CPHS Football: Sandites lose 28-24 thriller to No. 3 Bishop Kelley, Pennington scores 3 touchdowns

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The Class 6A-II No. 12 ranked Charles Page High School varsity football team (1-1) nearly pulled off a major upset of 5A No. 3 Bishop Kelley (2-0) Friday night at Memorial Stadium, but after leading for nearly the entire game, they gave up the go-ahead touchdown to Owen Heinecke on a three-yard wildcat run with 59.5 seconds left to play.

Heinecke, a 6’2, 200-pound senior, ran for 151 yards and three touchdowns on 27 carries, and also hauled in three passes for 48 yards. Grayson Hall also had a hot night for the Comets with seven receptions for 170 yards and a score to go with his five carries and 81 yards on the ground.

The Comets picked up three first downs and 39 yards on their opening possession before Brooks Dudley made a fourth down stop. Ty Pennington hooked up with Jamon Sisco on a 70-yard pass to the one-yard line, but a pair of Comet tackles for loss and a penalty backed the Sandites up to the 9 and Jonathan Daniels kicked a 26-yard field goal for the lead.

Kelley’s next drive ended after three plays when Gabe Harju’s intended receiver tipped the pass into the hands of Micah Calico for a 15-yard return. Pennington found Keaton Campbell on a fourth-down 29-yard score and Daniels made the PAT for the 10-0 advantage.

The Comets wouldn’t suffer a first quarter shutout, however, and Harju responded by airing out an 85-yard touchdown pass to Hall. The Sandites retaliated with a four-play drive and scored on a 54-yard pass from Pennington to Campbell.

Dudley had an interception early in the second quarter, and Bryson Chase had a strip and recovery, but the offense failed to capitalize on either turnover. Pennington found Jacob Blevins for 52 yards in the final seconds of the half, but only had time for one play. He connected with Campbell in the corner of the endzone, but the receiver failed to get a foot down before falling out of bounds, and the Sandites took a 17-7 lead into the locker room.

Bishop Kelley marched 69 yards in ten plays on their first drive of the second half and Heinecke scored on a four-yard run. The Sandites kicked off the fourth quarter with a four-yard run from Pennington to make it 24-14, but the Comets scored fourteen unanswered points to end the game.

Heinecke scored on a seven-yard wildcat run with 7:45 left to play, the Sandites punted their next possession, then he scored the go-ahead touchdown. Sand Springs earned two first downs on their final drive and made it to the Comet 22-yard line with a 45-yard pass from Pennington to Blevins. With no timeouts left, Pennington had to spike the ball to stop the clock. His next three passes fell incomplete and the Comet defense secured the comeback win.

Pennington finished the evening 10-32-315-0 passing with two touchdowns and was 11-36 rushing for another score. Campbell was the top receiver with six catches for 136 yards and two touchdowns. Harju finished the evening 11-20-218-2 with one score for the Comets.

The Sandite depth chart took another blow at running back after Tyyee Atkison went down in the third quarter. They lost Blake Jones to injury last week against Sapulpa, and Atkison had to be carried out on a stretcher.

Sandite Football will take next week off before hosting Shiloh Christian (1-0) from Springdale, Arkansas. Bishop Kelley will host 5A No. 2 Bishop McGuinness (1-0) in a rivalry game next Friday.

BK 28-24 CPHS
1Q: CPHS 17-7.
2Q: 0-0.
3Q: BK 7-0.
4Q: BK 14-7.

First Downs: BK 15, CPHS 13.
Fumbles/Lost: BK 2/1, CPHS 1/0.
Penalties: BK 7-45, CPHS 6-40.
Passing: BK 11-20-208-2, CPHS 10-32-315-0.
Rushing: BK 45-243, CPHS 31-98.
Total Offense: BK 65-451, CPHS 63-413.

(Sand Springs)
Passing: Pennington 10-32-315-0, 2TD.
Receiving: Campbell 6-136, 2TD. Blevins 2-97. Sisco 2-82.
Rushing: Pennington 11-36, 1TD. Cramer 5-28. Atkison 11-19. Sisco 2-10. Campbell 2-5.
PAT: Daniels 3/3.
FG: Daniels 1/1.
Punt-AVG: Campbell 5-31.
Kick-AVG: Reed 6-58.
Kick Return: Blevins 2-29.
Punt Return: Dudley 1-8.
Tackles: Whitehorn 13, Hendricks 9, Dudley 8, Fain 7, Light 5, Brown 3, Chase 2, Turner 2, Harris 2, Webster 2, Evans 1, Britt 1, Blevins 1, Hawkins 1, Peterman 1, Calico 1, Ornelas 1.
Tackles For Loss: Hendricks 3-9, Whitehorn 2-8, Webster 2-5, Light 1-15, Dudley 1-5.
Sacks: Light 1-15, Hendricks 1-5.
Interceptions: Calico 1, Dudley 1.
Forced Fumbles: Chase 1.
Fumble Recoveries: Chase 1.

(Bishop Kelley)
Passing: Harju 11-20-218-2, 1TD.
Receiving: Hall 7-170, 1TD. Heinecke 3-48. Besses 1-0.
Rushing: Heinecke 27-151, 3TD. Hall 5-81. Besses 2-7. Whorton 5-3. Harju 6-1.
PAT: Molinar 4/4.
Punt-AVG: Davis 3-15.
Kick-AVG: Butler 4-58.
Kick Return: Hall 1-7.
Punt Return: Hall 2-4.
Tackles: Whorton 5, Sorenson 4, Pickard 3, Livesay 3, Kosir 3, Benton 2, Kidd 1, Forsberg 1, Griggs 1, Hudson 1, Hall 1.
Tackles For Loss: Sorenson 2-6, Livesay 1-2, Kosir 1-2, Forsberg 1-1.
Sacks: Livesay 1-2
Pass Breakups: Heinecke 3, Benton 1.

CPHS Football: Sand Springs to host Bishop Kelley Friday

The Class 6A-II No. 13 ranked Charles Page High School football team (1-0) will host 5A No. 3 Bishop Kelley (1-0) in their first home game of the season Friday night at Memorial Stadium. It will be the first meeting between the two teams since 1979, and they are tied 5-5 in the series.

The Comets won the first four games of the series, but the Sandites won the last four. Bishop Kelley has shut out the Sandites three times, including their biggest win at 56-0 in 1970. Sand Springs has shut out the Comets twice, including their biggest win of 19-0 in 1978. Both programs own a single gold ball. The Sandites won State in 1966 and Bishop Kelley won in 1981.

Sand Springs went 2-8 last season but hired a new Head Coach, Offensive Coordinator, Defensive Coordinator, Special Teams Coordinator, and several other assistant coaches to turn the program around. It paid off in last week’s season opener as they edged out 5A No. 10 rival Sapulpa 21-17.

Bishop Kelley went 8-5 last season, winning a pair of playoff games before falling to Bishop McGuinness in the semifinals. In their season-opener last week they won 28-7 against 4A No. 3 Poteau. The Comets scored 28 unanswered points against the defending State Champs. Quarterback Gabe Harju was 9-13-74-1 passing and Owen Heinecke was 13-115 on the ground with two TDs.

In the Sandites’ season opener they showed improvements in many aspects, most notably special teams. They didn’t block a single kick last season, but blocked a punt, a field goal, and a PAT last Friday. The defense also made a statement with three fumble recoveries, four pass breakups, two sacks, and five tackles for loss.

Junior quarterback Ty Pennington, in his tenth career start, was 10-17-185-0 passing with one touchdown and was 17-57 rushing for another. Blake Jones was 10-62 on the ground with a touchdown, but went down 10 minutes into the third quarter and never rejoined the game. Jamon Sisco was 6-137 receiving with a touchdown.

Sand Springs has several areas to clean up going forward in the season. They had several fumbles against Sapulpa, but only lost one. Several bad snaps resulted in lost yardage and even a safety. They also had a dozen penalties. The offense had three false starts, a holding call, a delay of game, and an ineligible receiver. The defense had three pass interference calls, an offsides call, and two personal fouls.

The game will kick off at 7:00 p.m. at 600 North Adams Road. The district will not be limiting attendance, but facemasks will be required. Fans are invited to attend the first ever Sandite Spirit Walk at 5:00 p.m. in front of the CPHS Fine Arts Building, which will be led by the marching band, dance team, and cheer squad. Church That Matters will be hosting a tailgate party and grilling out at 6:00 p.m. as a fundraiser for the dance team.

Series History
1968: Bishop Kelley 20-0 (A).
1969: Bishop Kelley 42-6 (H).
1970: Bishop Kelley 56-0 (A).
1971: Bishop Kelley 35-0 (H).
1974: Sand Springs 19-6 (A).
1975: Bishop Kelley 34-6 (H).
1976: Sand Springs 17-6 (A).
1977: Sand Springs 14-0 (H).
1978: Sand Springs 19-0 (H).
1979: Sand Springs 10-7 (A).

Volleyball, Softball, Football Rankings, League Standings

OSSAA District 6A-3 Fast Pitch Softball Standings

4-0 Owasso (11-1)
4-0 Shawnee (16-0)
4-1 Jenks (7-4)
3-2 Sand Springs (12-3)
2-4 Ponca City (3-12)
0-4 Sapulpa (1-5)
0-6 Muskogee (1-8)

OSSAA Class 6A Week 2 Volleyball Rankings

1. Edmond Santa Fe (12-1)
2. Jenks (10-1)
3. Edmond Memorial (8-2)
4. Bishop Kelley (6-3)
4. Deer Creek (7-2)
4. Norman North (10-3)
7. Mustang (13-3)
8. Broken Arrow (9-6)
9. Bishop McGuinness (9-0)
10. Owasso (9-5)
11. Edmond North (5-4)
12. Bixby (9-2)
13. Union (4-6)
14. Enid (9-3)
15. Moore (5-4)
16. Bartlesville (7-4)
17. Southmoore (3-6)
18. Sand Springs (10-9)

Frontier Valley Conference Volleyball Standings

3-0 Broken Arrow (9-6)
3-0 Jenks (10-1)
3-1 Owasso (9-5)
2-1 Bartlesville (7-4)
1-1 Bixby (9-2)
1-2 Union (4-6)
1-2 Muskogee (7-5)
1-3 Sand Springs (10-9)
0-2 Booker T. Washington (2-6)
0-3 Sapulpa (8-10)

Class 6A-II Sandite Pride Week 2 Football Rankings

1. Bixby (1-0)
2. Stillwater (0-0)
3. Del City (0-0)
4. Choctaw (0-0)
5. Booker T. Washington (1-0)
6. Muskogee (0-1)
7. Putnam City North (0-0)
8. Midwest City (1-0)
9. Edmond Deer Creek (0-0)
10. Lawton (0-0)
11. Bartlesville (0-0)
12. Ponca City (0-0)
13. Sand Springs (1-0)
14. Putnam City West (0-0)
15. U.S. Grant (0-0)
16. Northwest Classen (0-0)

CPHS Football: Sandites hold off Sapulpa 21-17 in season opener

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The Class 6A No. 12 ranked Charles Page High School varsity football team won its season-opener Friday night at George F. Collins Stadium, 21-17 against 5A No. 10 Sapulpa. Not only was the game a big rivalry match, it was also the first of the Bobby Klinck era at Sand Springs.

The Sandites took a 14-6 lead in the first quarter and only briefly trailed in the third. Both teams were inundated with errors, combining for 22 penalties and eight fumbles.

Sand Springs scored on the opening drive of the game, marching 73 yards in ten plays. Junior quarterback Ty Pennington found Jamon Sisco on a 44-yard pass to break into the red zone, and four plays later Blake Jones punched it in from one yard out.

Sapulpa responded with a ten-play 74-yard drive and scored on a 17-yard run from Conner Rose. Sango Whitehorn blocked the kick, and the Sandites held the lead. The two teams traded punts, and the Sandites hit pay dirt again on a 51-yard strike from Pennington to Sisco.

A bad hike over the Sandite punter’s head gave Sapulpa great field position in the second quarter, but they stalled out at the eight-yard line and Bryson Chase blocked Dalton Fox’s field goal attempt. Sapulpa got another try on the final possession of the half, but the Sandites broke up two end zone pass attempts and an apparent touchdown was ruled an illegal forward pass on the final play.

Sapulpa’s bad fortune continued in the second half as they marched to the Sandite eight-yard line, only for Chase to force and recover a fumble. They finally caught a break when another bad hike sailed out the back of the Sandite endzone for a safety.

Te’Zohn Taft returned the ensuing kick 74 yards but dropped the ball at the Sandites’ two-yard line. He made up for it three plays later and punched it in from two yards out. This time Fox made the kick and the Chieftains took their only lead at 15-14.

Sand Springs didn’t stay down for long, however. Jones made a 31-yard run then Pennington connected with Keaton Campbell for 29 yards before keeping the ball for the final yard and a touchdown. Zach Heinen connected on his third and final PAT of the night.

The Sandites’ next possession was filled with adversity as Kyle Edmondson made a sack, a pass was called back for an ineligible receiver, a false start was called, then Jones went down on a run and had to be helped off the field. To cap it all off, another bad hike resulted in Heinen punting from the 7 instead of the 31, giving the Chieftains the ball on Sandite turf. Sapulpa failed to capitalize though, and Sisco blocked their ensuing punt.

D’Angelo Mitchell punched out a fumble on the first play of the fourth quarter and Ethan Esparza recovered to stop a Sandite threat at the four-yard line. Neither team managed to score on their next possessions, but Sapulpa marched to the Sandite nine-yard line with 1:43 left to play. Dominic Ornelas recovered a fumble for the Sandites to prevent a Chieftain comeback.

Sand Springs failed to get a first down on the final possession, and Pennington was tasked with evading defenders until the clock ran out. He gave up a sack for another safety on the final play of the game, but the visitors escaped with a 21-17 win.

Pennington finished the evening 10-18-183-0 with one passing touchdown, and was 18-49 on the ground for another. Chieftain quarterback Zac Mason was 8-16-53-0 by air and 9-21 on the ground with no scores. Sisco was the top receiver with six catches for 135 yards for the Sandites, while Taft was the leading rusher with 22 carries for 117 yards for the Chieftains.

The Sandite Defense, which has struggled in recent years, showed remarkable improvement under new Defensive Coordinator Shane Ingram. The team came away with six tackles for loss, one sack, three pass breakups, and three fumble recoveries. Landon Hendricks and Drake Fain had 10 tackles apiece, and Hendricks added two tackles for loss and a pass breakup.

Sandite Football will play its first home game next Friday at 7:00 p.m. against 5A No. 3 Bishop Kelley (1-0), who beat 4A No. 3 Poteau 28-7 in their season opener. Sapulpa will travel to Edison Prep Friday at 7:00 p.m.

CPHS 21 SHS 17
First Downs: CPHS 10, SHS 19.
Fumbles/Lost: CPHS 5/1, SHS 4/3.
Penalties: CPHS 11-99, SHS 11-72.
C-A-Y-I: CPHS 10-18-183-0, SHS 8-16-53-0.
Rushing: CPHS 36-139, SHS 47-213.
Offense: CPHS 54-322, SHS 63-266.

(Sand Springs Stats)
Passing: Pennington 10-18-183-0, 1TD.
Receiving: Sisco 6-135, 1TD. Campbell 2-31. Jones 2-17.
Rushing: Jones 10-62, 1TD. Pennington 18-49, 1TD. Sisco 2-21. Atkinson 6-7.
PAT: Heinen 3/3.
Punt-AVG: Heinen 2-49.
Kick-AVG: Heinen 5-44.
Kick Return: Sisco 1-9. Campbell 1-3.
Solo Tackles: Fain 8, Evans 6, Hendricks 5, Chase 5, Harris 3, Light 3, Dudley 2, Whitehorn 2, Webster 2, Campbell 1, Stone 1, Turner 1, Fisher 1.
Assisted Tackles: Hendricks 5, Dudley 3, Light 3, Fain 2, Harris 1, Chase 1, Brown 1, Stone 1, Whitehorn 1.
Tackles For Loss: Hendricks 2-8, Dudley 1-4, Light 1-3, Evans 1-3, Whitehorn 1-3.
Sacks: Whitehorn 1-3.
Pass Breakups: Hendricks 1, Chase 1, Calico 1.
Fumble Recoveries: Chase 1, Hawkins 1, Ornelas 1.
Blocked Kicks: Chase 1, Whitehorn 1, Sisco 1.

(Sapulpa Stats)
Passing: Mason 8-16-53-0.
Receiving: Kahmeyer 2-23. Mitchell 1-20. Hall 1-8. Morton 2-4. Taft 2-(-2).
Rushing: Taft 22-117, 1TD. Rose 8-56, 1TD. Mason 9-21. Boykin 7-19. Mackey 1-0.
PAT: Fox 1/2.
FG: Fox 0/1.
Punt-AVG: Hall 5-27.
Kick-AVG: Carr 3-31.
Kick Return: Taft 4-148. Carr 2-34.
Solo Tackles: Rose 6, Diaz 5, Mitchell 4, Taft 3, Wick 3, Willingham 3, Esparza 3, Boykin 3, Lloyd 1, Kahmeyer 1, Roberts 1, Edmonson 1, Fox 1.
Assisted Tackles: Wick 2, Diaz 2, Roberts 1, Rose 1, Willingham 1, Mitchell 1.
Tackles For Loss: Diaz 2-3, Edmonson 1-5, Rose 1-2.
Sacks: Edmonson 1-5.
Fumble Recoveries: Esparza 1.
Forced Fumbles: Mitchell 1.

CPHS Football: Sandites lead Sapulpa 14-6 after first half in season opener

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The Oklahoma high school football season kicked off with a bang Friday night at George F. Collins Stadium as two of the fiercest rivals in the region are going head-to-head. Charles Page High School from Sand Springs is visiting Sapulpa and currently holds a 14-6 lead after the first half.

The Sandites are in the first season under Head Coach Bobby Klinck, and the former Owasso Defensive Coordinator has his team firing on all cylinders against a Chieftain squad that is ranked No. 10 in Class 5A. Sapulpa won last year’s meeting, but the Sandites won five in a row before that.

All three scores came in the first quarter and it looked like it was shaping up for a shootout, but neither team found the endzone in the second quarter.

Sand Springs scored on the opening drive of the game with a ten-play 73-yard march. Junior quarterback Ty Pennington made a 44-yard pass to Jamon Cisco to cross the red zone, and four plays later Blake Jones punched in the one-yard run.

Sapulpa responded with a ten-play 74-yard drive, capped by a 17-yard dash by Conner Rose, but Sango Whitehorn blocked the PAT to prevent the tie score.

The two teams traded punts, then Sand Springs needed only two plays to score again after Pennington followed a nine-yard run with a 51-yard throw to Cisco. Heinen made both of his PAT kicks in the half.

The Chieftains threatened twice more, but both trips to the red zone came up dry. After a bad hike sailed over Heinen’s head on the punt attempt, Sapulpa had great opportunity from the Sandites’ 20 yard line. Five plays later they settled for a field goal attempt from the 8, but Bryson Chase made the Sandites’ second blocked kick of the night.

Sapulpa threatened again in the final seconds of the half, but Chase and Micah Calico broke up a pair of pass attempts. The final play appeared to be a touchdown strike from Zac Mason to D’Angelo Mitchell, but it was ruled an illegal forward pass from beyond the line of scrimmage, and the Sandites escaped with the advantage.

Pennington was 6-10-123-0 passing in the first half, while Mason was 6-11-43-0. Sapulpa will get the ball to start the second half.

CPHS Football: Sandites start new era Friday at Sapulpa

The Sand Springs high school football team will kick off its 101st season Friday at 7:00 p.m. with the 93rd installment of Highway 97 Rivalry. Class 6A-II No. 12 ranked Charles Page High School will travel to 5A No. 7 Sapulpa to kick off the season.

This will be the first time since 1969 that the two towns have been in different classifications. In that year it was Sapulpa that was slightly larger than its rival up north. Fifty years later and Sand Springs has pulled ahead in population, while Sapulpa has slipped back into Class 5A. This will be the first time in six years that the game has been non-district, and the first time since 1953 that the teams are meeting in the season opener.

The Highway 97 Rivalry dates back to 1922 and has been played annually since 1930. Sapulpa holds a narrow lead in the series at 45-43-5 and just snapped a five-game losing streak last season with a 31-19 victory. Both teams’ longest win streaks sit at five games.

It’s a rarity that the two schools both field winning teams in the same year. The last time both teams finished with a positive record in the same season was 2013, which was also Sapulpa’s last win before Sand Springs hit its hot streak.

The Chieftains won only five games over four years, and none were against Sand Springs. They finally got back to a winning record in 2018, which happened to be the first year since 2011 that Sand Springs failed to make the playoffs. Despite being a major underdog, the Sandites still managed to win 48-35 that season, but they were unable to repeat the upset last year.

The Sandites are hoping this Friday will kick off a new era of success as they play their first game under Head Coach Bobby Klinck. Klinck spent two years as Head Coach at East Central, where he earned a 13-12 record, won a district title, and made the State finals. He spent the next six seasons as Defensive Coordinator for Broken Arrow, Southlake Carroll, and Owasso. In his three seasons with the Rams they won two State Championships.

Sapulpa holds a 15-27 record after four seasons under former Sandite Defensive Coordinator Robert Borgstadt. After two 1-9 seasons, Sapulpa put together winning records the past two years and qualified for the post season. They have yet to get past the first round, however.

Friday’s game will also be unique as it is the first game of the COVID-19 era. While Sand Springs isn’t planning on reducing ticket sales at its home games yet, Sapulpa has elected to restrict attendance to half capacity. The Sandite fandom was only allotted 650 tickets for what would normally be a packed house at George F. Collins Stadium, and the tickets sold out in pre-sale.