NAPPANEE - Of all the things that can decide a football game, the PAT (or otherwise known as the Point(s) After Touchdown) is the least glamorous.

People often remember touchdowns, interceptions and long field goals, but the "simple" PAT is often overlooked.

But it can be the deciding factor in a game, such as Friday's Wawasee-NorthWood Northern Lakes Conference battle.

If things had gone differently on two different PATs for the Warriors, things could have been different with the score, but that is the way football is, and the Panthers came away with a big 20-19 win, ending Wawasee's three-game winning streak.

"Those were the things that jump right out at you," Wawasee coach Gene Mitz said. "But there were more than that."

Early in the fourth quarter, the Warriors' Luke Matz plunged in for his second 2-yard scoring run of the game to make the count 14-13 in favor of NorthWood.

The Warriors were lined up to attempt the 1-point PAT kick, but when NorthWood jumped offsides and the ball was moved closer, Mitz decided to go for two. But the Panther defense upended Matz short of the goal line, and the score remained 14-13.

Aaron Huber changed that on NorthWood's next offensive possession when he took an option pitch around the left side, raced around the left sideline, cut back across the middle, faked out at least two Wawasee defenders and ran into the end zone for an 80-yard scoring play.

NorthWood then had a decision to make on its own PAT. And after Wawasee jumped offsides twice, it was an easy decision. The Panthers went for it, and just like Wawasee, NorthWood came up short.

NorthWood led 20-13.

Wawasee needed to come right back and respond to the challenge, and the Warriors did. Aided by a 30-yard kickoff return by Aaron Graves, Wawasee got great field position and marched down the field, getting a 6-yard scoring strike from Jeff Beer to Brody Stipp to make the count 20-19.

Decision time again for the Warriors.

This time Mitz decided to go for the tie. But Jeremy High's kick sailed just right and left the margin at just one point.

NorthWood ran out the final 4:50, and Wawasee was left wondering about what could have been.

"There is 4:50 left in the game, and we have had good execution on our PAT," Mitz said. "I figured we would just tie it up and take it into overtime. I gave it (two-point conversion) a thought."

"We understand now how important PATs are," NorthWood coach Rich Dodson said. "Of course both of us were enticed to go for two. I thought our choice was a little better than maybe what they did. I am not second-guessing Coach Mitz.

"I thought they might got for two and try to pull it out," he said. "But he knows his team. You go for what you think is best."

The PATs are what everybody will probably be talking about, but it was other missed opportunities that Mitz was pondering after the game.

"We have got to be able to score when we have opportunities to win football games," Mitz said. "We are going to go back and replay this one and see there were several times we had opportunities that we let slip away."

Those chances included a first down at the NorthWood 15 after recovering the second Panther fumble of the first half and already leading 7-0 and coming away with zero points.

NorthWood tied the score at seven just before halftime when quarterback Charlie Roeder dove in from a yard out. NorthWood had to feel good being tied after fumbling the ball away twice inside its own 15-yard line, with Wawasee only getting the one score from Matz.

"It was nice to score right before the half," Dodson said. "It was a key drive for us to get on the board.

"We overcame some adversity," he said. "I am proud of the way they maintained some composure, and we didn't get our heads down."

The Panthers took their first lead in the third quarter when Huber got a great block from receiver Brad Greenlee and rumbled in from eight yards out to make it 14-7.

"It was a tough football game," Mitz said. "It was that kind of game, the team that had the ball last would be the one who won it."

It was a win that Dodson was glad to get, especially after a tough loss to Goshen last week that snapped the Panthers' 29-game NLC winning streak.

"They are a good football team," Dodson said. "They got some linemen, and they can get a good push on you. I was happy we were able to finish the game the way we did and run off 4:50 off the clock."

Wawasee used that big offensive line to its advantage, running the ball with five different backs and throwing the ball only five times against the Panther defense. Matz led the Warriors with 111 yards and the two scores.

"We have depth in our backfield, and our backs run hard," Mitz said. "We are able to utilize the talents of all of them."

Huber paced NorthWood with 142 yards on 12 carries, while Roeder added 58 yards on the ground and 93 through the air.

Wawasee (3-2, 2-1) hosts Plymouth Friday, while NorthWood (3-2, 2-1) is at Northridge. [[In-content Ad]]