41-27 final score take Panthers to Level 3 Playoff

By Sherry Houben

What a game for the record books.

The first quarter of the Oct. 28 game against Hudson was controlled and low-scoring, with the first points not posting until about 20 seconds left in the first.  

SPASH took advantage of a recovery after a punt went bad for Hudson, and it didn’t take long for Panthers to score a touchdown and extra point.  

Things started to pick up well into the second quarter, when Hudson ran into the end zone for a TD making the score 7-7 with nine minutes left in the half. Two minutes later, great field position set the Panthers up to score again, but they missed the extra point, 13-7.  

An incredible running game led Panthers to another TD, with just over two minutes left in the half. At half time, score remained 19-7.  

During the second half, the game turned intense. Hudson came out of the locker room with a renewed spirit and outscored SPASH 17-7 points in the third quarter. The game got increasingly physical as the crowd roared on both sides of the stadium.  

With seven minutes left in the game, SPASH standout senior, Gus Turner-Zick took control of the ball for the rest of the game, but only after Hudson took their first brief lead with a field goal. Turner-Zick kept chipping away the yards for nearly three minutes, which set up a TD and two-point conversion with less than four minutes left.  

SPASH took the lead and administered the final blow with less than two minutes left in the game with another touchdown for a final score of 41-27.

Turner-Zick ran 35 times for a career record 304 yards and three touchdowns. When asked about the win after his career high, he said, “The game turned out just how we thought it would,” crediting his teammates with excellent defense. 

SPASH continues on the road to the state championship in level 3 of WIAA playoffs. They will face No. 1 seed Bay Point on the road next week.