee) 18 10

Rushes-yards 26-188 28-84

Passing yards 215 72

Passes 11-16-0 5-15-1

Punts 4-100 7-201

Fumbles-lost 4-0 2-0

Penalties-yards 2-28 2-10

Individual Statistics

RUSHING -- Valle, Michael Wehner 3-66, Cory Kertz 7-99, Trevor Klump 1-3, Kevin Abts 1-12, Kurt Bahr 2-18, Eric Meyer 1-3, Justin Roth 6-(-1), Nolan Wood 5-(-12). Chaffee, Tyson Estes 14-89, Jordan Yahn 7-(-21), Charlie Montgomery 2-17, Logan Champman 2-10, Devon yahn 1-(-8), Peyton Montgomery 1-(-5), Thomas Robbins 1-2.

PASSING -- Valle, Michael Wehner 9-11-202-0, Nolan Wood 2-5-13-0. Chaffee, Jordan Yahn 4-13-63-1, Peyton Montgomery 1-2-9-0.

RECEIVING -- Valle, Alec Greminger 4-74, Trevor Klump 2-89, Jared Bruns 2-22, Cory Kertz 1-17, Bryant Vessell 1-5, Jason Jokerst 1-8.