Captains fight off comeback for overtime win

Adam Baker/ The Captain's Log

There were only 14 seconds left in regulation and their 20-point lead had been erased. All the players and coaches of the Christopher Newport University football team could do was wish and pray that their opponent’s kicker missed the extra point to help the Captains avoid a total collapse.  As luck would have it, that is exactly what happened.

The Captains had dominated for 45 minutes, but the Shenandoah Hornets kicked their offense into gear and tied the game at 20-20 with only moments remaining. After the Hornets missed the extra point the game went into overtime, where both teams got the chance to score from the 25-yard line. The Captains got the ball first and drove to the Shenandoah 3-yard line, where sophomore wide receiver Kentel Noel caught a pass that had been tipped off a defender’s hand for a touchdown. The Captains then held the Hornets to four straight incompletions to earn the win.

From the start of the game the Captains showed a balanced offensive attack, with a mix of passes by sophomore quarterback Lyndon Garner and rushes by sophomore running back Markeese Stovall. Although the Captains were effective at moving the ball in the first half, the only scoring was by sophomore kicker Stephen Denuel. His two field goals made the score 6-0 at the half, and that would remain the score until the Captains took over at their own 30-yard line in the third quarter. Stovall took the handoff on the first play for 25 yards and CNU continued to push the ball until they reached the Shenandoah 14-yard line.

Garner then tried to loft the ball over the defense but it was tipped and looked to be falling to the ground. Junior tight end Chris Coiner then stretched out and snatched the ball for a one-handed touchdown catch as he fell to the field.

The Captains then started the fourth quarter with a 64-yard drive, capped off with a 20-yard bruising run by Stovall. Stovall broke multiple tackles and dragged a runner into the end zone to put the Captains up 20-0.

“The coaches had us ready, we went in to halftime and made a few adjustments,” said Stovall. “Our lineman wanted it a little bit more tonight, so I commend them on that.”

Shenandoah then started to mount their comeback behind the passing duo of senior quarterback Daniel Wright and Rico Wallace, their senior wide receiver. Wallace came into the game two touchdowns shy of the Shenandoah single season record for touchdowns.

“They got a quarterback that can throw it up there, a good offensive line that can protect, and Wallace is a hell of a football player,” commented CNU head coach Matt Kelchner. “You can toss it up and the kid is going to make a play.”

On fourth and goal, Wright threw up a fade to Wallace, who hauled it in to make the score 20-7. Their next drive Wallace caught a slant to give him the record, and closed the gap to 20-14.

The Captains then got the ball and tried to put the game away, but Hornet sophomore cornerback Brandon Martin jumped the comeback route and intercepted the pass from Garner. He looked to be taking the interception all the way for a touchdown, but Garner dragged him down after a return of 34 yards, at the CNU 20-yard line.

With only seconds on the clock, Shenandoah ran the option to the left, where the quarterback had the option to pitch it to his running back or keep it himself. Wright kept the ball and dove into the end zone to tie the game 20-20.

“I don’t think anyone would think that in eight minutes we could score 20 points,” said Paul Barnes.

With the game seeming lost, the Captains needed a miracle to keep the game going and they got it, as Hornet kicker Andrew Lloyd missed the extra point wide left.

Kelchner states that “I said a lot of prayers during that last timeout.”

With the game tied, CNU headed to overtime for the second time this season. The first overtime game they had lost to Stevenson in double overtime. They would not need that long this time to get the win.

Starting from the 25-yard line CNU moved the ball to the 10-yard line, where Garner rolled out and threw a pass to the middle of the end zone, trying to find sophomore receive Kentel Noel. Just like before, a defender tipped the pass, but Noel caught the deflected pass for the go-ahead goal.

The Captains defense then had to keep the ball out of the end zone to win and they did just that, as Wright threw four straight incomplete passes to end the game.

While the Captains record is only 3-2, they are 2-0 in the USA South conference, which has them tied for first place with Ferrum. Shenandoah falls to 1-1 in the conference with the loss. CNU travels to Averett for their next game, as they hope to stay atop the USA South standings.

Posted by Darryl Fetz on Oct 12 2011. Filed under Featured, Football, Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.