MDHigh.com - Week 10 Weekend Wrap-up (Part I)

November 2, 2009

Dave Lomonico
MDHigh.com Publisher

Shockers, upsets, last-minute victories, and overtime thrillers were in-vogue in Week 10. With playoffs spots on the line, some teams stepped up and showed they deserved a postseason berth. Others fizzled out under the immense pressure. Read on for the best of last week's action.

Tuscarora 27, Urbana 24

What's more surprising, the fact that Tuscarora won or the fact that Urbana's defense allowed 27 points? Both were unforeseen. Tuscarora (6-3) was coming off back-to-back ugly losses and its postseason hopes looked dim. Urbana (8-1), meanwhile, had been steamrolling foes; the defense had not given up more than a touchdown in any of the last five games.

Obviously neither team played to expectations on Friday night. The Hawks actually held a 24-21 lead late in the fourth quarter. But with 4:12 left, Tuscarora running back Matt Scott made several Urbana defenders miss and scored on a 25-yard run, giving his team a 27-24 lead (missed point-after). Urbana responded and drove down to Tuscarora's 31-yard line. But the game-tying field goal didn't make the uprights and Tuscarora escaped with the win.

This game was the epitome of "punch and counterpunch." Urbana jumped out to a 7-0 lead on a Wes Garey touchdown run, but Tuscarora answered with two-straight scores. First, quarterback Josh Marshall hit receiver Bobby Stup for a 21-yard touchdown. Then Quille Giles returned a punt for another score. Urbana, however, took the lead back at halftime thanks to a Jesse Heon touchdown pass and a short field goal.

But on the opening drive of the second half Marshall led his team on another scoring drive, making it 21-17 in favor of Tuscarora. The Hawks clawed back in front when backup quarterback Mike Spahr hit receiver Aaron Bing on a fourth-and-7 for a 14-yard touchdown pass.

But Tuscarora then went on the game-winning touchdown in the fourth quarter. They now have a chance to clinch the fourth and final playoff spot in their region.

Damascus 14, Clarksburg 13 OT

Thanks to Brian Lucas' fourth-down stop in overtime, Damascus is heading to their 12th straight postseason. With the No. 22 Hornets (7-2) leading Clarksburg (6-3) 14-13 in overtime, Clarksburg attempted a game-winning two-point conversion. Quarterback Andrew Veith tried to sneak through the middle, but Lucas read the play and dropped Veith short of the goal line.

Clarksburg jumped out to a 7-0 lead when Veith hit Ace Clark Jr. on a fourth-down touchdown pass in the second quarter. Damascus got on the board immediately after halftime when Lucas capped off a long drive with a 6-yard touchdown run. With both defenses playing well, neither team scored for the remainder of regulation.

In overtime, Damascus quarterback Connor Frazier completed a play-action pass to Nick Pugh for a touchdown. Clarksburg came right back with a touchdown on a Veith pass to Sam Collins. But instead of tying the game with an extra point, Clarksburg elected to go for the win. It turned out to be the wrong decision.

Walt Whitman 16, Seneca Valley 13 2 OT

Walt Whitman's playoff hopes rested on the legs of kicker Danny Lee. In double overtime, with the score tied at 13, Lee nailed a 26-yard field goal to give his team a 16-13 victory over Seneca Valley (5-4). If Whitman (7-2) can beat Churchill next week, they will get one of the two remaining playoff spots in the 4A West Region. Seneca Valley, meanwhile, needs to beat Watkins Mill then hope Clarksburg loses next week in order to sneak into the 3A West playoffs.

With the score tied at 7 at the end of regulation, Whitman got first possession in overtime. They scored a touchdown on a 3-yard run by Kevin Cecala, but the two-point conversion failed. Seneca Valley matched the touchdown when backup quarterback Tanner Valley hit Bryan Ikossie for a 5-yard score. The Screaming Eagles had a chance to win with just an extra point, but the kick sailed wide.

In the second overtime, Seneca Valley had the ball first. They drove to the 1, but running back Bernard Wolley was stuffed on fourth down. Whitman took over needing just a field goal to win. Lee delivered.

Catoctin 28, Middletown 21

Catoctin needed a late 14-point rally to remain undefeated. With 2:37 left on the clock, the Cougars (9-0) trailed Middletown (5-4) 28-21. Catoctin quarterback Dylan May, however, quickly directed the game-tying score. First, he connected with receiver Austin Carter for 35 yards. Then he hit Carter again for 55 more, and this time the receiver crossed the goal line, making the score 28-27 at the 2:12 mark. But Catoctin's two-point conversion failed and they still trailed by one.

At this point, it looked like Middletown would pull off the upset. But Catoctin recovered an onside kick at the Middletown 49. That's when May led a two-minute drill to win it. He took the team down to the 27 before converting a fourth-and-4 with a 13-yard pass to Landon Routzahn. A roughing-the-passer penalty put the ball on Middletown's 14. May then hit Zachary Krietz for 13 more yards, making it second-and-goal from the 1. The Catoctin quarterback then faked a handoff and went up top to Nick Nowaczyk for the game-winning touchdown.

That was actually Catoctin's second big rally of the game. They fell behind 21-0 in the first half after Middletown's Sam Michaels rushed for two touchdowns and quarterback Sam Glushakow completed a touchdown pass to Pat Ryan (who later added a second touchdown catch in the third quarter). But Catoctin started the comeback with a 61-yard touchdown run from Routzahn. Paul Barbour followed up with a 1-yard plunge and a 26-yard touchdown catch right before halftime, tying the game at 21.

Weekend Wrap-up Part II
Weekend Wrap-up Part III

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