Goff, Stokes Reign at Homecoming as Pioneers Roll Past Ponca City 63-14
Taptto throws six touchdown passes as Stillwater opens district play with 35 unanswered points
Seniors Daisy Goff and Kyle Stokes were crowned Stillwater High School's 2026 homecoming queen and king Friday at Pioneer Stadium, before the Pioneers beat Ponca City 63-14 to open district play.
Fourteen students made up the court. Each represented a school team or activity, and each was paired with an escort. Their biographies were read by the stadium public address announcer before the game and carried on the TV31 broadcast.
Stokes, a senior linebacker, finished the night with 11 tackles and a fumble recovery that set up a Pioneer touchdown.
Stillwater High School homecoming queen Daisy Goff stands with homecoming king Kyle Stokes (23) on the field at Pioneer Stadium, left, and celebrates with fellow members of the Stillwater varsity pom squad after being crowned, right, on Friday, Oct. 9. Goff, the pom squad’s representative on the homecoming court, plans to study elementary education and become a first-grade teacher. – Photos by Chris Peters
Pioneers open district play with a rout
Junior quarterback Satank Taptto (11) threw six touchdown passes, and Stillwater scored 35 straight points in the second quarter.
The game opened Class 6A Division II, District 2 play for both teams. Stillwater improved to 3-2 overall and 1-0 in the district, sharing the district lead with Bartlesville, which is 4-2 and 1-0.
Ponca City entered the night 4-1 and fell to 4-2 overall and 0-1 in district play.
Stillwater was coming off an open week and a 21-6 loss at Owasso on Sept. 25. The 63 points matched the Pioneers' season high, set in a 63-13 win at Lawton on Sept. 18.
Senior Peyton Campbell (12) put Stillwater ahead late in the first quarter with a 65-yard touchdown catch from Taptto. Ponca City tied the game 7-7 early in the second on a 1-yard run by senior running back BamBam Coleman (0).
Stillwater answered almost immediately, when Taptto found sophomore receiver Cyrus Johnson (0) for a 14-yard touchdown. It was the first of five Pioneer scores in the quarter.
Campbell added a 28-yard touchdown catch midway through the period and intercepted a Ponca City pass about a minute later. Junior running back Jaedan Adams (3) followed with a 4-yard touchdown run to make it 28-7.
Stokes (23) recovered a fumble late in the half, and Taptto hit Cyrus Johnson for a 47-yard touchdown on the ensuing possession. Junior tight end Chandler Johnson (9) caught a 31-yard scoring pass in the final minute to send the Pioneers into halftime ahead 42-7.
Ponca City junior Nolan Jones (15) scored on an 8-yard run midway through the third quarter to cut the lead to 42-14. Stillwater answered with two more touchdowns before the quarter ended — a 10-yard catch from Taptto by junior receiver Brenton Adams (24) and a 54-yard punt return by Campbell that made it 56-14.
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Junior defensive lineman Chip Purtell (95), who also lines up at tight end, closed the scoring with a 1-yard touchdown catch from sophomore quarterback Harper Slavonic (6) with under five minutes to play.
Taptto completed 16 of 21 passes for 383 yards with no interceptions. Slavonic completed all six of his attempts for 26 yards and a touchdown. Seven of Stillwater's nine touchdowns came through the air.
The Pioneers finished with 560 yards of total offense — 409 passing and 151 rushing on 17 carries.
Campbell, who starts at receiver and free safety, finished with three touchdowns and an interception. He caught four passes for 127 yards and totaled 196 all-purpose yards.
Cyrus Johnson led the team with six catches for 125 yards and two touchdowns. Chandler Johnson caught four passes for 93 yards.
Jaedan Adams ran 11 times for 116 yards, with a long run of 38 yards. Sophomore Maddix Staggs (4) added 31 yards on five carries.
Senior kicker Zack Gabbert (34) made all nine extra-point attempts.
Clockwise from top left: Stillwater junior offensive lineman Daniel Hornbeck (78) lifts junior Brenton Adams (24) after Adams’ 10-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter; sophomore quarterback Harper Slavonic (6) rolls out to throw; senior defensive back Caden Johnson (21) dives at Ponca City senior quarterback Jonston Burke (1); and junior Chip Purtell (95) carries the ball off after his 1-yard touchdown catch from Slavonic in the fourth quarter. Stillwater beat Ponca City 63-14 on Friday, Oct. 9, at Pioneer Stadium to open district play. – Photos by Chris Peters
Defensively, senior linebacker Jakoby Petree (13) led Stillwater with 15 tackles, 11 of them solo, and one tackle for loss. Sophomore defensive end Rocky Kolone (7) made 12 tackles, including five for loss. Stokes had 11 tackles, and senior defensive lineman Parker Peterson (97) had five tackles with two for loss.
The Pioneers were credited with nine tackles for loss as a team and forced two turnovers, each of which led to a touchdown.
Stillwater stays in district play at Sand Springs on Thursday, Oct. 15, with a 7 p.m. kickoff at CPHS Memorial Stadium. The Sandites are 1-4 and 0-1 in the district.
The Pioneers then return home to face Muskogee on Oct. 22, travel to Booker T. Washington on Oct. 30, and close the regular season at home Nov. 6 against Bartlesville, the other district team without a loss.
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Who's on the 2026 homecoming court
Goff is a member of the Stillwater varsity pom squad and plans to study elementary education and become a first-grade teacher. She is the daughter of Chris and Mindy Goff. The announcer said her favorite memory was the pom team placing third in the nation.
Stokes plans to study zoology at Oklahoma State University. He is the son of Brett and Connie Stokes. The announcer said his favorite memory was scoring a 65-yard touchdown against Muskogee in the 2024 state semifinal, his sophomore year. He named his father as his favorite teacher.
The full court:
- Madison Shanks, president of Student Council and a member of the football video crew, escorted by football representative Kyle Stokes (23). Shanks plans to study finance and economics, with a pre-law focus, at the University of Alabama.
- Emma Pittman, a member of the senior class cabinet and historian of the Creative Writing Club, escorted by Campbell. Pittman plans to study English and creative writing and become an author.
- Jaelynn Wilhelm, softball representative, escorted by senior defensive back Dian Fix (16). Wilhelm plans to play softball and continue her studies at the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond.
- Daisy Goff, pom representative, escorted by boys' wrestling representative Nathan Phillips. Phillips plans to study industrial engineering.
- Jessica Fahlenkamp, volleyball team captain, escorted by senior offensive lineman Carter Levings (71). Fahlenkamp plans to study digital sonography and become an echocardiographer.
- Karis Edelstein, girls' cross country representative, escorted by cross country runner Sawyer Aichele. Edelstein plans to double major in creative writing and recreation and athletic management at Oklahoma State University, with the goal of becoming a freelance writer or newspaper opinion columnist.
- Evelynn Rogers, cheer team captain, escorted by boys' cross country representative Jax Loleit. Rogers plans to study psychology at Louisiana State University or Arizona State University and become a forensic psychologist. Loleit plans to serve in the National Guard and then study English.
Several court members named the same teachers as favorites. Shanks and Edelstein both named Searcy Crow, and Wilhelm and Loleit both named Michael Porter.
Members of Stillwater High School’s 2026 homecoming court are introduced with their escorts before the Pioneers’ 63-14 win over Ponca City on Friday, Oct. 9, at Pioneer Stadium. Clockwise from top left: Madison Shanks with Kyle Stokes (23) and Jaelynn Wilhelm with Dian Fix (16); Jessica Fahlenkamp with Carter Levings (71) and Evelynn Rogers with Jax Loleit; Emma Pittman with Peyton Campbell (12); and Karis Edelstein with Sawyer Aichele and Daisy Goff with Nathan Phillips. Goff and Stokes were later crowned homecoming queen and king. – Photos by Chris Peters
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