Hot Springs makes notable playoff effort

The 2021 football season ended Saturday for the Hot Springs Savage Heat as they lost to Froid-Lake 26-20 in the first round of the Class C 6-Man playoffs, but they didn’t go down without a fight.

It was a long trip for the Savage Heat, but the 10-hour bus ride to Medicine Lake didn’t stop them from playing one of their best games of the season, and against the number one team in the state. “I’m really happy with the effort the boys put in,” Hot Springs Coach Jim Lawson said. “Medicine Lake hasn’t had this close of a game for two years now.”

The Savage Heat held the Redhawks, who won the state championship last year, scoreless on several drives. In fact, all of Froid-Lake’s 26 points came in the second quarter, with Hot Springs able to keep them out of the end zone the other three quarters. “It was another really good defensive effort on our part,” Lawson said. “They were a big strong physical team, and we were right in it the whole way.”

In the fourth quarter, Froid-Lake fumbled the ball and Hot Springs recovered. Lawson said it only took a few plays for the Savage Heat to reach the end zone and cut Froid-Lake’s lead to six points. Hot Springs then attempted an onside kick with less than a minute remaining in the game, but was unable to get another touchdown before the game ended.

Coach Lawson saw a lot of good performances from a lot of his players. “It was really tough physical football.” He noted that senior Jack McAllister had another big game running the ball. McAllister carried the ball 19 times for 186 yards and three touchdowns, and passed for another 172 yards. “It was a really big game for him,” Lawson stated. “He was just determined to put the ball in the end zone and I’m pretty happy with his effort.” Kyle Lawson also had five catches for 50 of the Savage Heat’s yards and led the team with nine tackles. Coach Lawson said his younger players stepped up against Froid-Lake as well, with freshmen Weston Slonaker and Johnny Waterbury makes some huge tackles and nice catches. “They played really well.”

For the season, McAllister joined the 1,000-yard club twice, rushing for over 1,000 yards and passing for over 1,000 yards. “That’s a big accomplishment,” Coach Lawson noted. “There aren’t many Hot Springs players that have done that. Jack’s running ability was such a huge improvement for our team.”

Kyle Lawson ended the season leading the team in touchdowns with a total of 25.

“I was talking to the boys after the game and right now I think we are one of the top three teams in the state,” Coach Lawson said. “We just played No. 1 and No. 2 really tough.” He said his defense stood out all season, but even more so toward the end of the season as they held teams to low scoring in games. The Savage Heat held Froid-Lake to 20 points and White Sulphur Springs to just six. “I’m really happy with the way they played and their effort,” he said. “They did their best.”