Bearcats hold back late-charging Knights

By Chris Koenig, ckoenig
Published:  Monday, October 15, 2007 (1 year, 2 months ago)
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SPENCERVILLE — Spencerville defeated an upset-minded Crestview squad Friday night, holding on for a 34-26 Northwest Conference grid victory in front of a packed house as Memorial Field in Spencerville celebrated its 60th year of existence.
During halftime, the veterans of the area were honored individually and given a 21-gun salute.
“Great thing that they put on for our great veterans; really showed a lot of class,” said Bearcat skipper Bruce McConnell. “We played well in the first half but unfortunately the second half was a different story.”
He was referring to the 27-6 lead Spencerville took into halftime, only to see Crestview rally.
Scoring started in the first quarter on the first series: after two first downs, Spencerville was forced to punt but a questionable roughing-the-kicker call gave them new life. Four plays later, Adam Wolfe (8-of-12 passing, 130 yards) found Tyler Keysor on a post pattern for a 30-yard score. Alex Stanfield added the PAT at 8:07 to put the home team up 7-0.
The score capped off an 11-play, 75-yard drive.
On Crestview’s possession, Drew Ring blocked the punt, Scott Barnes pounced on it at the Knights’ 44 and Spencerville was back in business. Just a play later, Ben Hatfield (15 rushes, 76 yards; 4 grabs, 103 yards) took a counter handoff from Wolfe 37 yards behind great blocking by Jake Nye and Tyler Obringer for the score. Stanfield’s kick at 3:31 in the first made it 14-0, Bearcats.  a 14-0 Bearcat lead.
Crestview got the ball to start the second and started a nice drive. Briggs Orsbon (18-of-27 passing, 283 yards; 23 rushes, 115 yards) hit classmate Michael Biro for a 43-yard hookup. On the next play at the Bearcat 36, Orsbon hit Matt Allison (3 grabs, 72 yards) in the left corner for the score. Bryce Richey missed the kick at 5:16, leaving the score 14-6.
Wolfe answered with a 27-yard TD toss to Hatfield but the extra point was errant, with the Bearcats up 20-6 with 9:49 showing in the half.
Late in the half, Crestview was forced to punt. The 6-4 Ring again blocked it and recovered at the visitor 33. On the ensuing play, McConnell went to his bag of tricks. Wolfe threw what appeared to be a screen to Brandon Suever, only Suever then chucked it into the end zone to Hatfield with 41 ticks to go. Matt Wirth’s conversion was good for a 27-6 halftime spread.
The Knights stormed put of the locker room. On the fifth play of their first drive, Orsbon dropped back and found Ian Clay (5 grabs, 98 yards) in the right flat. Clay broke two tackles and found the end zone 49 yards later. Richey drilled the PAT at 10:03 in the second half for a 27-13 deficit.
Crestview’s special teams got a break on a Spencerville punt, with Biro recovering a fumbled snap at the host 16 and the momentum swung. Six plays later at the 1, Orsbon called his own number but was stripped in the end zone by Gideon Stocklin and recovered by Nye.
Spencerville drained the rest of the third period, using another  questionable call on Crestview (15-yard facemask) to go the distance. To start the fourth, Wolfe called his own number from the 1 for the score. Wirth made it 34-13 with 11:59 left.
Crestview came storming back as Orsbon hit Allison on a post route for the score from 36 yards out. The PAT went wide right, making it 34-19 with 10:38 left.
Crestview got the pigskin back as Orsbon pounced on it at the Bearcat 13. On 4th-and-16 from the 19, Orsbon dropped back, scrambled out of the pocket and threw it up. Clay came down with it in the middle of the end zone. Richey’s PAT at 3:46 made it 34-26, Spencerville.
Crestview’s ‘D’ held and the visitors got the ball back on their 42. In four plays, the Knights had reached the Spencerville 7. Two runs by Orsbon and an incomplete pass set up a 4th-and-goal from the 2. Orsbon took the shotgun snap over left tackle but was stopped just shy of the goal line by Stocklin and Jesse Brenneman, sealing the victory.
“For the second week in a row, our defense makes the big stop but there is no excuse for letting them back into the game at all in the second half;  we have to start finishing teams better,” McConnell added.
Spencerville improves to 4-4; Crestview falls to 4-4.

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