59.0°

Watch an audio slideshow at:

Just as the sun broke through the thick, gray clouds Saturday afternoon, so, too, did Billy Kiefer.

Kiefer escaped for a 50-yard touchdown run with just under 3 minutes to play in the small-shools state championship football game at Anchorage Football Stadium, helping Kenai Central snatch the crown from three-time defending champs Soldotna, 21-10. The Kardinals have won five small-schools titles -- three in championship games against the Stars.

Kenai Central is 5-0 in small-schools title games, while Soldotna is 3-4 in small-schools title games and 3-8 in state championship games.

"I don't know how to describe the feeling," Kiefer said after the game. "I'm kind of out of words right now."

Kiefer's score came just nine seconds after SoHi's Tanner Fowler punched in a 10-yard run to cut Kenai's lead to 13-10. On the ensuing kickoff, Soldotna appeared to have recovered an onside kickoff attempt. However, the referee ruled that the Stars had touched the ball prior to traveling the necessary 10 yards and awarded Kenai possession at midfield.

Though Stars head coach Galen Brantley Jr. disagreed with the call, it wasn't the deciding factor in the game, he said. Brantley Jr. took his first postseason loss in his third year at the helm, while Jeff Baker, a college teammate of Brantley Jr.'s and a former Soldotna assistant, won the state title in his first year as Kenai's head coach.

"We didn't execute on offense," Brantley Jr. said. "We were outplayed and out-coached."

After Kiefer's score, Soldotna took to the air. Fowler completed three passes in a row, moving the ball to SoHi's 45-yard line. On the next play, Kiefer intercepted Braden Price's halfback pass attempt but fumbled after entering the red zone. Kenai's Kyle Rogers picked up the loose ball and was tackled at Soldotna's 3-yard line.

Though the Kards looked poised to seal the win, SoHi had other intentions.

Soldotna recovered a fumble on the next play, taking over at its own 1-yard line. Despite the poor field position, the Stars bench had renewed vitality. But that was quickly squashed when a host of Kardinals' defenders brought Fowler down in his own end zone for the two-point safety with 1:38 to play in the game.

"Every time we gave up a big play, we responded," said Jim Beeson, Kardinals volunteer assistant coach and media liaison. "It was a team effort. All 11 people did their job."

Soldotna had possession to start the contest, and looked like it would take an early lead. Price broke into Kenai's secondary without a defender between him and the goal line, but fumbled. Price grabbed the loose ball and was tackled at Kenai's 32-yard line for a gain of 50. Kenai's defense held SoHi to short gains for three consecutive plays. On the following fourth-and-six, Fowler fumbled the ball, which Kenai's Randy Jackson pounced on.

But the Kards couldn't turn the fumble recovery into points and punted.

Beeson, who runs the offense, gave defensive coach Jim Dawson the credit for coming up with a strategy that stopped SoHi's powerful offense.

"We didn't have people guessing where the ball was," Dawson said about the Stars' offense, which relies on deception and several running backs to hide the ball. "I think we've done things to figure that out."

After forcing the Stars to punt on their next possession, Kenai took over at its own 31-yard line. Three plays later sophomore quarterback AJ Hull swung out to his right and found Bryson Lowe open down the sideline for a 64-yard touchdown and the game's first score with 5:15 remaining in the opening quarter. A blocked point-after-touchdown attempt brought the score to 6-0 in favor of the Kards.

"AJ did not play like a sophomore today," Beeson said. "He played like the stud he is."

Hull threw for 142 yards and a touchdown, while running for 67 yards and a touchdown. He was named player of the game for the Kardinals.

"It feels amazing," Hull said. "It's almost indescribable."

To begin the second quarter, the Stars were faced with a fourth-and-three, and again, Brantley Jr. gambled. The gamble paid off as Price took a handoff for a 7-yard run and the first down. But again, Kenai's defense stood strong. The Kards allowed the Stars to gain just 3 yards in three plays, forcing another fourth-down decision from Brantley Jr.

Being on the 16-yard line, he opted for a field goal. Daniel Koch delivered, and made the 33-yard field goal, cutting the lead to 6-3 with 9:58 to play in the second quarter.

But Kenai responded and added a touchdown with four minutes left in the half. After SoHi held the Kards to no gain on first and second down, Hull broke free for a 42-yard score. A Logan Sutton extra point gave his team a 13-3 lead at halftime.

The Kardinals, who got the ball to start the second half, gave up possession fast when Kiefer fumbled after receiving a pass from Hull and Price recovered at the 27-yard line for the Stars.

With a short field with which to work, Soldotna wasted no time. Price gained a first down with an 8-yard run down to the 14-yard line. But again, Kenai's defense held strong and forced a fourth-and-five situation. Brantley Jr. opted for another field goal, however. Koch pushed his kick wide left.

The Kardinals' defense was tested again late in the third quarter when Price broke free for a 60-yard run. Kiefer saved a touchdown on the play and tackled Price at the 19-yard line.

Then Kyle Rogers took over.

He, along with Jackson, stopped Soldotna's Chris Nolden on second down for no gain. But Price answered back with a run just inside the 10-yard line, setting up fourth-and-inches. On the ensuing play, Rogers dropped Fowler for a 1-yard loss and Kenai regained possession on the turnover on downs.

"I couldn't have done it without my amazing defensive linemen," Rogers said. "We stopped the trap. That's their money play."

"It feels great to finish something and finish it strong," said Kenai senior Justin Herrmann.

Brantley Jr. said the reduced number of turnovers from the last game against Kenai was a difference. The Kards turned it over six times in Week 8 of the regular season, and SoHi cruised to a 52-27 victory. This year mirrored 2002, when Soldotna defeated Kenai 28-0 in the final game of the regular season, but the Kards got the first of their four straight titles with a 7-0 victory over Soldotna in the title game.

"We knew we were going to be in a battle," Brantley Jr. said. Although his players are feeling the immediate sting of losing, future years will bring a positive memory of the day and time spent playing football, he said.

"One bad game isn't going to define our kids," Brantley Jr. said.

For Kenai, preventing the Stars from matching their four-peat of state titles from 2002 to 2005 took heart.

"Every one of these kids has a ton of heart," Kiefer said. "I just feels amazing to end on this note."

Kardinals 21, Stars 10

Kenai 6 7 0 8 -- 21

SoHi 0 3 0 7 -- 10

1st Quarter

Kenai -- Lowe 64 pass from Hull (kick blocked), 5: 15

2nd Quarter

Soldotna -- Koch 33 Field Goal, 9:58

Kenai -- Hull 42 run (Sutton kick), 4:06

4th Quarter

Soldotna -- Fowler 10 run (Koch kick), 2:58

Kenai -- Kiefer 50 run (kick blocked), 2:49

Kenai -- safety 1:38

Ken Sol

First downs 9 11

Rushes-yards 36-262 51-302

Comp-att-int 6-12-0 3-6-2

Passing yards 142 37

Fumbles-lost 4-2 3-2

Penalties 11-70 8-65

Punts-avg 6-26 4-41.5

Individual statistics

Rushing: Kenai: Kiefer 21-127, Hull 9-67, Rouswell 6-68; Soldotna: Price 17-185, Fowler 10-16, Nolden 11-21, Bennett 9-62, Smithwick 4-18

Passing: Kenai: Hull 6-12-0-142; Soldotna: Price 0-2-2-0, Fowler 3-4-0-37

Receiving: Kenai: Lowe 2-96, Kiefer 3-42, Herrmann 1-4; Soldotna: Price 2-32, Bosick 1-5.