Kings Gets Ultimate Revenge

On a cold and windy Friday night in Mason, the stage was set for one of the top playoff games in the area. The Kings Knights and Winton Woods Warriors is quickly becoming a nasty and intriguing rivalry. These two teams first met regularly during the 2020 season, where the Warriors knocked off Kings in the playoffs, 20-10. Last season, the Knights went on the road in conference play and took care of business, knocking off the eventual state champions, 14-13. Winton Woods exacted revenge in the playoffs, knocking off Kings, 31-21 on their way to capturing the state championship. Earlier this season, the Warriors once again went on the road and beat Kings, 28-23.

Friday night was the next chapter between these two division II powers. Winton Woods won the coin toss and chose to defer to the second half. The Knights took the ball and went on a 9 play drive that culminated in a Will Kocher 15 yard touchdown run. With the 7-0 lead, the Knights let their defense to the work on the next drive. One approach Kings took in this game was to keep the ball out of the hands of Jermaine Mathews Jr. and not let him beat them on kickoff returns. In the first meeting this season, Mathews took one to the house which was the beginning of the end for the Knights in that game. That was not to be the case this night. Every kickoff was pooched and traveled only 30 or so yards. The Knights defense forced a quick three and out, not allowing Warriors quarterback Vance George to get going. Two incomplete passes and a Trey Cornist run for just four yards gave Kings the ball back after the punt.

Kocher and the offense went to work again. This time they drove from their 28 yard-line, down to the 4 yard line in 14 plays. Despite a pass interference call in the endzone, the Warrior defense stepped up and held the Knights to only a field goal, making it 10-0. Winton Woods offensively couldn’t come up with an answer, giving the ball up on downs on an incomplete pass on 4th and 9. That would end the first quarter, with the Knights up 10. The Warrior defense stepped up to the challenge and forced a three and out, keyed by a big third down sack by Justin Hill.

Mathews returned the ensuing Kings punt to the their own 47 yard lane to get the Warriors going on offense. It took Winton Woods nine plays to drive the 53 yards to get on the board. Vance George found Khalil Olinger and Ly’vi’el Waters for solid gains to help move the drive along. Cornist, who is one of the top running backs in the state, capped off the drive with a touchdown run from two yards out. With Winton Woods back in business and on the scoreboard, the Knights answered quickly. After a kick return to the 25, just four plays later, Kocher scored again, this time from 7 yards out for his second score of the game. With just 4:50 to go in the half, the Knights were up by 10 and the Warriors had the ball.

The Knights defense stepped up again, forcing another three and out. With the football at the 48 and just a few minutes to go before halftime, Kocher and the Kings offense went to work. They went nine plays, driving to 6 yard-line before Brady Wik kicked a field goal to give Kings a 20-7 lead heading into the locker room.

Coming out of the locker room, the Warriors had a chance to get this game within a score with a touchdown drive. That was all for not because on the first play, Cornist fumbled and the Knights linebacker, Nick Hoyer recovered. Kings went for the killshot but ended up turning the ball over on downs. Kocher threw four straight passes but was unable to connect with tight end Kato Meissner on 4th and 3, giving the ball back to Winton Woods. The Warriors were able to convert on the ensuing drive, which culminated in a 29 yard field goal by Dan Umba Dombele. The score got the Warriors within 10 and their defense rose to the occasion once again. Winton Woods once again forced a three and out, with the biggest play being another sack by Justin Hill on third down.

With all of the momentum on their side and the ball, the Winton Woods offense went to work. They drove the ball to the 27 before ultimately turning it over on downs. The first play of the drive was a 23 yard pass from George to Olinger. A few plays later, forcing a 3rd and 2, the Warriors offense committed two straight false start penalties. On 4th and 12, George found Waters but Waters was only able to get 10 yards. The Warriors defense once again stepped up as on the next drive, Donmiel Rogers Jr. picked off Kocher. The Warriors once again were unable to get anything going on offense. On fourth down, a bad snap to punter Cameron Calhoun forced him to pick it up and scramble. Calhoun was able to make it to the 20 yard-line but it wasn’t enough.

The Knights were unable to make Winton Woods pay. After going three plays without getting a first down, the Knights were forced to go for the field goal. Kicking into a stiff breeze, Wik’s field goal attempt was short. Kings defense once again forced another three and out. After the Calhoun punt, Winton Woods was hit with a sideline penalty along with an unsportsmanlike penalty. The Knights took advantage of the good field position, driving the ball down to the 13 yard-line. Wik once again kicked a field goal, giving Kings a 23-10 lead with 5:41 to go in the game.

Winton Woods answered in just over two minutes. A quick scoring drive was crucial for the Warriors. George found Tra’mar Harris for a 3 yard touchdown on 4th and goal. On the PAT, a bad snap did them in, causing the Warriors to fall on the ball, keeping the score at 23-16. Winton Woods defense once again stepped up to force a three and out, giving the offense a chance to tie or win with 3:13 to go in the game. The Kings punt by Jimmy Kelly went to the 28 yard-line, forcing the Warriors to go 72 yards for the score. A big completion to Harris put the Warriors at the 45, giving them a first down. George went to Harris three straight times for completions. On 4th and 10, George attempted a pass to Mathews but it fell incomplete, giving Kings the ball and the well deserved victory.

The victory booked the Knights a spot in the Region 8 Final against Anderson, who knocked off Edgewood, 55-35. This matchup is a rematch of their final regular season game, where Kings knocked off Anderson 41-26. This game also features the two top passers in the Eastern Cincinnati Conference. Raptors quarterback, Griffin Scalf, led the ECC in passing yards with 4214 on the season. Kocher was second, throwing for 3928. Adding to that, four of the top five receivers in the league. Santos Alvarez and Michael Mussari were tied for first with 1396 yards. Mike Smith of Anderson was fourth with 1024 yards and Kings receiver Jake Cameron was fifth with 1002 yards. This will sure to be a high scoring matchup and one to watch with the right to go to the state final four.

Video from this game is below:

Chris Asbrock is the owner, writer and analyst for Impact Sports Cincinnati and can be followed on Twitter Follow @iamchrisasbrock and Follow @ISCincy