Garden Plain Football has had an interesting postseason this year. For their first round they were set to play Douglas. But, in their preparation, they were forced to practice inside for 3 days due to weather. During that week, there was a tremendous amount of wind and rain, forcing the Owls to make other arrangements. On Friday, November 1, the Owls came out on top of the Bulldogs with a score of 48-0.
With the Owls moving on to the second round to play Phillipsburg, along came more challenges. With their practice fields still recovering from the heavy rain they were forced to find another place to practice. According to Coach Rice, GPHS Head Football Coach, when asked about the players mindset he said, “We are being competitive and just enjoying the weather regardless of the conditions.” With their limited options, they ended up at Goddard’s field for their first few days of preparation. But their troubles were not over yet.
The forecast for Friday’s game was not looking in either team’s favor. To prevent excessive damage to Gard Field, the second round game was moved to Cheney’s turf field. When Coach Rice was asked about the game changes and preparations he stated, “Our team handled it well, between focus and not getting distracted, playing there before helped as well. Our team was flexible with the weather.”
On game day, there was heavy rain all morning and the rest of the day remained the same. Rice was also asked about the playing field and he said, “It allowed us to utilize our speed and athleticism.” He also added, “I am really appreciative of Cheney for letting us use their facilities and for Coach Brack making it happen.” When both teams arrived for warm-ups, there was a lightning delay lasting 30 minutes. But, that was the only one and the game proceeded at 6:30.
Both teams fought hard in weather conditions and the change of field. But the Owls took the win against Phillipsburg, with a final score of 28-0, earning them the title of Regional Champs. With the Garden Plain moving to the next round they are set to face Beloit on Friday, November 15 at 7:00 p.m.
