CA FootBall 2008 Ready For Battle

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Sec 5 1st Round

Championship teams, when they are confronted with the situation we were in, a hostile environment and Geneva remembering what happened last year, will rise to the occasion. The kids were faced with a battle and they did everything we asked them to do. Just battle all night. And that’s what they did.”

The first quarter of this game was all that the pre-game hype billed it to be, with Geneva scoring twice and Braves once. The Panthers stopped the Braves on their first possession with the Braves returning the favor on an interception by Sean Regan on the Panthers first possession.

CA was stopped again on their ensuing possession, and on the subsequent CA punt, Geneva’s DeAnze Williams romped 70 yards down the sideline to give the Panthers a lead they would not relinquish until their was two minutes and thirty second left in the game.

Williams also added the extra point kick.

The Braves answered back with a long punt return of their own on the ensuing kick off, a 69-yard scamper down the sideline by John Klein. After a two-yard run by CA plow horse Nick Michalko, and an eight-yard jaunt by CA QB Marshall Johnson, Regan scored on a 13-yard run. But with a failed extra point kick, the Panthers led 7-6.

Three plays later Geneva scored again on a Bobby Martin pass to Junior Collins. With a successful Williams kick, the Panthers led 13-7. CA then methodically moved the ball down the field on their next possession, only to have two key penalties and then an interception snuff that drive out.

Their was no scoring in the second quarter, but the Braves went into the locker room riding a wave when they stalled a Panther 14-play drive, forcing them to hand the ball over to the Braves on downs at their own 6-yard line.

Having a big play defensively in that series of downs was Tom LaCrosse taking the wind out of the Geneva sails with an all-important QB sack late in the Panther possession. LaCrosse also had a key interception earlier in the game.

“We played team defense tonight. We made tackles and did what we needed to do,” said LaCrosse. “We kept Geneva in front of us and that was what we needed to do. It was at this point that CA coach Dave Neiman reached into his bag of tricks, coming out with an on-sides kick to begin the half that his team successfully recovered on the 38-yard line. However six plays later the Braves were forced to punt.

The Panthers had another momentum building drive snuffed out again, this time by a Gannon Osborn interception

“Gannon’s interception was a huge point in the game for us,” continued Neiman. “He is such a smart kid back there.”

I just read the play,” said Osborn. “Our guys in front had good coverage and I just ran to where the ball was. We ran to the ball and had great tackling.”

The Panthers took their next possession and moved downfield only to have a try at fourth and eight on the 38 stopped by a fine defensive play by Jacob Smith, tackling Kyle Shorter for a loss that handed the ball back to his offense. The Braves then put their plow horse to back to work, with Michalko carrying the ball for the bulk of the plays on the next series, leading to his touchdown run of two-yards by himself. All eyes were on this crucial extra point as Justin Walker nailed the PAT dead center, giving the Braves the all-important 14-13 lead.

In what was supposed to be an offensive showdown Saturday night between two of the top teams in the Finger Lakes, Canandaigua Academy came up big in this Finger Lakes East game in a defensive struggle.

With a blocked field goal by Matt Smith and Nick King snuffing out the last chance for the Panthers, Geneva ended up losing in a heartbreaker once again to the Braves on Panther Homecoming Night, this time 14-13.

It was the second win in a row for the Braves on Geneva Homecoming Night.

Wow! What A Game!