Willard continues hot start with fourth win

KANSAS — KANSAS — Willard entered Friday with the highest scoring offense in the state.That was a fact lost on Crimson Flashes coach Bill Speller, but Willard did plenty of that against Lakota.But when the Flashes needed defensive stops to put the game away, they were able to do it.Isaac Robinson completed 22-of-37 passes for 316 yards and four touchdowns as Willard topped the Raiders, 41-31, in non-league action."We expected to be able to win," Speller said. "We feel like we're a very talented team. They got tested tonight and they got their backs put up against the wall. I'm glad we got tested this week going into the Bay schedule."The Flashes improve to 4-1 overall, doubling the amount of wins the program had all of 2019-2021. In that time, Willard was just 2-29."A year ago or two years ago, they would have folded in that type of situation," Speller said. "They learned how to step up and they've learned how to play for each other."In a 14-minute stretch late in the second quarter through the end of the third quarter, 60 points were scored, but a 14-yard touchdown run by Robinson and two-point conversion pass from Robinson to Carson Cinniger gave Willard a 41-31 lead with 20 seconds to go in the third quarter.The Raiders went right back down the field early in the fourth quarter, but a 41-yard field goal by Brandon Leal smacked the crossbar, keeping the Flashes ahead by 10.Willard didn't pick up any first downs on its next drive, but did eat almost two minutes off the clock. Lakota couldn't score and punted it back to the Flashes.Willard was able to pick up one first down on a 10-yard pass from Robinson to Austin Parsons. It came on fourth-and-9 at its own 36. The Flashes were six-of-six on fourth down conversions."That's just having confidence in our kids," Speller said. "They got tested, but they know how to finish. That was a big talking point all summer. We have the phrase decerto. It's Latin for fight to the finish. They have really bought into that. They know how to do it now."Willard took three-plus minutes off the clock. By the time Lakota had the ball again, the Raiders did not score and turned the ball over on downs thanks to a tough Flashes defense."Their running game is probably a little stronger than what their passing game is," Speller said. "When we went up by two scores in the fourth quarter when time was starting to tick down, that was in our advantage to focus on putting some pressure on the quarterback and playing zone in certain situations."The highest scoring team in the state made things look easy early on. Robinson completed 4-of-5 passes on the opening drive including a 50-yard TD pass to Cinniger on fourth down to open the scoring.After Lakota punted, Willard used a short field and cashed in on Robinson's 10-yard TD throw to Carson Hamons. The Flashes didn't convert after either score, but led 12-0 with 2:24 to go until halftime.That score remained until Lakota took over after a short punt. The Raiders got on the scoreboard when Cody Biddle - who Speller called squirly because of how hard he was to catch - scored on a one-yard keeper. The extra point by Leal cut the Willard lead to 12-7.It also set off the fireworks on the scoreboard.Cam Robinson returned the ensuing kickoff 90 yards for the touchdown. The extra point by Luis Antonio gave Willard a 19-7 lead.But that lasted for only for about 15 seconds as Chase Dussell played deja vu, taking the Flashes' ensuing kickoff 80 yards to the house for a score.After things settled, Willard went three-and-out, allowing Lakota enough time to move down the field and get a 34-yard field goal by Leal to get within 19-17 at halftime.The Flashes got a stop to start the second half and Isaac Robinson got back into a flow offensively. After completing just 3-of-7 passes for six yards in the second quarter, he hit five passes for 53 yards including a 14-yard TD to Hamons to open the second half. A two-point conversion pass from Robinson to Carson Wiers made it 27-17.Lakota responded with a 60-yard strike from Biddle to Dussell to claw back within 27-24. Willard again had the answer and in a quicker way as Cam Robinson hauled in a 77-yard pass from Isaac Robinson for the score. The extra point was no good, but the Flashes led 33-24 with 3:32 left in the third quarter.Biddle added a 54-yard TD run, but Isaac Robinson countered with his to make it 41-31."The defense stepped up," Speller said. "I wasn't real happy with how we ran the ball tonight. I think we can run the ball a lot better than what we did. That's something we'll check out on film and fix."Cam Robinson led the Willard receivers with eight catches for 153 yards while Hamons tallied six receptions for 57 yards.Things really toughen up next week for the Flashes when they host Huron (4-1) in the SBC Bay Division opener. Willard 12 7 22 0 — 41Lakota 0 17 14 0 — 31 ScoringWIL — Carson Cinniger 50 pass from Isaac Robinson (kick failed)WIL — Carson Hamons 10 pass from Robinson (pass failed)LAK — Cody Biddle 1 run (Brandon Leal kick)WIL — Cam Robinson 90 kickoff return (Luis Antonio kick)LAK — Chase Dussell 80 kickoff return (Leal kick)LAK — Leal 34 field goalWIL — Hamons 14 pass from I. Robinson (Carson Wiers pass from I. Robinson)LAL — Dussell 60 pass from Biddle (Leal kick)WIL — C. Robinson 77 pass from I. Robinson (kick failed)LAK — Biddle 54 run (Leal kick)WIL — I. Robinson 14 run (Cinniger pass from I. Robinson)