By KLINT SPILLER

The Hays Daily News

LIBERAL -- Ryan Cornelsen returned home Friday night. But for first-year Hays High School football coach, the game wasn't about him. It was about Hays High.

Behind their fourth-quarter defensive red zone performance, Hays High won 21-17 in the Western Athletic Conference opener for both teams.

HHS advanced to 3-0 overall, while Liberal dropped to 1-2. It is the Indians' first 3-0 start since 2001.

"To me, it was just another game and another team," Cornelsen said. "For me, the win is about our program. I've moved on to a new program and a new town.

"That is where my pride and focus is at now. It is a good win for Hays High, and it has very little to do with me or where I grew up," he added.

As a player at Liberal, Cornelsen went to four Class 5A state championship games and won two under the coaching of his father, Gary Cornelsen.

His father took Liberal to seven state championship games, and won four, during the 1990s.

Due to recent remodeling of the stadium, the Liberal players and coaches used a new locker room, so HHS was dressing in the same locker room Cornelsen had used as a player.

"The kids got a kick out of it," Cornelsen said. "They got to see my picture on the wall and how little I was. I'm sure I'll hear about that in the near future."

HHS senior quarterback Bryant Bombardier said not only was Cornelsen's homecoming an added motivation, but the Indians were playing for Cornelsen's 1-month-old son, Cooper Jay, who has been battling a sudden illness.

"His father set up such a big program here, so we knew it was important to him to come back here," Bombardier said. "This was pretty much for him. This was a win for him and his son. The team was driving off of that."

Hays High's offense netted only 182 yards of total offense, but the Indians' defense stepped up in the red zone, stuffing two drives that could have either tied the game or won it.

Early in the fourth quarter, the Redskins had first-and-goal on the Indians' 2-yard line, but two 4-yard losses, a pass deflection and a delay of game penalty prevented the touchdown and forced Liberal to kick a field goal instead.

Then late in the game, the Redskins got as close as the Indians' 12-yard line, but an interception by senior Travis Pfannenstiel ended the Redskins' comeback hopes.

"I knew I better get down (and down the ball), and we just ran out the ball," Pfannenstiel said. "That is the best feeling right there."

The Indians saw a bit of their depth at running back chip away on Friday.

Junior running back Casey Sedbrook filled in for junior Josh Balman, who suffered an injury early in the first quarter. Sophomore starting running back Brad Desbien did not even suit up as he sat out with a leg injury.

Sedbrook ended the game with 56 yards on 14 carries.

"We've been working together, but Balman's been the main guy," Sedbrook said. "He would have done the same thing. He is a good player."

However, Sedbrook's biggest play came when he was filling in for a different injured player.

Following Liberal's 32-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to take a 17-14 lead, senior kick returner Brad Pruter was on the sideline nursing leg cramps.

Sedbrook came in for the kickoff return and busted it up the middle for the game-winning 85-yard return for a TD.

"(Sedbrook) plays with his heart," Cornelsen said. "He is not extremely fast and is not extremely big, but he plays with a lot of desire. Each play, you can see he is having a lot of fun."

Bombardier ended the game with 74 yards rushing and two touchdowns, scoring both TDs on misdirection plays.

"All week, the offensive line schemed and knew what they were supposed to do, and executed," Bombardier said. "Without the offensive line, we would have had nothing. They were always in the right blocks, making holes and leading the way the entire time."

Bombardier completed 5-of-12 passes for 36 yards but had three dropped passes.

Cornelsen said dropped passes were the reason why his team went away from the pass and relied on the Indians' rushing attack in the second half.

"We had opportunities in the first half, but we kept dropping them," Cornelsen said. "It was costing us on down and distance. We are not a good enough team to get bad down and distance and still get the first (down)."

The Redskins scored on their first possession, relying heavily on senior running back Michael Cummins.

During the six-play, 57-yard drive, Cummins ran five times for 54 yards. Redskin junior quarterback Slader McVey capped the drive with a 3-yard TD run.

On its next series, HHS amounted a 10-play, 69-yard drive that ended with a 30-yard Bombardier touchdown run.

After a three-and-out on the Indians' next possession, Cummins returned a punt by HHS sophomore Austin Unrein 84 yards for the touchdown.

However, Bombardier tied the game at 14 on a 3-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.

Sedbrook took it from there.

"That showed the kids are buying into the program," Cornelsen said. "They are believing in what the coaches are telling them, and then they went out and executed and played hard. That is what it is all about."

McVey completed 7-of-14 passes for 107 yards and two interceptions. Cummins finished the game with 113 yards on 25 carries.

Cornelsen said he was impressed with his defense's ability to stop a downfield runner like Cummins.

"If you look at some of our linebackers, we are awfully small," said Cornelsen, who stands 5-foot-6. "But I told my kids, look at your coach. He isn't going to be worried about your size. He is going to be worried about how big your heart is, and that is where my focus is."

Hays High is home Friday against Garden City in another WAC contest.