The Fayette Falcons ended their season with a 32-38 loss at Russellville Friday night in a bid to qualify for the Class 1 District 2 postseason tournament. 

Fayette entered as the ninth seed, playing the eighth seed for a spot in the eight-team playoff. The result sends Fayette home, while Russellville will make the long trip to Perryville on Friday to take on top-seeded St. Vincent (6-3).

This season marked several firsts for Fayette. The Falcons debuted under first-year head coach Kole Hinton, while a significant number of freshman and sophomore players in key starting roles.

Hinton said despite losing the seventh game in a row to finish the season with a 2-8 overall record, he was proud of how his team grew over 10 weeks. 

“I am happy the way that we fought and we battled. I think that we ended in week 10 better than we were in week one. So, I think our goal of getting better every day was achieved,” he said. “So, we’ve done what we set out to do, which is get better at the game of football, get closer as a team. We’ve gotten better. So that’s good.

Friday’s game was indeed a tale of two halves. Both teams traded punches early on before the Falcons took a four-point lead into halftime after possibly playing their best two quarters of the season.

The Indians struck first. After receiving the opening kickoff, Russellville methodically moved the ball downfield, eating up nearly half of the first quarter while chewing up yardage on the ground. Sophomore running back Jonathan Witt capped off the drive with an eight-yard touchdown run. A successful two-point conversion put Russellville in front 8-0.

But the Falcons would answer right back. Fayette started with a short field after sophomore Caleb Craig recovered an onside kick attempt at the Falcon 45-yard line. From there, Fayette’s running game steadily moved the ball down the field, coupled with a pass reception from freshman quarterback Ledgyr Conrow to junior running back Micah Estes. With 3:59 on the clock, sophomore Carter Vroman broke loose from 17 yards out to put the Falcons on the board.

The two-point conversion failed, leaving Fayette trailing by two.

But the Falcons would not be behind for long. Russellville was forced to punt early in the second quarter, setting up Fayette’s second scoring drive. Three minutes later, Vroman scored again, this time on a 21-yard rush. The sophomore powered through the Russellville defense for the two-point conversion to give the Falcons a 14-8 lead.

The Indians struck again in short order on their very next possession, capping a 65-yard drive with a 24-yard run by freshman Maddox Plate. A successful two-point conversion put Russellville back in front by two.

Fayette needed just two plays to take back the lead. After starting on their own 40-yard line, Vroman broke loose for 52 yards before he was brought down just eight yards shy of the goal line. On the next play, Estes finished off the drive, scoring from eight yards out to put Fayette back on top 20-16 heading into the break.

Hinton told his players at halftime they were the better team. “I don’t think that they were better than us. I think that we had a good game plan, and I think that we were more talented. I think it just came down to them being a little bit more disciplined than us.”

The Falcons returned to the field fired up to start the third quarter. But the mood was quickly dampened after Fayette turned the ball over on downs during the first drive of the half. Russellville seized the opportunity and scored on a 13-yard keeper by sophomore quarterback Justin Seaver to go up 24-20.

Fayette also lost leading rusher Carter Vroman for almost the entire second half. The sophomore had been hobbled by an injury three weeks prior and re-aggravated the sore ankle early in the third quarter.

“I thought when we lost Carter, we lost a little bit of hope, which is unfortunate,” Hinton said. “I think that that lost a lot of our momentum. As a team, we’ve got to be more resilient. No one person is our team. I think that we’re just not quite there as a ball club yet.” 

Fayette’s next drive was ended just 10 yards short of the end zone when Indians’ senior linebacker Cayden Cook picked off Conrow’s pass. 

After both teams traded punts, Russellville made it a two-score game with three minutes left to play in the third quarter with a short-yardage touchdown followed by a successful two-point conversion.

Another turnover early in the fourth quarter halted the Falcons’ scoring chances when Russellville recovered a fumble at midfield. Fayette returned the favor two minutes later when Austin Kunze dove on a loose ball. 

After a long scoring drought, Fayette finally found the endzone with the clock ticking down. With just under four minutes to play, Estes scored on a three-yard run, then crossed the goal line for the two-point conversion to bring the Falcons within four points. The score was set up by a big pass to sophomore wide receiver Payton Oeth at the 10-yard line.

The Indians used their lead and the dwindling game clock to full advantage. Fayette burned two of its three timeouts but couldn’t stop Russellville’s running game. Finally, with about to expire, the Indians took a knee and secured their first postseason win in school history. 

“They executed their game plan better than we did,” Hinton said after the game. “We had a trip to the red zone, and we came up empty. We were close enough to do something that we could have done something a little bit more.

“The heartbreaker of it is that we just aren’t there yet as far as what it takes to be a competitive Class 1 team and a dominant team because I think that we have so much potential. Potential is just unrealized success.”

Despite only playing for two quarters, Vroman delivered a dominant, albeit abbreviated, performance on the ground. He led the Falcons with 163 yards rushing on 14 carries with two touchdowns. Of those, 154 yards came in the first half on 13 carries for an average of 11.8 yards per rush.

Estes racked up 108 yards on 24 carries and two touchdowns. It marked the first time all season both running backs had finished with more than 100 yards rushing in the same game.

Friday was the fourth week in a row where Vroman was either out for part or all of the game. He sat out the season closer against Father Tolton on Oct. 20. In each of those games, Estes assumed the responsibility of putting the offense on his capable shoulders.

“He’s just grown as a leader,” Hinton said about his junior running back. “I’m super proud of the way he did on the field, but also off the field, too. He’s a guy who I don’t even think has reached the height of how good he can be.”

Conrow completed nine of 16 passes for 48 yards with one interception in just his fifth game as a starter.

He found Oeth twice for 27 yards, including a long pass that set up a touchdown in the fourth quarter. 

Junior wide receiver Kaleb Friebe hauled in three passes for 13 yards. Estes made four grabs for eight yards. 

Fayette concludes the season 2-8 overall. Hinton won his first game as a head coach in the season opener at home against Carrollton. Since then, the Falcons won just one more game in an embattled season that saw a young roster taking on veteran lineups week after week.

Hinton said he loves his team’s potential. His young players step on the field as veterans next season with another year of lifting weights and conditioning under their belts. 

“As much potential as we have, we have to act to make sure that that becomes realized,” said Hinton. “I’m happy, and I told the kids that as well. Ultimately, football is just a game and a tool for us to build young men and build character. I think that we’ve instilled character in these young men. And I think that we’ve built confidence in them, as men and as football players. So, while the wins and losses aren’t where we want them to be, I think that we have a lot of potential to be great. Now we have a whole year. Let’s go get after it in January, February, and March. Then let’s see where we’re really at and see where we really are as a team because we don’t know. We’ve had bits and pieces of it this year, but we won’t know who Fayette is really until year two.”

When the Falcons return to Thomas S. Davis Field next fall, they will be a member of a new conference. Fayette elected to leave the Lewis & Clark Conference after 50 years to form the Central State 8. Russellville is one of the seven other teams helping to form the new conference. Fayette now has a 1-1 record against the Indians after winning a year ago. The two teams will continue to build what is sure to be a CS8 rivalry when they meet again in next year’s regular season closer on Oct. 25.