SKIP BAUGHMAN STADIUM - In a game filled with fireworks, it was a sudden outbreak of defense that decided things.
St. Marys and Bath traded punches all night, before the Riders were able to come up with a big defensive stop late in the game to ice a 29-26 Homecoming victory.
“It was a whale of a high school football game,” St. Marys coach Doug Frye said. “In the end, it was the defense that won it for us tonight.”
The lead changed hands five times in the game, as both teams put on an impressive display of ball control offense. But it appeared the Roughriders had the upper hand when they blocked a 28-yard field goal attempt with 6:15 left to play in the game.
The only thing that had stopped the Roughriders up to that point was a first quarter fumble. St. Marys had not punted all night. But when they needed it the most, the Wildcats defense came up with a three-and-out, forcing the Riders to punt with 4:06 left to play.
The Wildcats took over on their own 47 and did what they had been accomplishing all night - come up the key play. On fourth down and seven from the 50 Bath quarterback Curtis Truesdale threaded a bullet to Ryan Reindel in traffic for a gain of 27.
Three plays later, the Cats found themselves in another fourth down situation. This time on fourth-and-12, Truesdale tried to set up a screen pass, but the Rider rush buried him at midfield. Following a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, St. Marys quarterback Tyler Sampson was able to take a knee twice to push the Riders to 7-1 on the season.
“It was just a tough game to lose,” Bath Coach Jim Ehresman said. “Both teams executed very well… We had a couple chances late, but couldn’t get it done.”
Fireworks, sponsored by several local businesses, got started with the playing of the Star Spangled Banner and continued throughout the game, on the field and in the air.
The first quarter belonged to Bath. The Wildcats took the opening kick and put together a very impressive 15-play drive, mixing the pass and run well. Evan DeVoe went the final three yards for a 6-0 lead. Brian Wolf’s extra point sailed wide, setting up an interesting PAT strategy for the rest of the night.
The Riders had the ball for just four plays, before Stephen Kill’s fumble was recovered by Bath near midfield. Bath marched 52 yards in nine plays, as Truesdale connected on a 10-yard throwback pass to Wolf. The Cats tried to go for two, but the pass was broken up.
With 11:10 left in the half, the Riders found themselves down 12-0, having run just four plays with a time of possession of two minutes.
“The kids and coaches did not panic when we were down 12-0 early in the game,” Frye said. “This game will help us down the road… These types of wins are great character builders.”
St. Marys responded in fine fashion with a punishing 11-play, 71-yard drive. A 16-yard gain by Kill, followed by a 17-yard completion from Sampson to Matt Schlater got the Riders in position. Sampson sneaked in from the one yard, and Kill’s PAT slashed Bath’s lead to 12-7 with 5:40 left in the half.
A 10-yard sack and a costly procedure penalty cost the Wildcats on their next possession, forcing their only punt of the game.
St. Marys took the lead on a 37-yard run by Kill, as he broke into the secondary when it appeared the Bath defense was trying to get set. Kill ran over one tackler and coasted the rest of the way.
Frye decided to go for two, which would give the Riders a field goal advantage, and Homan bulled in from three yards out for a 15-12 lead with 1:14 left in the half .
But Bath got more than a field goal. Returning the kick to midfield, followed by a pass interference penalty, quickly got the Wildcats in scoring position. Truesdale lofted a pass to Corey Shaffer, who made a great diving catch in the back of the end zone.
St. Marys answered on its first possession of the second half. A 25-yard pass from Sampson to Kill got the Riders inside the 10. Three plays later, Kill scored and booted an extra point for a 22-19 St. Marys lead.
Now it was Bath’s turn. The Wildcats pieced together a 12-play scoring drive, aided by a roughing-the-passer penalty on third and 12 that kept the drive alive. DeVoe, who came into the game as one of the league’s top rushers, scored on a 24-yard draw play. The extra point gave Bath a 26-22 lead.
The Riders answered quickly, with a Dustin Alexander kick return to the Bath 49. It took just six plays, as Homan scored on an 11-yard swep with what turned out to be the winning score with 11:34 left to play.
The Riders finished with 274 yards of offense, including 51 yards passing. Kill led the way in the ground with 117 yards on 14 carries. Homan added 92 yards on 21 carries.
St. Marys showed some different looks in the backfield as Charles Owens and Brandt Huttis swapped positions.
“We’ll see many different running back sets the rest of the season,” Frye said. “After Ty Dingledine went down, we feel we can use the running backs interchangeably.”
Frye was also very pleased with the offensive line, which controlled the line of scrimmage.
“I want to compliment the play of the offensive line,” he siad. “The scouts had predicted that the key to the game would be the play of the offensive line. Our line, including five new starters this year, controlled the line of scrimmage tonight.
“Offensive line coaches Scott Schulte and Dennis Vossler did a great job getting ready for this game, and deserving special mention are linemen; Dan Rammel, Matt Schlater, Dan Smith, Matt Klosterman, Jeff Makley, Tim Christopher, Todd Klosterman and center John Pfeffenberger.”
The win kept St. Marys tied with Defiance for second place in the WBL at 6-1. The Riders also improved their position in the Division III, Region 10 computer Rankings, as Bath came into the game ranked eight in the Region and St. Marys fifth.
St. Marys will travel to the west side of Lake St. Marys next Friday to take on the Celina Bulldogs, before returning home for a key regular season finale against Defiance.
