Spartans air it out in ‘rivalry’ win over Williamsburg

WILLIAMSBURG — Air Spartans.

Every time Solon needed a big play, Eli Kampman found a receiver who could deliver.

Kampman completed 16 of 19 passes for 277 yards and three touchdowns as the Class 3A No. 6 Spartans downed Williamsburg on the road, 33-14.

Three Solon pass catchers — Kaden Hoeper, Maddox Kelley and Cody Milliman — hauled in receptions of 40 or more yards.

“I believe we have the best receiving room in the entire state, and I don't think anyone can stay with them,” Kampman said. “It’s a deep room.”

Solon’s offense eventually got humming Friday, but it sputtered out of the gate.

Williamsburg’s Dylan Weisskopf recovered a fumble on a snap over Kampman’s head on the Spartans’ opening drive at Solon’s 42-yard line.

Eight plays later, facing fourth-and-12, Rogan Ackerman found Albert Bamrick open down the seam for a 28-yard touchdown, giving Williamsburg a 7-0 lead with 5:01 left in the first quarter.

The second quarter belonged to Solon.

A spectacular 40-yard pitch-and-catch from Kampman to Kelley set the Spartans up at Williamsburg’s 9. Three plays later, Kelley punched it in from a yard out at the 6:50 mark.

“We didn't necessarily start out the way we wanted to, but their response was great,” Solon Coach Lucas Stanton said. “I'm proud of our execution after kind of a slow start.”

On Solon’s next possession, Kampman again launched a bomb, this one finding the hands of Milliman for a 47-yard strike. Kampman took care of business on the next play, dashing for a 6-yard TD with 1:51 left in the half.

“He’s (Milliman) just consistent — he does everything right,” Kampman said. “He lifts hard and he's just a guy I can rely on.”

With 15 seconds on the clock, Kampman lofted a pass to Kaden Hoeper who outjumped two defenders for a 21-yard score, giving the Spartans a 20-7 halftime lead.

“He's (Hoeper) a fast guy and he’s a high jumper,” Kampman said. “You saw that catch in the corner of the end zone. He just ‘Mosses’ people. If anyone on the team were to be related to Randy Moss, it would be him.”

Late in the third, Kampman again found Hoeper, this time on a short cross. Hoeper did the rest, taking it 60 yards to the endzone.

“I'm typically not a passing coach, but we've got the guys to do it,” Stanton said. “And Eli's put in the time and the work, and he's been hungry to showcase those skills.

“We’ve got multiple guys — Kaden, Maddox, Cody — and some younger kids that are stepping up too, like Grant Gordon and Owen Bock. We've got some guys on the outside that can make it pretty easy for him to distribute it. He's got confidence in all those guys.”

In Kampman’s final act of the night, he rolled left and connected with Kelley for a 27-yard score, putting the game on ice with 8:08 remaining.

“He's (Kelley) a beast,” Kampman said. “He is one of the best deep threat, jump ball catchers in the state. I'll always take a one-on-one matchup, and I'll take him every time.”

Ackerman added a touchdown late to round out the scoring.

Solon’s defense forced 14 tackles for loss and allowed the Raiders just 162 yards of total offense.

“I don't want to say this is a game we had marked or anything, but it's turned into a pretty good rivalry,” Stanton said. “They've had our number the last two times we've played them, and that was definitely in our kids' minds that they wanted to come out.”

Solon will host 3A No. 1 Mount Vernon next Friday. Williamsburg will travel to play Monroe PCM.