Redington falls just short of a trip to the Division III state title game

Redington, the second seed in the postseason, was on a quest for its first trip to the championship game since 2021, the season the Huskies won it all. But Redington fell just short.

Game-changing plays on fourth down helped Kenai Central earn a shot to win a second straight state crown.

Within a five-play stretch early in the fourth quarter, Kenai stopped Redington on fourth down in the Huskies’ end. Four plays later, with the Kards on fourth down, senior Bobby Hayes scored the go-ahead touchdown to lead the defending state champs to a 27-20 win over Redington in the Division III semifinals, Saturday night at Redington Jr/Sr High School in Wasilla.

“They just believe in each other and never quit,” Kenai head coach Jake Brand said of his players in crucial situations.

On the first play of the fourth quarter, with the Huskies facing 4th-and-1 at their own 34-yard line, Redington opted to go for it. The Kenai defense stopped the Huskies for no gain.

Four plays later, with the Kenai offense facing 4th-and-5, Hayes broke free for a 29-yard touchdown to help give the Kards a 21-20 advantage.

“Bobby Hayes, playing with a lot of pride,” Brand said. “He leg’s bothering him. He just kept going, He knew his teammates needed him and he answered the bell.”

The Kenai defense stopped Redington on fourth down three times in the fourth quarter and also recovered a fumble during the final frame.

With just less than three minutes remaining in the game, with Redington facing 4th-and 16, the Kards stopped the Huskies four yards shy of a first down. Two plays later, Aasen Campanella rushed for a 14-yard touchdown run to push Kenai’s lead to 27-20.

Redington had one more shot late, but was stopped at 4th-and-7 at the Kenai 35.

Redington senior quarterback Christian Ingraham accounted for more than 300 yards of total offense in his final game with the Huskies. Brand said the Kards definitely game-planned for dual-purpose threat.

“Absolutely, “ Brand said. “Although he’s such a dynamic kid, if you put everything toward him you’re going to leave other people open. We’re going to let (Ingraham) do what (Ingraham) does and hope he doesn’t kill us. We had just enough rope not to hang ourselves.”

Brand said the Kards did put an emphasis on stopping Redington receiver Kaedon Saxton, who had a huge junior season.

“We really focused on No. 2. He’s a great receiver,” Brand said of Saxton. “He makes those circus catches, We were really game-planning against No. 2.”

Kenai held Saxton to a pair of catches for 27 yards.

Ingraham rushed for 141 yards on 18 carries, and three touchdowns. He also completed 11 of 22 passes for 163 yards.

Ingraham scored on a 46-yard run in the first quarter to give Redington an early lead. He added rushing touchdowns of 7 and 4 yards. Ingraham had a potential fourth rushing touchdown, a 1-yarder, negated by a penalty in the second quarter. The Huskies were unable to score on that drive.

Redington, the No. 2 seed in the postseason, ended its season 5-3 overall.

The Kards, who move on to play Peninsula rival Homer Oct. 19 in the Division III state title game at 1:30 p.m. at Wasilla High School, have now won four straight, Their last loss came at Redington on Sept. 20. The Huskies won 20-6.

Kenai, the No. 3 seed in the playoffs, is now 5-4 overall.

Hayes led the Kards with 12 carries for 110 yards and a touchdown. Campanella had 12 carries for 71 yards and a score. Garrett McCanna added a 6-yard touchdown run early in the second half.

Kenai quarterback Tony Perez also connected with receiver Sawyer Vann on a 19-yard touchdown catch.

In the Division I quarterfinals top-seeded Dimond beat eighth-seeded Colony 40-23 Friday in Anchorage. Tyrus Fischer threw three touchdown passes in the loss, including two to Ridge Spencer.

Contact Frontiersman managing editor Jeremiah Bartz at editor@frontiersman.com.