THUNDER BAY -- The last time Keenan Postans faced the Westgate Tigers he was held in check.
The Hammarskjold Vikings quarterback made sure that was not going to happen again, rushing for two majors while picking up another one throw the air to pace his squad a convincing victory in their rematch on Friday.
Postans led the Vikings (3-3) on scoring drives on their first three possessions to set the tone in a 31-0 trouncing of the Tigers in senior high school football at the Fort William Stadium.
“It was huge for us, for the first one, to come out firing,” Postans said after the game. “We came out flying this time and made sure we made no mistakes on offence and defence.”
The dual threat pivot completed seven of his 11 passing attempts for 136 yards, adding 36 yards on the ground, avenging a 16-13 loss to the Tigers on Sept. 19.
“He’s a special player. You don’t get a quarterback with both those skills. He’s a big 220-pound quarterback with the strongest arm in the league,” Vikings head coach Mike Judge said.
“He’s hard to defend. I’m glad he’s on our team.”
The Hammarskjold offense took advantage of their first opportunity with the ball, finishing off the drive with a nine-yard score by Kai Knudsen.
The Vikings dominated the field position battle in the first quarter, keeping the Westgate from advancing the ball upfield against the wind. That advantage paid off on their second drive which Postans finished with a short yardage plunge across the line for a 14-0 edge.
A Timmy Hollinger field goal put Hammarskjold ahead by three scores after the first 12 minutes.
Despite the 17 points, the coach credited the other side of the ball for the early advantage.
“We shouldn’t lull ourselves into a false sense of confidence. Our defence set the table. They gave us really short fields and we were lucky to get up on them early to get things rolling. It’s a lot of fun playing offense from inside the other team’s 35-yard line,” Judge said.
“They’re the heart and soul of our team.”
The defense continued to limit the Tigers, limiting Westgate to a mere 40 first half yards on 17 plays.
Westgate contained Postans and the Vikings offense for much of the second quarter until the fifth-year senior made an impact with his arm, connecting with wideout Matt Jones on a long completion that allowed them to set up shop on the goal line. Postans finished that with another short run.
The air raid proved lethal early in the third quarter where Postans found Jones again, this time for a 49-yard touchdown.
“Once they shut down one part of the game we went to the other to punish them both ways,” Postans said.
With his arm and legs, and ability to read defences, Postans gives the coaching staff to implement a number of read option elements into the playbook.
“Keenan does some special things I’ve never done with any other quarterback before. He is actually able to go out and read the defense and adjust the pass routes based on what the defense is doing,” Judge said. “That’s a big step for him from last year to this year and football IQ is a big part of that.”
The loss is the latest in a tough stretch for the defending champion Tigers (1-5), who have now dropped four straight since that win over Hammarskjold in the second week of the campaign.
Westgate head coach Mike McNally knows his team, which has two games remaining, doesn’t have a lot of time to turn things around.
“We have a group on this squad that have won championships and done a lot of good things but they can’t do it alone. We need a whole team effort to bounce back from this. We’re still alive and our guys are there,” he said.
“On defense you have to team tackle and be accountable for your responsibilities out there. When guys give up on what they’re supposed to be doing that’s when big plays happen.”
In the late game the St. Patrick Saints (2-3) handed the St. Ignatius Falcons (5-1) their first defeat of the season, prevailing by a 26-11 score.
Trenton Woodbeck put the Saints ahead for good in the third quarter with a five-yard touchdown run before quarterback Joey Ward padded the lead with a 26-yard scamper in the fourth.
Kellen Stedule led the St. Patrick ground attack, finishing with 165 yards on 25 carries with one touchdown. Falcons running back Jake Puskas had 121 rushing yards, including a 57-yard score in the first half.
Next week will feature St. Ignatius meeting the Churchill Trojans (3-2) while Westgate and St. Patrick face off in a battle that could play a key role in deciding the final playoff spot.
