Centralia Football

For most of the 2019 high school football season the Centralia football team didn’t face much adversity with the only setback coming in week one in a 28-8 loss to 2A Rossville.

On Saturday afternoon the Panthers faced plenty of adversity trailing Smith Center in the Class 1A State Championship for the entirety of the game before the best player in 1A in Kamble Haverkamp found the end zone with 55 seconds left giving Centralia their fourth state title in school history with an 18-14 win.

Smith Center entered the game as the two-time defending state champs and had leads of 7-6 and 14-12, but in the fourth quarter the Panthers had the wind and took advantage flipping field position on a 70-yard punt from Haverkamp.

With less than three minutes in the game and after a 10-yard Smith Center punt, Haverkamp converted a fourth down and 11 finding Corbin Becker for a sliding catch inside the 10-yard-line. Four plays later on fourth down and goal at the two, Haverkamp got the call and punched in the winning score as Centralia won their first state football title since their last appearance in 2013.

Haverkamp ran 23 times in the game and compiled 104 yards while scoring all three of the Panthers touchdowns on the day.

Corbin Becker had 12 tackles and Austin Holthaus added 11 stops for Centralia, who will take a 12-game win streak into next season.

The Panther do lose five key seniors including Haverkamp, but will have high expectations off a 2019 season which will forever have Centralia as Class 1A State Champions.

(Photo Courtesy of Holly Engelken Catherine Haufler on Facebook)