By Krista Confair/Special to the Sun-Gazette During Friday’s game, Hughesville’s Connor Knight ran through Warrior Run’s Sam Hall. The Spartans won in a double overtime thriller.
Hughesville (4-4) and Warrior Run (5-3) meet Friday night at Spartan Stadium, with both teams looking to shake off demoralizing losses and get back on track. The result was one of the greatest thrillers of all time, as neither team was able to push beyond their limits.
Despite James Keefer’s late-regulation heroics and a Warrior run offense that saw the Defenders drive 62 yards for a touchdown and two-point conversion with 33 seconds left, Hughesville’s defense was paramount. I recovered from this situation.
After Hughesville’s Keegan Smith made a 21-yard field goal to start the second overtime, Warrior Run came close to the goal line to score the fourth and score from the 1st. He took advantage of the chance to win and scored the goal. For that.
But just like he did a few weeks ago against Montgomery, Hughesville middle linebacker Brenden Fisher came on for his team with the game on the line, hitting Eli Butler 1 yard from pay dirt. The Spartans cruised to a 32-29 victory over the Warriors. run.
“Warrior Run is a great team and we knew we needed a big play at the end. That’s how it goes. I had flashbacks to Montgomery. We did the same thing against Montgomery.” Fisher said in the film: “The defense was great all night.”
“This is everything to us. We’ve had a tough few weeks.” He added that the victory gave the team even more confidence.
Although they allowed a late touchdown to force overtime, the Spartan defense stepped up multiple times throughout the night. Through the first five drives of the Warrior run, the Spartans took the No. 6 pick and forced a 3-and-out and one 4-and-out.
There were successes on all fronts.
Linebackers Brenden Fisher and Jeb Abarnatha were all over the field against the run, recording numerous tackles for loss and keeping the Warrior Run’s thriving rushing attack at bay. And this line made things difficult for Kiefer, recording three sacks and constantly forcing him out of the pocket with pressure from every sign.
Every time that pressure led to mistakes, Hughesville was able to capitalize.
Leading 7-0 midway through the second quarter, defensive back Connor Knight jumped an errant pass for an interception and ran down the sideline and past a tackler on his way to a 40-yard score. .
“I saw on film that they take a lot of short routes and make a lot of sixes to the sideline, so I was ready for that.” said Knight during the play. “I was there watching the QB loft up. It was amazing. It felt great to turn around and see all (teammates) there and win 14-0. .”
Warrior Run is back. Sam Hall (3 receptions, 84 yards) caught two crucial long bombs, set up Colby LeBaron’s goal-line score with a 42-yard shot and a 40-yard touchdown to tie the game.
But late in the third inning, with the Defenders trailing 17-14, Fisher and Jerry Burton stalled by sacking Kiefer, and the ensuing long snap of the Warrior run went over the head of punter Stone Allison and was hit by safety. It ended in
“Our defense is known for being good.” Fisher said. “We proved that tonight.”
“Before, we didn’t trust the person next to us or the person behind us. This time we trusted each other and worked together.” Hughesville head football coach Howard Rainey said this when talking about the defensive success. “We’ve been telling them all year long that they can compete with any team. Tonight, the guys were focused and believed it.”
Warrior Run was successful in stopping passes, holding quarterback Blake Davis to nine passing yards and Connor Knight to two receptions for 11 yards. But Davis (nine rushes, 63 yards) did everything he could to impact the game on the ground, and Knight found another way to impact through the air.
With the score still stalled at 0-0 and each offense stalling early, Hughesville was expected to punt on its third failed drive. But instead, Knight made a direct fake and sent the ball to Chase Schrouder in the right spot (four touches, 49 yards), and Schrouder used his speed to get Hughesville into the red zone. Two plays later, Stutzman punched it in to get the Spartans on the board.
“I was very nervous getting the play call.” Knight said his most recent experience playing quarterback was in middle school. “I thought I was going to get sacked in a hurry, but I noticed a little pocket and Chase was open downfield.”
“We practice it every week.” Laney said. “We hadn’t used it yet, so we thought, ‘Well, we’re on our side of the field.’ We might try it and give ourselves some momentum.” No.”
With the Defenders leading 29-22, Davis hit the left pylon of Warrior Run after running back Luke Stutzman (12 rushes, 43 yards, TD) got stuck on the first offensive play of overtime. He found an opening and ran from there for a 15-yard score. . Stutzman and Jeb Abernatha (16 rushes, 58 yards) also had runs of 39 and 15 yards, respectively, helping set up Keegan Smith’s (3-for-3) field goal.
“I don’t think a lot of teams think we can run, but if we have to run, we can. They double-teamed our receivers and tried to cover us well, so we didn’t pass as much against them. We knew we weren’t going to be able to do it, so we just thought, “We’re just going to run as hard as we can.” Rainey said of the rushing attack. “I think (Jeb) is getting better every game.”
In the Warrior run, Kiefer (12-of-18, 132 yards) stepped up to lead the game, going 5-of-7 for 36 yards before a quick out by Eli Butler put the Defenders on the line. We got within 2 points. Cohen Zeckman fell midway through the ensuing two-point conversion attempt, but got back up just in the nick of time to make the game-tying catch and extend the game.
It turned out to be in vain, but it’s hard to say that the Defenders were not ready for the moment. The team has bounced back from deficits of 14-0 and 22-14, but this battle could ultimately be important for the team as they aim to make the playoffs.
The loss drops the Warrior Run to 5-3 on the season, but they will look to bounce back next Friday against Central Columbia. For Hughesville, despite the losing streak, their batting average is back to .500 and they will look to build on their momentum next Friday against Wyalusing.
“We got the win we needed. We beat a great team.” Laney said. “So I think they’re going to start believing. I hope these next two games we show them what we’re really capable of.”
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