Saturday, October 25, 2008
MORTONS GAP — Presented with an opportunity to secure the school’s first-ever football district championship, Hopkins County Central jumped out to a 21-7 lead at halftime, but the Storm could not repeat the same level of success in the second half, ultimately losing 28-21 to Calloway County on Friday night.
With a win, Central could have taken the district outright, but three second-half turnovers wiped out an impressive first-half performance by the Storm, dropping the team to a likely three-seed in the district playoffs.
The turnover came with three minutes left in the ballgame and ultimately proved to be the difference in the contest when the Lakers turned the opportunity into the game-winning score.
The Storm turned to back-up quarterback Jesse Almon in the fourth quarter when first-stringer Jake Powell left the game with an injured leg following a punt return.
After a pair of mishandled snaps out of the shotgun formation, Almon pitched to running back Troydale Rorer on third down deep in Central’s own territory. Rorer took the ball, made a few steps and held the ball up to throw.
Rorer’s pass, intended for Kevin Couch, fell into the hands of Laker Austin Hargrove at midfield and Calloway began its march.
Four plays later, Laker running back Tyrrell Willis ran untouched off the right side of the line for a 5-yard touchdown with :58 seconds left in the game.
Quarterback Luke Crawley entered for Central’s final offensive series and led the Storm to midfield as time winded down, but another Hargrove interception sealed Central’s fate.
Leading 21-7 to begin the third quarter, Central appeared to continue its offensive success by taking the second half’s first drive down to the Calloway 14-yard line.
A costly 15-yard penalty, and later an interception, erased the scoring opportunity, however. Powell’s pass for Kelsey Bowman was intercepted by George Garner, who returned the ball66 yards to the Central 13-yard line.
Facing fourth-and-six from the 9-yard line, Calloway opted to go for it and Laker quarterback Casey Brockman found a wide-open Chris Dobbins for six points and with an extra-point made the score 21-14 Central
Following a Storm three-and-out, the Lakers tied the game when Brockman found Garner on a 35-yard pass play.
On a later Calloway possession, as the game clock ticked under 10 minutes to play, the Lakers punted away to Powell, who took the kick about 20 yards, twisting and shaking past a number of Lakers.
When Powell finally hit the ground, he hit it hard, injuring his leg and missed the rest of the game.
Almon entered to guide the offense and on his first play, a high snap sailed over his head and Calloway recovered.
The play turned out to be an omen of sorts as Central continued to struggle with turnovers in the game’s final minutes.
Big plays defined the first half, however, for the Storm.
After falling behind 7-0, Central scored 21 unanswered points in the first half.
The Lakers scored on their second possession of the game to get the scoring started on an 82-yard drive, capped by three straight rushes from Willis, who took the ball the final 18 yards.
It did not take long for Central to respond with their own score, equalizing the game just a minute later.
Powell accounted for every yard of the two-play scoring drive. Following a seven-yard rush on first down, the senior broke loose for 66 yards to paydirt.
Keying the touchdown was a wonderful block on the left sideline near the 15-yard line by wide receiver Keith Couch. With Powell moving to the outside, a Laker defender caught up, but Powell cut back inside and Couch was there to stonewall the Calloway player.
Central continued its running momentum on its next possession, another two-play scoring effort.
This time, Rorer ran right up the gut past the second line of defense and sprinted untouched for a 46-yard touchdown. A high snap on the extra-point attempt resulted in a missed kick, but the Storm led 13-7 jut inside the second quarter.
The Storm defense maintained its dominance the rest of the quarter, but the Lakers threatened to score as the first half neared a close.
On first-and-10 from the Calloway 48-yard line, Brockman dropped back to pass with two minutes left in the quarter. Brockman aired a pass down the field, but it was over the middle and Central defensive back Nikee Caldwell stepped in front of the intended receiver for the interception.
Caldwell returned the pick 35 yards to put the Storm in prime position to add a few more points to their lead before the break.
Five plays later, on third-and-13 from the 18-yard line, Powell fired a strike to Bowman, who caught the ball near the 2-yard line, broke a tackle and twisted into the endzone with 43 seconds left in the half.
Then, Rorer recouped the single tally missed on the earlier extra-point opportunity, scoring a two-point conversion on a sweep right play.
With the conversion, Central led 21-7 and the score stuck until halftime.
1st quarter
CC: 1:59, Tyrrell Willis 3-yard rush, Garrett Schwettman XP – Calloway 7-0
2nd quarter
HCC: :57, Jake Powell 66-yard rush, Wesley Ipock XP – 7-7
2nd quarter
HCC: 11:03, Troydale Rorer 46-yard rush, XP failed – Central 13-7
HCC: :43, Kelsey Bowman 18-yard reception from Powell, two-point conversion rush Rorer – 21-7
3rd quarter
CC: 4:39, Chris Dobbins 9-yard reception from Casey Brockman, Schwettman XP – 21-14
CC: 1:26, George Garner 35-yard reception from Brockman, Schwettman XP – 21-21
4th quarter
CC: 0:58, Willis 5-yard rush, Schwettman XP – Calloway 28-21
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