Riley County Survives, Ends Russell's Season

The Russell High School football team traveled to Riley County just north of Riley on Friday, October 29 for a first round playoff game and saw its season come to an end with an 18-15 loss.

Riley County (9-0) running back Blake Brokenicky scored the first touchdown of the game on a four-yard run with 9:20 remaining in the first quarter. The extra-point kick was no good and the Falcons led 6-0 after the first period.

Brokenicky scored another rushing TD, this time from 27 yards out, at the 6:15 mark in the second stanza. The two-point conversion was no good and Riley County led 12-0 at halftime.

With 7:21 to play in the third quarter, Russell (4-5) quarterback Andrew Roth connected with running back Jackson Cross for a 77-yard touchdown pass, with most of those yards coming after the catch. It was a five-play, 82-yard drive. Charlie Krug's extra-point kick was good and Riley County led 12-7 after three quarters.

With 6:49 remaining in the contest, Russell claimed its first lead when running back Jacob Windholz finished off a five-play, 62-yard drive with a 13-yard touchdown run. The two-point conversion was good and the Broncos led 15-12. However, the Falcons answered with a seven-play, 53-yard drive capped off by a one-yard TD run by Brokenicky. The extra-point kick was no good. On the ensuing Russell possession, the Broncos threw an interception with under a minute to play and Riley County escaped with the 18-15 win.

That final interception was one of four INTs thrown by Russell in the game, along with one fumble. Russell did force two turnovers - an interception by Wyatt Middleton and a fumble recovery by Middleton.

Russell outgained Riley County 269 total yards to 201 yards. The Broncos rushed for 124 yards and passed for 145 yards. The Falcons totaled 190 yards on the ground and only 11 yards through the air.

Russell's Windholz finished with nine carries for 49 yards. Roth completed six passes for 114 yards. Cross caught three passes for 89 yards.

Brokenicky led Riley County with 151 yards rushing on 29 carries.

With the win, Riley County advances to the second round of the Class 3A playoffs and will face Concordia on Friday, November 5. The Panthers defeated Colby 52-20 on Friday.

The Bronco loss ends Russell's season at 4-5 overall, the program's best record since 2017. The 2021 playoff appearance was also the first for Russell since 2006.