Thursday, November 28, 2013

Patriots Lose One and Win One in Florida

PANAMA CITY, FL - The Christ Prep football team came up short on their overall goal of winning the National Homeschool Football Tournament but was able to justify their overall 3rd seeding.  The Patriots faced a rushing juggernaut in the Central Virginia Disciples (Richmond, VA) in their first game and the defending champions proved to be too big and too strong for the Patriots.  They controlled the line of scrimmage throughout the game and ran away with a 42-14 victory.

The Disciples came out confident.  They opened the game with an on-side kick but were unable to recover it, however, they did stop the Christ Prep offense and in three plays forced a punt.  The CVHAA offense marched down the field in chunks to score and take 6-0 lead.  They attempted another onside kick and this time it worked.  Again, the Disciples marched down the field for a second touchdown and the two point conversion made the score 14-0. 

With less than 9 minutes remaining in the second quarter the Patriots recovered a third onside kick and had only run three offensive plays.  The outlook was grim but Tanner Metzdorf led the Patriots on a drive and penetrated to the Disciples 15 yard line when he hit Chase Stamatis on a fade pattern for a score to make it 14-7.

That's when the wheels fell off for the Patriots.  The Disciples scored two touchdowns in the remaining 5 minutes before the half including a 95 yard pass from Chris Henderson to Tavon Hewlett on 3rd down and 15 just before the break.  Halftime score:  Disciples 30 Patriots 7.

The Patriots defense held on the first two possessions of the second half and the offense managed another score mostly on Metzdorf runs to cut the lead to 30-14 but that was as close as it would get.  The rest of the half was dominated by the Disciple linemen and their wedge blocking scheme.

Metzdorf led Christ Prep with 81 yards rushing to go with 24 yards passing.  Will Cook picked up 36 yards on the ground and Gabe Jones added 27 yards.

Regan Hurley led the defense with 13 tackles. Charlie Davis and Trenton Davis both recovered fumbles for the Patriots as well as three tackles a piece.

Box Score

The second game brought on a more evenly matched opponent in the Tomball Christian Warriors, where incidentally receiver Davis White played before coming to Christ Prep.

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The game started like the Patriots would cruise to a blowout victory despite being without the services of starting wide receivers, Stamatis and Ethan Moran.  The Patriots were able to create big plays on defense and take advantage of those plays on offense.


Cook stripped Warrior running back, Issac Thomas, of the ball and the Patriots drove 27 yards to set up a 2 yard touchdown run by Metzdorf.  Davis White picked off a Warrior pass but Metzdorf returned the favor and Tomball was back in business at midfield.  A balanced attack had the Warriors deep in CPA territory when Jones jarred the ball loose and Charlie Davis recovered to end the threat.

Metzdorf went to work again and gained 17 yards on a keeper and then hit Joe Dawdy for a 45 yard bomb to set up a 24 yard Jones field goal. 

Then injuries began to mount - Metzdorf went out with a knee injury and with back-up Stamatis unavailable with a sprained knee Coach Cook turned the offense over to Will Cook.  Jones moved to running back despite nursing a hamstring.  More injuries accumulated when Clark Bee was rushed to the hospital to have his hand stitched up, Cook battled with bruised ribs and Cameron Rucker was playing with several ailments.

With a 10-0 lead at the half, the coaches strategized where to move players to fill the holes in the lineup.  Just when things didn't look like they could get worse the Warriors successfully executed an onside kick and were marching to score when they fumbled and Trenton Davis recovered.


But without several key offensive players, the offense struggled and after two punts the Warriors were again deep in Christ Prep territory. This time Hurley ended the scare by picking off a pass at the nine yard line.  Metzdorf returned as quarterback to lead the offense on a 12 play 75 yard scoring drive capped by a 20 yard Cook touchdown run.  Jones point after attempt was blocked leaving the score CPA 16 Tomball Christian 0 with 3:23 to go in the third quarter.

More injuries limited time for lineman David Schilling but Trenton Davis played one of the best games of his career filling in where needed along the defensive front.  A resilient Warriors team never gave up and scored a 4th quarter touchdown to cut the lead to 16-8. They were one possession away from tying the score.

CPA failed to muster a first down and the Warriors got the ball back with 2:36 remaining in the game.  They quickly marched down the field and with 38 seconds remaining Gourley Holden scrambled around the right side of the Patriot defense to set up a potential game tying 2-point conversion.  The Warriors tried a halfback pass and as Matthew Riling's pass hung in the air, Jones leaped to bat down the ball and preserve the win.


Final Score:  Christ Prep Patriots 16 Tomball Christian Warriors 14.

Regan Hurley said afterward, "When Gabe knocked down that pass, it was the greatest feeling." 






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