In a battle of teams on the
opposite ends of the preseason rankings, the
Saxons proved to be the better team, and the
luckier one.
In the Ferris Saxons (preseason
ranked 8th in the GSL) latest game against the
East Valley Knights (ranked 3rd, the Knights
looked like the better team as they got off to
an early start and a 10-0 lead. The Saxons
started off the first half about the same
way they started out their game against North
Central. They looked very good on defense
holding the Knights to 10 points when they had
the ball in Saxon territory on almost every
drive. They also blocked a field goal. The
offense on the other hand, stalled and couldn't
put the ball in the end zone.
Then once again, halftime came
and the story of the game changed.
The Saxons, who have now
outscored opponents 45-7 in the second half
including overtimes, came out firing. They
scored on the first drive on a 16 yard touchdown
pass from Shawn Stockton to Jared Karstetter.
The drive also included a 33 yard run by
Stockton and a 35 yard reception by Karstetter.
Later in the 3rd quarter, Stockton made a
miraculous interception in our own territory. On
the play however, Stockton was a little bit
injured. In came Jeff Minnerly. He didn't wait
long to get the Saxons going right where they
left off and he threw 67 yard completion to
McKenzie Murphy. After Murphy had ran out of
bounds, there was a late hit that was considered
a pretty cheap shot. That got us inside the 15
in Knight Territory and ready to take the lead.
Minnerly then threw a 10 yard touchdown to
Karstetter, who finished with 9 receptions for
126 yards, and that gave the Saxons a 14-10
lead.
That lead stayed as the Saxons
stopped a the Knights on 4th and short in their
own territory. The 4th quarter was a see-saw
battle. Then with under 2 minutes left in the
game and the Saxons with a 4 point lead - the
unthinkable happened.
The Saxons were forced to punt
from their own 15 yard line. The snap got away
from Karstetter and Jared tried to fall on it in
the end zone. However, the refs placed the ball
on the half yard line. With 1:28, Caleb
Gillespie punched it in for the Knights giving
them a 17-14 lead. Then the even more
unthinkable happened.
The Knights, attempting a squib
kick, kicked the ball right at our front line
and it deflected off of Tim Shustoff's chest.
Somehow, he was able to fall on the ball on the
48 yard line, giving the Saxons great field
position. Shawn Stockton, back in from his
injury, came in and conducted a beautiful drive.
Then as time expired it was time for Dexter
Belling. This would be his first field goal
attempt of his whole entire life, and it
couldn't have been a more nerve racking
situation. However, Dexter was able to fight
through it, and hit a 25 yard field goal that
went right down the middle. This sent the Saxons
into overtime, a 17-17 tie.
In overtime, played college
style, the Saxons had the ball first. The faced
a 4 and 18 after a penalty and it looked like
they could be in trouble. Stockton threw the
ball towards the Ferris sideline hoping someone
could get it as he was getting pressured.
Who else but Jared Karstetter was in the area.
He jumped up and made a great catch, the ball
landing just inches past the first down
marker. Later in the drive, after another
penalty, the Saxons were faced with a 3 and 24.
Ferris called an all seams play and Stockton's
pass found Andrew Weigand, who bobbled and
finally pulled in the 29 yard pass.
Then the Saxons defense came up
big.
They stopped the Knights offense
on 4 straight plays, holding them to 0 yards in
overtime, and the comeback was complete. The
Saxons charged the field and the game was over.
All in all, it was a very well played game and
the Saxons made the big plays to come up on top.
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