|
Lions beat Red Hill in overtime thriller
By: Kelly Grooms
The Marshall Lions played host to the highly rated Red Hill Salukis last Friday night, October 19th, in a clash of 7-1 teams.
It was Senior Night for Marshall and the Lions refused to lose, rallying to win a fantastic ball game 36-35 in nail biting
fashion.
It was all Red Hill in the 1st quarter as the Salukis hit pay dirt twice to take command early. The Salukis took the opening
kickoff and marched 62 yards for the games opening score, thanks to a couple of big plays.
The first one came on 3rd down and 10 from the Marshall 47 yard line. That's when Salukis senior quarterback Chris Wampler
hooked up with 6'3" senior receiver Bradley Padgett for a 38-yard gain. With 1st and goal from the Marshall 9 yard line,
the Lions looked as if they were going to keep the Salukis out of the end zone. After a short gain on first down, back-to-back
sacks by junior line-backer Jake Hoalt and sophomore defensive end Taylor Duncan put the Salukis in a 4th and goal situation
from the Lions' 25 yard line. However, Wampler found Bradley for a 25-yard touchdown pass. The Salukis missed the extra point
but led 6-0.
On the following kickoff, Taylor Duncan had a nice return for the Lions, taking the ball down to the Red Hill 39 yard
line. However, Marshall fumbled the ball on their first play from scrimmage. Red Hill recovered, taking over on their own
39 yard line.
The Salukis, known for their option attack and quick backfield, struck immediately as their speedy senior running back
Nick Straka took the pitch from Chris Wampler and blazed 41 yards for a big gain. Five plays later, Wampler scored on a 7-yard
touchdown run. Wampler also ran in the 2-point conversion to put the Salukis up 14-0 with 3:09 left to play in the 1st quarter.
The Lions fumbled the ball away again on their next possession but this time the Marshall defense held tough, forcing
the Salukis to punt. The Lions took over on their own 31 yard line early in the 2nd quarter.
Senior running back/receiver Kyle Burnam opened the drive with a 4-yard rush. Then senior quarterback Travis Johnson
hooked up with fellow senior receiver Alan Wolter for a pair of big gains - 14 and 42 yards. Two plays later, Travis Johnson
threw a 7-yard scoring strike to Taylor Duncan. Freshman kicker Luke Nelson tacked on the extra point and Marshall was back
in it 14-7.
The Lions caught a break on Red Hill's next possession as Nick Straka burst up the middle for a 39-yard gain. However,
the Marshall defenders stripped the ball from Straka and junior linebacker Ryan Shumaker pounced on the loose football to
thwart the Salukis' momentum.
Each team traded possessions from there but the Lions would strike again just before the half. Taking over on their own
32 yard line with 2:27 left in the 2nd quarter, the Lions quickly went to work. Following a 4-yard run to start the drive,
Travis Johnson found Alan Wolter for a 13-yard pass play. Travis Johnson then hooked up with junior receiver Kaleb Johnson
for 14 yards. A couple of plays later, Travis Johnson connected with senior receiver Tyler Shotts for a 21-yard reception.
Two plays later, Johnson and Duncan hooked up for another score, this time from 11 yards out with 0:27 left on the clock.
Luke Nelson's extra point tied the game 14-14 as the teams headed into halftime.
The Lions continued to roll as the 2nd half got underway. Marshall received the ball first to open the 3rd quarter and
they proceeded to put together an impressive scoring drive. Travis Johnson continued carving up the Salukis' secondary by
hooking up with Alan Wolter for a 19-yard gain to get things started. Johnson had completions to Kyle Burnam, Tyler Shotts,
and Alan Wolter to get deep into Red Hill territory. Travis Johnson eventually topped off the drive with a 1-yard touchdown
run. Luke Nelson kicked the extra point to give the Lions a 21-14 lead, their first of the night.
The Salukis didn't roll over as they responded with an impressive 15-play, 65-yard scoring drive. Once again during the
drive with their backs against the wall on 4th down, the Salukis came up with a big play. On 4th down and goal from the Marshall
16 yard line, Chris Wampler connected with senior Josh Young for a 16-yard touchdown pass. Red Hill converted the 2-point
play on a tipped pass to regain the lead 22-21 with 2:39 left to play in the 3rd quarter.
The Salukis kept the momentum on their side by picking off a Travis Johnson pass on the opening play of the ensuing drive.
Red Hill took over on the Marshall 30 yard line in excellent shape to add to their lead.
However, the Lions defense had other ideas as they held the Salukis on four straight plays to regain possession. On 3rd
and 4th down, Chris Wampler couldn't escape the grasp of Marshall's senior defensive end Tyler Howard.
Both teams' offenses cooled down until midway through the 4th quarter, and then the yards came in bunches.
Red Hill put together a monster drive, piling up 72-yards on 14 plays. On a key 3rd down and 10 play, it looked as if
the Lions were going to hold off the Salukis but a pass interference call gave Red Hill a 1st down near midfield. Later from
the Marshall 41 yard line, Red Hill's Nick Straka exploded for a gain of 15 yards. On the next play, Straka streaked into
the end zone from 26 yards out. The Salukis tacked on the extra point to extend their lead to 29-21.
Things would look bleak for most teams but with the Lions' air attack, no lead is safe. After the following kickoff, Marshall
took over on their own 33 yard line with 1:14 left in the game. That's plenty of time for an experienced quarterback behind
a solid offensive line.
After a pair of incomplete passes to open the drive, Travis Johnson hit Alan Wolter for a 14-yard gain. The Lions then
had three consecutive incompletions and quickly faced 4th down and 10. Staring adversity in the face, the Lions responded
as Travis Johnson found Taylor Duncan for a 19-yard gain and an all-important first down. On the next play, Travis Johnson
hooked up with Kaleb Johnson, who broke some tackles for a 22-yard gain. With the ball on the Red Hill 12 yard line, Johnson
threw a strike to Tyler Shotts, who hauled it in for a 12-yard touchdown play. Still trailing by two points with 0:27 left
to play, the Lions had to go for two. On the 2-point conversion, Red Hill jumped offsides, inching the Lions closer. Travis
Johnson then took the snap and barreled into the end zone to convert the 2-point play, knotting the game 29-29.
With Red Hill's team speed, no one could relax until the final seconds ran off the clock. Marshall had great coverage
on the following kickoff, pinning the Salukis back on their own 10 yard line with 0:24 left in the game. Red Hill made things
interesting as Nick Straka scampered for a 21-yard gain. Chris Wampler then ran for an 11-yard pick up, taking the ball out
to the Salukis 42 yard line. With 0:06 left in the game, Wampler hit Bradley Padgett for a 27-yard pass play but well short
of the end zone. Next up ... overtime.
In high school overtime, each team gets the ball on the 10 yard line with four downs to score. The Lions got the ball
first and wasted no time as Travis Johnson raced in for a 10-yard touchdown run on the first play. Luke Nelson added the extra
point to put the Lions up 36-29. Now it was Red Hill's turn.
Red Hill would score on their second play from scrimmage. Chris Wampler scored on an 8-yard touchdown scamper. Instead
of going for the tie by kicking the extra point, Red Hill's long time coach Bill Evans rolled the dice and decided to go for
two. An extremely exciting game came down to one final play. Coach Bill Evans decided on a play pass. Chris Wampler rolled
to his right and he quickly had Marshall's Taylor Duncan in his face. Wampler, with Duncan draped all over him, tossed it
high toward the end zone in the direction of his 6'3" receiver Bradley Padgett. However, the Lions were ready and Alan
Wolter along with a host of defensive backs knocked the ball down to seal the dramatic win.
Travis Johnson completed 21 out of 39 passes for 291 yards and 3 touchdowns. Johnson also rushed 14 times for 53 yards
and 2 touchdowns. On the season, the Marshall quarterback has torched opposing defenses for 2,151 yards, 29 touchdown passes
with only 5 interceptions.
Alan Wolter led a busy receiving corps with 8 receptions for 126 yards. Tyler Shotts had 4 catches for 54 yards and a
touchdown while Taylor Duncan caught 4 passes for 41 yards and 2 touchdowns. Kaleb Johnson snared 3 passes for 56 yards while
Kyle Burnam had a pair of catches for 14 yards.
Nick Straka led the Salukis attack with 27 carries for 233 yards and a touchdown. Chris Wampler was 8 out of 13 passing
for 130 yards and 2 touchdowns. Bradley Padgett led the receivers with 4 catches for 88 yards and a touchdown. The Salukis
finish the regular season with a 7-2 record and third place in the LIC.
The Lions (8-1) now winners of 8 in a row, head into the class 3A IHSA playoffs. Marshall will host the opening game
when they take on Pittsfield (Pittsfield-Griggs-ville-Perry Coop), who finished the regular season with a 6-3 mark.
First Quarter:
Red Hill: Padgett 25-yard pass from Wampler (kick failed), 6:57. Red Hill: Wampler 7-yard run (Wampler 2-pt run), 3:09
Second Quarter:
Marshall: Duncan 7-yard pass from T. Johnson (Nelson kick), 9:23. Marshall: Duncan 11-yard pass from T. Johnson (Nelson
kick), 0:27
Third Quarter:
Marshall: T. Johnson 1-yard run (Nelson kick), 8:43. Red Hill: Young 16-yard pass from Wampler (Clevy 2-pt reception),
2:39
Fourth Quarter:
Red Hill: Straka 26-yard run (Bauer kick), 1:21. Marshall: Shotts 12-yard pass from T. Johnson (T. Johnson 2-pt run),
0:27
Overtime
Marshall: T. Johnson 10-yard run (Nelson kick).
Red Hill: Wampler 8-yard run (pass failed).
|
