Cathleen Allison/Nevada Appeal
A crazy bounce stopped Carson High's football team from pulling off one of the biggest upsets in school history.
The Senators led defending state champion McQueen by 11 points with 7 minutes 55 seconds left in the game, but a 93-yard scoring drive and a recovered onside kick that led to the go-ahead score enabled the Lancers to grab a thrilling 38-34 win Friday night at Carson High School.
It wasn't a game for the weak of heart, as the teams punched and counter-punched during the final three quarters, the lead exchanging hands five times since the final minute of the second quarter.
"When you are playing a championship level game, it comes down to making plays," Carson coach Blair Roman said. "We made some big plays. Unfortunately they made one or two more.
"I don't think you can ask for a better effort. They left it all out there on the field. That's all you can ask. We're at a point where we feel we've improved, but we need a signature win. When you are playing a team that won a state championship, you have to beat them like this. You're not going to beat them 42-0."
And, the Senators (1-1) might have had one had it not been for Eric Martinez, who made a big play down the stretch.
The Lancers (1-1) had just cut Carson's lead to 34-31 on Joey Sorgani's 22-yard touchdown pass to Rollins Stallworth with 3:18 left. Sorgani threw a two-point conversion pass to make it 34-31.
McQueen lined up in onside kick formation, making it appear that Martinez would kick it to the left. Instead, Martinez squibbed one to the right and was credited with the recovery at the Carson 40.
"We worked on it during practice," Roman said. "The ball took a funny bounce at the last second. I can honestly say the game was decided by the bounce of the ball."
Seven plays later, Nick Shephard scored on a 5-yard run with 22 seconds left. Martinez added the extra point. McQueen converted two big third-down plays on the game-winning drive.
The first was a 17-yard pass from Sorgani to Shephard for a first down at the Carson 18. A 10-yard holding penalty put the Lancers in an immediate hole back at the Carson 28, but three straight completions to Blaze Buyington, Shephard and Brian Grove put the ball at the Carson 5, and Shephard scored on the next play.
Sophomore Dylan Sawyers, who scored twice on 7-yard runs and tossed a 46-yard TD pass on a halfback option, almost broke one on the ensuing kickoff. He took it from his 1 down to McQueen's 34-yard line. CHS quarterback Blake Plattsmier was sacked on the first play from scrimmage and then threw an incomplete pass in the end zone to end the game.
The loss wiped out a great performance by the Carson offense which piled up 357 total yards, including 248 on the ground. Roman credited the offensive front led by Danny Gall, Trevor Goodale,
Justin Barlow, Will Flores and Matt Cooper.
Sawyers was particularly impressive. He carried 13 times for 76 yards, caught three passes for 14 yards, returned a kick-off 65 yards and completed a pass for 46 yards. Not a bad coming out party.
"Oh my God, I can't even think right now," Sawyers said. "I put everything (I had) out there. I was nervous all day. I lost all the nerves when I stepped on the field.
"I had great blocking all night. That halfback pass we only worked on it one time in practice. I saw a hole to the left (on the last kickoff return). When I was making my cut, my leg cramped up."
NOTES: Plattsmier gained 64 on seven carries and Mark Sinnott added 43 on 11 carries before suffering a high ankle sprain. His status is day-to-day, according to Roman...The Senators also lost Luke Carter for a brief time with a cramp in his right leg ...Josh Peacock had two interceptions, both of which led to Carson touchdowns.