Nine Game Winning Streak Highlighted In 2022 Season
The Sullivan Eagles football team won districts for the first time in ten years. Seniors Gabe and Gavin Dace, Jordan Rice, Sam Summers and Jonathon Martin helped Sullivan take shape under Head Coach Eddie Haar’s third season of leadership. The upperclassman helped the football team cruise past opponents with ease. Juniors Franky Erxleben, Colton Brendel, Dayton Skaggs, Dominic Ransom and Jeremiah Rodriguez were pivotal members in the team’s success and look to return next season on the gridiron.
Sullivan won their first two games of the season with over thirty points in both games. The season and home opener was against Northwest and the Eagles came alive in the second quarter and scored 22 unanswered points. Erxleben was the first Eagles to meet the endzone and he converted the two point conversion. Gabe Dace found Summers for a 39 yard pass and Ransom secured the next touchdown. Rice ran the ball in with 30 seconds remaining in the first half. The Eagles defeated Northwest with a final score of 34-7.
The next game Sullivan continued the momentum and damaged the De Soto Dragons. The Eagles didn’t give up a single penalty in this game. Sullivan’s defense began to take shape during this game and Brendel stopped De Soto for a big loss in the first. Sullivan scored 16 unanswered points when Gabe Dace found Erxleben open in the endzone. Sullivan scored their final goal in the first half when Gabe Dace found Martin wide open in the endzone. Robert York took over for Gabe Dace as quarterback in the final quarter and some regular starters took a break. Skaggs landed in the endzone for Sullivan’s final score of the game and Sullivan won, 38-0.
Union gave Sullivan their first loss of the season. The Wildcats scored first with six and a half minutes left in the first quarter. Sullivan’s defense exploded when Brendel intercepted the ball. They capitalized on the big play when Gabe Dace found his brother Gavin for a 35 yard pass and touchdown. In the third quarter, Dace made a stellar pump fake that gave Summers enough time to end up in the endzone. Union answered right back when Liam Hughes found Hayden Burle open for a 37 yard pass. The Wildcats finished off Sullivan, 29-12.
Sullivan got their last loss in the regular season the very next week at St. Clair. The Eagles drew first blood when Gabe Dace found his brother Gavin for a twenty yard pass. The Tigers jumped on the board with a run from Anthony Broeker. St. Clair scored again when Issac Nunez caught a ball in the endzone. The Eagles scored their last touchdown from a run by Rodriguez. St. Clair won, 27-14.
The next week Sullivan started their nine game winning streak. Sullivan started in high spirits for their homecoming against Pacific. This was the second shutout in the early season. Rodriguez drew first blood for Sullivan and Rice ran the ball in for the two point conversion. Gabe Dace found Martin for another Sullivan score and Erxleben ran the ball in the endzone to give Sullivan 22 unanswered points in the first half. The Eagles snapped again when Erxleben gave Sullivan their last score and the final score was 30-0.
The Eagles got their third shutout of the year when they gave Hermann their first loss of the season. Both defenses were stellar with Hermann picking off Gabe Dace in the first quarter. Martin, Brendel, and Skaggs stopped the Bearcats for big losses the whole game. The only six points of the game were scored when Gabe Dace found Summers for a 27 yard pass. Sullivan surged past, 6-0.
The next game was the most points Sullivan scored in one night. Sullivan scored in their first two drives of the game. Erxleben is a powerful force and can be hit and not go down. He drew first blood for Sullivan on a six yard run. Gabe Dace found Martin wide open for a 34 yard pass and Sullivan was up 22-0 in the second. St. James scored their first points with a 41 yard run from Cody Wilfong. Erxleben powered to the endzone again. Gabe Dace found Summers open in the endzone and Erxleben scored the next touchdown after that. Gabe Dace ran the ball in himself and Sullivan was 51-6 at the end of the first half. Wilfong found the endzone one last time and the final score was 51-14.
Sullivan played their last two games of the regular season at home. Owensville was the first team to come to Sullivan to try to stop Sullivan’s momentum. They were unsuccessful and Sullivan picked up their fourth shut out of the season. Junior, Cayden Thacker, blasted Owensville so hard that Owensville fumbled the ball. Sullivan recovered the ball and Sullivan scored with the early motivation. The Eagles recovered another loose ball and Rodriguez ran the ball in for another touchdown. Erxleben ran the ball in the third quarter to give Sullivan the 24-0 lead. The final two points were scored when Sullivan’s defense forced a safety, 26-0.
In the 2021 season, the North County Raiders shutout Sullivan, 37-0. This year Sullivan was a totally different team. Sullivan collapsed the Raiders. The first score came when North County’s tight end was in the endzone. The Eagles came alive in the second half. Erxleben scored the first points for Sullivan and Gabe Dace scored the extra two points to give Sullivan the lead. Ransom intercepted the ball back for Sullivan. Gabe Dace ran the ball into the endzone. Brendel intercepted the ball and ran the ball all the way down for another big touchdown. The Eagles put away the Raiders with a recovered onside kick in the fourth quarter. Erxleben took the ball in for ten yards and Sullivan was victorious, 34-13.
“We just played great in that second half,” said Head Coach Eddie Haar about the win. “Our defense stepped up, special teams stepped up, and offense stepped up moving the ball. It was just a great overall team win and I'm really happy for our kids and our seniors.”
Sullivan slayed Salem in the quarterfinals. They picked up their last shut out of the season. Sullivan scored on their first drive with a 55 yard run by Martin. Gabe Dace ran the ball in for another touchdown in the first quarter. Erxleben ran the ball into the endzone for a 25 yard touchdown and Gavin Dace intercepted the ball back and sprinted the ball another forty yards into the endzone. Rodriguez ran the ball in for another touchdown and Sullivan ended the first half when Brendel scooped up a fumbled ball and ran it for a touchdown The Eagles scored their last touchdown when the backup, York, ran the ball into the endzone, 48-0.
Sullivan defeated Owensville for a second time in the season. This time it was in the semifinals. Martin scored the first touchdown on a 38 yard run. Sullivan added to their lead on a beautiful low pass from Gabe Dace to Summers. Gabe Dace found the tight end, Brendel, in the endzone and Erxleben ran the ball for the next touchdown. Owensvlle picked up their only touchdown of the game and Erxleben scored the last touchdown for Sullivan, 36-7.
The Eagles won their first district championship in ten years at St. Clair. Sullivan’s defense was the big savior when they stopped St. Clair from a two point conversion to secure the win. The Bulldogs were unbeaten against the Eagles since 2014. Sullivan scored their first touchdown in the second quarter when Gabe Dace ran the ball in for two yards. St. Clair’s Gabe Martinez ran the ball in for their first score and Sullian answered back on their next drive. Gabe Dace ran the ball in from the one yard line. The two point conversion was good after Dace passed the ball to Martin. There was an action packed fourth quarter. The Bulldogs scored a touchdown when the quarterback sneaked it across. They went for the two point conversion for the win and were dropped at the line by Chase Blue. Sullivan collapsed St. Clair by one, 14-13.
St. Charles West was defeated by Sullivan the next week at home. This punched Sullivan’s ticket to their first state semifinal in fourteen years. Sullivan scored the first touchdown of the game when Gabe Dace found his brother Gavin open in the endzone with seventeen seconds left in the first. The same play happened again for Sullivan to get the two point conversion. Jake Anzalone of St. Charles West made a five yard run to score their first points. St. Charles West kicked a field goal to add to their score in the third. Gabe Dace found the endzone for Sullivan on a one yard run and added a two point conversion when Dace threw to Summers. Erxleben intercepted the ball to give Sullivan the edge and Erxleben made a six yard run up the middle to meet the endzone. The Eagles won their ninth game in a row, 24-10.
Sullivan’s season came to an end at Reeds Spring in the state semifinals. This was Sullivan’s third loss of the season. Gabe Dace scored the first points of the game when he snuck the ball into the endzone. Reeds Spring answered with a QB sneak of their own to meet the endzone and they took the lead with a field goal. Gabe Dace snuck the ball across again and this time the two point conversion was successful. The Wolves scored another touchdown to end the first half on a 71 yard pass. Reeds Spring scored another touchdown after a ten yard pass. Gavin Dace ran the ball down the field 44 yards to give Sullivan another touchdown. Reeds Spring came alive again when they returned an 81 yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Reeds Spring forced Sullivan to fumble and scored a touchdown. In just fifty seconds of regular play, Sullivan was down by 22 points. The Wolves scored one last time and the final score was 49-20.