Turnovers costly as Trojans fall to Keokuk

KEOKUK ? Again and again the Fairfield football team coughed the ball up Friday, and like clockwork Keokuk repeatedly made the Trojans pay.

Fairfield turned the ball over a season-high five times and Keokuk (6-3, 5-2 District 7) converted every turnover but one into six points as the Chiefs won the battle for the district?s No. 3 seed 48-14.

The Trojans fall to the district?s fourth and final postseason spot with the loss. A trip to Adel to face undefeated ADM, the No. 1 team in District 8, awaits the Trojans to open substate playoffs.

?Turning the ball over and giving them short fields to score on, we had plays that killed us,? said Fairfield head coach Mike Schenck. ?We didn?t execute. They forced a fumble down on the four-yard line ... but outside of that it was more our mental mistakes rather than [Keokuk?s] pressure.?

Despite the final score, the game was far from lopsided at its onset.

Fairfield won the battle of field position early, holding the Chiefs to three-and-out drives on their first three possessions before the Trojans finally broke onto the scoreboard off a 15-yard run from Zach Vivier with 1:19 remaining in the first quarter. Vivier finished the game with 60 yards on 17 rushing attempts.

On Keokuk?s fourth drive, the Chiefs passed midfield for the first time on a horse collar penalty, though Corbin Harwood would end the successful drive with an interception of Gabe Vandenberg in front of the end zone. The interception marked only the fourth time the junior quarterback has been picked off in 2011.

?I thought our defense played really well the first half, maybe as good as we?ve played all year long,? said Schenck. Unfortunately, the same couldn?t be said for the Trojan offense, which gained just 228 total yards and failed to tally 100 yards on the ground for the second straight game.

Keokuk?s Bryce Rose grabbed an interception of his own two plays later to nullify Harwood?s pick and gave the Chiefs possession at the Fairfield 13. Vandenberg needed only two plays from there to find Dan Williams in the end zone for a 7-all tie.

The ensuing kickoff saw Harwood again making noise, this time with a 56-yard kickoff return to set the Trojans up at the Keokuk 37. Three rushes by Vivier gave the Trojans a first down and set up a 25-yard touchdown pass from Dillon Fry to Braz Johnson to take a 14-7 lead.

Keokuk again needed little time to tie the game, however, as Vandenberg needed one play to find Darrion Sanders on an 80-yard touchdown strike.

The mistakes continued to snowball on Fairfield?s next two drives. Keokuk caused a fumble on the Fairfield 4 and returned an interception 56 yards for a fourth touchdown to give the Chiefs a 27-14 halftime lead.

Vandenberg, who passed for 178 yards in the game, threw one final touchdown strike with 6:30 remaining in the third quarter. The 64-yard pass to Dan Williams gave the Chiefs a 34-14 lead.

Roth scored two final times for the Chiefs on runs of six yards and 40 yards to finish off Fairfield.

Fry was 10-of-26 for 132 yards passing, including four completions to Spencer Peterman for 39 yards and two to Braz Johnson for 29 yards. Davis Lowenberg caught two passes for 21 yards, and Corbin Harwood hauled in one 34-yard pass.

Defensively, Jake Mineart led the Trojans with four tackles. Cody Kool had three tackles and a sack. Harwood added three tackles with his interception and Seth Davisson also recorded three stops.

After going 5-2 in the first seven games, the Trojans have been outscored 91-14 the past two Fridays against Pella and Keokuk. Fairfield carries a 5-4 record overall and 4-3 district mark into the postseason.

Schenck spoke about the need for his players to put the loss behind them, and the quick turnaround going into the their substate game.

?Our kids have to look at it as being a challenge, and that?s what life?s all about, is challenges,? Schenck said. ?You should be excited about facing those challenges, and if we look at it from that perspective I think our kids can bounce back.?

?If they look at it like, ?Uh oh, we lost our last two games and we?re playing the No. 1 team in the state,? we?re probably going to have a long night. But I don?t anticipate that. I think our kids have bounced back all year long, and I think we will again,? he added.

The Trojans? game against ADM will be at 7 p.m. Wednesday in Adel.

Scoring Summary

1st ? 1:19 (FF) Vivier 15-yard run (PAT)

2nd ? 6:26 (K) Vandenberg 8-pass to Williams (PAT); 4:38 (FF) Fry 25-pass to B. Johnson (PAT); 4:25 (K) Vandenberg 80-pass to Sanders (PAT); 4:08 (K) Roth 4-run (run fail); 2:19 (K) B. Rose 56-interception return (PAT)

3rd ? 6:30 (K) Vandenberg 64-pass to Williams (PAT); 2:35 (K) Roth 6-run (PAT); 0:28 (K) Roth 40-run (PAT)

PASSING ? (FF) Fry 10-26-132, Whitney 0-1-0; (K) Vandenberg 7-16-178

RUSHING? (FF) Vivier 17-60 (TD), Fry 9-24, Harwood 2-13, Swanson 2--1; (K) Roth 19-180 (3TD), Nye 4-32, Kemp 2-13, Jennings 2-13, Mauer 4-12, Sanders 2-6, Vandenberg 3--3 RECEIVING ? (FF) Peterman 4-39, B. Johnson 2-29 (TD), Lowenberg 2-21, Harwood 1-34, Vivier 1-9; (K) Williams 3-83, Sanders 1-80, Jennings 2-10, Mauer 1-5

TACKLES ? (FF) Mineart 4, Kool 3 (sack), Davisson 3, Harwood 3, Cooksey 2, Dimmitt 2, Johnson 2, Vivier 1, Hammel 1, Sloan 1, Johnson 1, Leonard 1, Dahlstrom 1, Gevock 1; (K) B. Rose 11, D. Rose 11, Jensen 8, Martin 7, Galbreath 6, Jennings 6, Hawikins 3, Williams 3, Nye 3, Sanders 3, Bradley 1, Blanford 1, Barclift 1, Kemp 1, Strong 1, Walden 1

INTERCEPTIONS ? (FF) Sloan; (K) B. Rose 2, Jennings, Jensen