Holsenbeck Catches On for Canyon : Junior Tight End Makes Key Play in 28-7 Win Over Notre Dame

It was too early to consider Canyon’s winning streak in peril, but concern colored the Cowboy sideline Friday night at Notre Dame High. Less than two minutes remained in the first half, and the score was tied.

Chad Zeigler and Lance Cross were out of the game with injuries, Ken Sollom had thrown five straight incompletions and an interception, and Paul Chadwell and Trevor Doyle had been ineffective.

The Cowboys desperately needed someone new to make a pivotal play.

Meet Ken Holsenbeck.

A junior tight end making his second start, Holsenbeck made a full-length diving catch of a 44-yard pass from Sollom to put Canyon on the one-yard line. The Cowboys scored two plays later and went on to defeat Notre Dame, 28-7.

Canyon has won 42 straight games--four less than the Southern Section record--after being defeated by Notre Dame on Sept. 30, 1983. The Cowboys defeated the Knights each of the past two years, but by a combined score of only 41-21.

“Ken earned the chance to start by his consistent blocking,” Canyon Coach Harry Welch said of Holsenbeck. “He’s catching the ball pretty well, too.”

When Sollom dove into the end zone after Holsenbeck’s catch to give Canyon a 14-7 lead, Notre Dame could have easily crumbled. But the Knights stayed tough and Canyon did not score again until the fourth quarter.

“I was worried until the last quarter,” Welch said. “When you take Zeigler and Cross away, we are a very young team. We’re asking inexperienced sophomores and juniors to play championship-level football. In some ways, it is unreasonable.”

Canyon’s youth showed in the form of seven penalties for 65 yards.

Notre Dame moved the ball well in the first half behind the passing of Morgan Shepherd, who completed 5 of 7 for 65 yards. He hit 9 of 17 for 125 yards in the game. But it took a trick play to score midway through the second quarter.

Paul Oester took a handoff on a reverse and unleashed a 34-yard pass to Pat Wilkison, who was all alone.

Sollom completed 11 of 23 for 211 yards and overthrew several open targets.

Chadwell, who had only 10 yards rushing in the first half, was a tireless worker the last two quarters. The 5-6, 155-pound senior seems to have a built-in motor under his hip pads and he finished with 97 yards rushing and 134 yards on seven receptions. Chadwell scored both Canyon fourth-quarter touchdowns and either carried the ball or caught a pass on 13 of Canyon’s 16 offensive plays in the period.

“I love being relied on,” Chadwell said. Welch acknowledged that the fullback was the difference in the second half, saying: “He was our spirit tonight.”

Zeigler went out in the first quarter with a concussion after making a tackle. And Cross, who was replaced by his sophomore brother, Cam, had a sprained ankle and a tender back.

Welch was not sure how the younger Cross would respond to varsity competition. After Friday’s performance, it is evident that Cam can. He gained 65 yards on 9 carries and broke off a 33-yard run on his first carry to set up Canyon’s initial score.

Notre Dame managed only 28 yards rushing on 19 attempts. Tight end Brian Greenfield was Shepherd’s primary target, catching 5 passes for 92 yards, mostly on 10- to 15-yard hook patterns over the middle.