Tigers Lose Heartbreaker To Panthers In Overtime
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
FORT WAYNE - Performing on arguably the program's biggest stage, third-ranked Warsaw's 5A Sectional 3 semifinal dance with No. 7 Fort Wayne Snider Friday night was everything it was hyped up as.
What appeared to be an even match on paper was exactly that on the hard, thinning turf of Northrop's Spuller Stadium, where No. 7 Snider edged the Tigers 23-20 in overtime.
"It was everything it was billed to be," sixth-year Tiger coach Phil Jensen said. "It was a great game with two great teams. It was a bunch of kids with a lot of heart that really wanted to win. I'm proud of all these kids. What these kids have done for their high school, their community, me, for everybody, that can't be measured in wins and losses."
Warsaw's season comes to an end at 10-1, while the Panthers improve to 10-1 and have a date with Homestead next Friday in a rematch of last year's sectional championship, which Snider won. Homestead (10-1) advanced to the title tilt by knocking off Northrop (5-5) 45-6.
Trailing 20-14, Snider started the game's final drive of regulation from its own 10-yard line with 6:53 remaining.
With the legs of 5-foot-11, 180-pound senior running back J.J. Robinson the Panthers efficiently moved the ball down the field, and with under a minute remaining junior signal caller Marcus Heminger connected on a one-yard pass play with classmate Shawn Kinney to tie the game at 20.
Sophomore Matthew Robinson attempted what appeared to be the winning extra-point kick to Snider fans, but his boot went wide right and the two 5A powers went to overtime.
The Tigers as well squandered an extra-point opportunity, as a kick was blocked after senior tailback Brad Seiss scored on a six-yard run with 6:43 remaing in the third to make it 20-14.
"That extra-point played a big role," Jensen said. "There was turnovers both ways. What you saw out there was a perfect example of what sports can do for kids. All these kids layed it on the line, they didn't quit."
Snider won the coin toss in overtime and elected to put Warsaw's offense on the field, giving the Panthers the option of knowing what they had to score - whether it be a field goal or touchdown.
Seiss took the handoff from junior Ryan DeGeeter on the first play and barrelled his way to the 7-yard line, but threw an interception on the second play on a halfback pass attempt to William Knepper.
Robinson pounded out six yards on Snider's first play from the 10-yard line, and then ran for gains of one and two yards. On fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line Wilson redeemed himself of the missed extra-point attempt with a 16-yard field for the win.
For Warsaw, it was the second semifinal game in a row decided by a field goal. A year ago, the Tigers had eventual state champion Penn on the ropes before the Kingsmen escaped with a 10-7 win.
"There's no such thing as a moral victory for us now," Jensen said. "These kids had a goal of winning the sectional and returning to the RCA Dome (where Warsaw beat Wawasee 49-6 during the regular season)," Jensen said.
Robinson finished the game with 38 carries for 221 yards, highlighted by touchdown runs of 60 and 24 yards that knotted the game at 14. Heminger finished the game 10 of 18 through the air for 90 yards with one interception.
After being dealt a fourth-and-12 from its own 39, Warsaw's Chris Clay recoverd a Snider fumble on a punt from DeGeeter. The Tigers took over on the Panther 16-yard line, and six carries later Seiss scored the game's first touchdown on a two yard-scamper with 3:10 on the first-quarter clock.
Seiss scored the game's second touchdown when DeGeeter found him open for a 75-yard pass at the 10:23 mark of the second stanza.
Seiss, already Warsaw's career rushing leader and looking to break Rod Wildman's 29-year-old single season record, finished the game with 43 yards on 18 carries, leaving him short of Wildman's 1,652 by about 50 yards. Seiss finished the game with two catches for 95 yards. Clay caught two passes for 30 yards, while senior Adam Sisson reeled in a pair of passes for 22 yards.
DeGeeter finished the game 6 of 11 through the air for 147 yards.
Led by a superb senior class, Warsaw went 27-5 the last three seasons with three straight Northern Lakes Conference championships and 16 consecutive regular season wins.
NO. 7 SNIDER 23,
NO. 3 WARSAW 20 (OT)
Warsaw (10-1) 7 7 6 0 0 - 20
Snider (10-1) 0 7 7 6 3 - 23
W S
First downs 9 13
Rushing yards 94 244
Passing yards 147 90
Comp.-Att.-Int. 6-12-1 10-18-1
Total offense 241 334
Fumbles/lost 3/1 2/1
Punts/avg. 4-45 3-31.7
Penalties/yards 4-32 2-18
First Quarter
W - Brad Seiss 2 run (Adam Sisson kick) 7-0, 3:10
Second Quarter
W - Ryan DeGeeter 75 pass to Seiss (Sisson kick) 14-0, 10:23
S - J.J. Robinson 60 run (Matthew Wilson kick) 14-7, 2:01
Third Quarter
S - Robinson 24 run (Wilson kick) 14-14, 11:07
W - Seiss 6 run (kick blocked) 20-14, 6:43
Fourth Quarter
S - Marcus Heminger 1 pass to Shawn Kinney (kick failed) 20-20
Overtime
S - Wilson 16 field goal, 23-20
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - Warsaw, Seiss 18-43, Grady Randall 5-21, David Muta 4-13, DeGeeter 5-21; Snider, Robinson 38-221, Austin Rice 6-19, Heminger 2-2, Kinney 1-2
Passing - Warsaw, DeGeeter 6-11-147, 1 TD, Seiss 0-1, 1 INT; Snider, Heminger 10-18-90, 1 INT
Receiving - Warsaw, Seiss 2-95, Clay 2-30, Sisson 2-22; Snider, Benjamin Hunley 2-43, Mark Schuelke 2-16, Nelson Peters 2-9, Robinson 1-9, Christian Arnold 1-6, Kinney 1-1
Vikings Drop Sectional Semifinal Game To Mishawaka Marian 24-3
By Jen Gibson, Times-Union Sports Editor
AKRON -Ê"It was not a good evening for the Vikings."
Tippecanoe Valley coach Scott Bibler summed up Friday night's game in one statement.
The Vikings fell to the Mishawaka Marian Knights 24-3 in the sectional semifinal game.
The night started out poorly for the Vikings when they fumbled the ball on the third play of their first drive.
Marian's Nick Kaczynski recovered the Valley fumble on the 19-yard line, and eight plays later J.R. Marchbank kicked a 21-yard field goal.
Marchbank's kick put the Knights up 3-0, and that's where the score remained for the rest of the first half as Marian and Valley waged a defensive battle.
However, the second half was a different story.
The Knights made offensive adjustments at halftime and scord early in the second half. With 9:19 left on the third-quarter clock, quarterback Brenden Kreuger pitched the ball to Alex Lascano who ran for a 56-yard touchdown. Once Conrad Bremmer split the uprights, the Marian squad held a 10-0 advantage.
The Knights were not finished. At the 3:05 mark in the third frame, Lascano slipped by the Valley defense for a 5-yard touchdown run. Brammer's kick was a success, putting Marian up 17-0.
But the Vikings did not give up.
Valley took possession of the ball on the Marian 42 with around three minutes left in the third frame. The Vikings used workhorse Jon Rice to move the ball 11 yards on two plays for a first down. Then quarterback David Beyers competed a 6-yard pass to Michael Schwenk to put the ball at the 25-yard line with a second-and-four situation.
The Vikings handed the ball to Rice on the next two plays to move the ball to the 8-yard line. With first-and-goal, Beyers moved the ball one yard to the 7 as time ran off the third-quarter clock.
However, the Vikings were unable to move the ball any farther. Chris Hurd put the Vikings on the scoreboard with a 24-yard field goal.
If that play put wind back in Valley's sails, the first play of Marian's ensuing possession took it right back out.
After a penalty on the kickoff, the Knights sat on their own 5-yard line with a long field in front of them. However, Lascano made that field look short when he slipped around the Viking defense and ran 95 yards for another Marian touchdown with 10:44 left in the game.
That was the straw the broke the camel's back as the Knights took a 24-3 lead.
Valley knocked at the door one once more late in the fourth quarter, but a fumble on the 3-yard line was recovered by Marian's Brammer.
The Knights ran four more plays and then the last seconds ran out on the game and Tippecanoe Valley's season.
"I was disappointed with the way we played tonight," said Bibler. "We gave them the pitches for long touchdown runs."
Lascano led the Kinghts with 10 rushes for 185 yards, while his teammate Mike Davidson had 42 yards rushing on 19 carries. Lascano also caught two passes for 24 yards.
Rice led the Valley ground attack with 44 yards on 10 carries. Kevin Day added 23 yards on four carries, and Kevin Paxton had five rushes for 18 yards.
Valley fumbled and lost the ball four times, while Marian had two fumbles but lost only one.
"They played more error-free football than we did tonight," said Bibler. "We killed ourselved with turnovers and bad field position."
Marian advances to the sectional final game against NorthWood next Friday. The Vikings finish the season with an 8-3 record.
"Overall we had a good year," said Bibler. "If you think back to the first game against North Judson, we didn't know how things would turn out. I think we put together a good run."
MISHAWAKA MARIAN 24
TIPPECANOE VALLEY 3
Marian 3 0 14 7 - 24
Valley 0 0 0 3 - 3
M V
First downs 5 6
Rushing yards 247 74
Passing yards 35 67
Comp.-Att.-Int. 3-4-0 5-15-2
Total offense 282 141
Fumbles/lost 2-1 4-4
Punts/ave. 5-33 5-33
Penalties/yards 11-63 2-10
First Quarter
M - J.R. Marchbank 21 field goal, 6:33, 3-0 M
Third Quarter
M - Alex Lascano 56 run (Conrad Brammer kick), 9:19, 10-0 M
M -ÊLascano 5 run (Brammer kick) , 3:05, 17-0 M
Fourth Quarter
V -ÊChris Hurd 24 field goal, 11:05, 17-3 M
M - Lascano 95 run (Brammer kick), 10:44, 24-3 M
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - Marian: Lascano 10-185, Mike Davidson 19-42, Brendan Krueger 10-12; Valley: Jon Rice 10-44, Kevin Paxton 5-18, Kevin Day 4-23
Passing - Marian: Krueger 5-15-35, 0 INT, 0 TD; Valley: David Beyers 5-14-67, 1 INT, 0 TD; Shawn Severns 0-1-0 1 INT, 0 TD
Receiving - Marian: Lascano 2-24, Mark Rykovich 1-22; Valley: Brandon McCombs 1-23, Alex Frantz 1-15, Paxton 1-14 [[In-content Ad]]
FORT WAYNE - Performing on arguably the program's biggest stage, third-ranked Warsaw's 5A Sectional 3 semifinal dance with No. 7 Fort Wayne Snider Friday night was everything it was hyped up as.
What appeared to be an even match on paper was exactly that on the hard, thinning turf of Northrop's Spuller Stadium, where No. 7 Snider edged the Tigers 23-20 in overtime.
"It was everything it was billed to be," sixth-year Tiger coach Phil Jensen said. "It was a great game with two great teams. It was a bunch of kids with a lot of heart that really wanted to win. I'm proud of all these kids. What these kids have done for their high school, their community, me, for everybody, that can't be measured in wins and losses."
Warsaw's season comes to an end at 10-1, while the Panthers improve to 10-1 and have a date with Homestead next Friday in a rematch of last year's sectional championship, which Snider won. Homestead (10-1) advanced to the title tilt by knocking off Northrop (5-5) 45-6.
Trailing 20-14, Snider started the game's final drive of regulation from its own 10-yard line with 6:53 remaining.
With the legs of 5-foot-11, 180-pound senior running back J.J. Robinson the Panthers efficiently moved the ball down the field, and with under a minute remaining junior signal caller Marcus Heminger connected on a one-yard pass play with classmate Shawn Kinney to tie the game at 20.
Sophomore Matthew Robinson attempted what appeared to be the winning extra-point kick to Snider fans, but his boot went wide right and the two 5A powers went to overtime.
The Tigers as well squandered an extra-point opportunity, as a kick was blocked after senior tailback Brad Seiss scored on a six-yard run with 6:43 remaing in the third to make it 20-14.
"That extra-point played a big role," Jensen said. "There was turnovers both ways. What you saw out there was a perfect example of what sports can do for kids. All these kids layed it on the line, they didn't quit."
Snider won the coin toss in overtime and elected to put Warsaw's offense on the field, giving the Panthers the option of knowing what they had to score - whether it be a field goal or touchdown.
Seiss took the handoff from junior Ryan DeGeeter on the first play and barrelled his way to the 7-yard line, but threw an interception on the second play on a halfback pass attempt to William Knepper.
Robinson pounded out six yards on Snider's first play from the 10-yard line, and then ran for gains of one and two yards. On fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line Wilson redeemed himself of the missed extra-point attempt with a 16-yard field for the win.
For Warsaw, it was the second semifinal game in a row decided by a field goal. A year ago, the Tigers had eventual state champion Penn on the ropes before the Kingsmen escaped with a 10-7 win.
"There's no such thing as a moral victory for us now," Jensen said. "These kids had a goal of winning the sectional and returning to the RCA Dome (where Warsaw beat Wawasee 49-6 during the regular season)," Jensen said.
Robinson finished the game with 38 carries for 221 yards, highlighted by touchdown runs of 60 and 24 yards that knotted the game at 14. Heminger finished the game 10 of 18 through the air for 90 yards with one interception.
After being dealt a fourth-and-12 from its own 39, Warsaw's Chris Clay recoverd a Snider fumble on a punt from DeGeeter. The Tigers took over on the Panther 16-yard line, and six carries later Seiss scored the game's first touchdown on a two yard-scamper with 3:10 on the first-quarter clock.
Seiss scored the game's second touchdown when DeGeeter found him open for a 75-yard pass at the 10:23 mark of the second stanza.
Seiss, already Warsaw's career rushing leader and looking to break Rod Wildman's 29-year-old single season record, finished the game with 43 yards on 18 carries, leaving him short of Wildman's 1,652 by about 50 yards. Seiss finished the game with two catches for 95 yards. Clay caught two passes for 30 yards, while senior Adam Sisson reeled in a pair of passes for 22 yards.
DeGeeter finished the game 6 of 11 through the air for 147 yards.
Led by a superb senior class, Warsaw went 27-5 the last three seasons with three straight Northern Lakes Conference championships and 16 consecutive regular season wins.
NO. 7 SNIDER 23,
NO. 3 WARSAW 20 (OT)
Warsaw (10-1) 7 7 6 0 0 - 20
Snider (10-1) 0 7 7 6 3 - 23
W S
First downs 9 13
Rushing yards 94 244
Passing yards 147 90
Comp.-Att.-Int. 6-12-1 10-18-1
Total offense 241 334
Fumbles/lost 3/1 2/1
Punts/avg. 4-45 3-31.7
Penalties/yards 4-32 2-18
First Quarter
W - Brad Seiss 2 run (Adam Sisson kick) 7-0, 3:10
Second Quarter
W - Ryan DeGeeter 75 pass to Seiss (Sisson kick) 14-0, 10:23
S - J.J. Robinson 60 run (Matthew Wilson kick) 14-7, 2:01
Third Quarter
S - Robinson 24 run (Wilson kick) 14-14, 11:07
W - Seiss 6 run (kick blocked) 20-14, 6:43
Fourth Quarter
S - Marcus Heminger 1 pass to Shawn Kinney (kick failed) 20-20
Overtime
S - Wilson 16 field goal, 23-20
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - Warsaw, Seiss 18-43, Grady Randall 5-21, David Muta 4-13, DeGeeter 5-21; Snider, Robinson 38-221, Austin Rice 6-19, Heminger 2-2, Kinney 1-2
Passing - Warsaw, DeGeeter 6-11-147, 1 TD, Seiss 0-1, 1 INT; Snider, Heminger 10-18-90, 1 INT
Receiving - Warsaw, Seiss 2-95, Clay 2-30, Sisson 2-22; Snider, Benjamin Hunley 2-43, Mark Schuelke 2-16, Nelson Peters 2-9, Robinson 1-9, Christian Arnold 1-6, Kinney 1-1
Vikings Drop Sectional Semifinal Game To Mishawaka Marian 24-3
By Jen Gibson, Times-Union Sports Editor
AKRON -Ê"It was not a good evening for the Vikings."
Tippecanoe Valley coach Scott Bibler summed up Friday night's game in one statement.
The Vikings fell to the Mishawaka Marian Knights 24-3 in the sectional semifinal game.
The night started out poorly for the Vikings when they fumbled the ball on the third play of their first drive.
Marian's Nick Kaczynski recovered the Valley fumble on the 19-yard line, and eight plays later J.R. Marchbank kicked a 21-yard field goal.
Marchbank's kick put the Knights up 3-0, and that's where the score remained for the rest of the first half as Marian and Valley waged a defensive battle.
However, the second half was a different story.
The Knights made offensive adjustments at halftime and scord early in the second half. With 9:19 left on the third-quarter clock, quarterback Brenden Kreuger pitched the ball to Alex Lascano who ran for a 56-yard touchdown. Once Conrad Bremmer split the uprights, the Marian squad held a 10-0 advantage.
The Knights were not finished. At the 3:05 mark in the third frame, Lascano slipped by the Valley defense for a 5-yard touchdown run. Brammer's kick was a success, putting Marian up 17-0.
But the Vikings did not give up.
Valley took possession of the ball on the Marian 42 with around three minutes left in the third frame. The Vikings used workhorse Jon Rice to move the ball 11 yards on two plays for a first down. Then quarterback David Beyers competed a 6-yard pass to Michael Schwenk to put the ball at the 25-yard line with a second-and-four situation.
The Vikings handed the ball to Rice on the next two plays to move the ball to the 8-yard line. With first-and-goal, Beyers moved the ball one yard to the 7 as time ran off the third-quarter clock.
However, the Vikings were unable to move the ball any farther. Chris Hurd put the Vikings on the scoreboard with a 24-yard field goal.
If that play put wind back in Valley's sails, the first play of Marian's ensuing possession took it right back out.
After a penalty on the kickoff, the Knights sat on their own 5-yard line with a long field in front of them. However, Lascano made that field look short when he slipped around the Viking defense and ran 95 yards for another Marian touchdown with 10:44 left in the game.
That was the straw the broke the camel's back as the Knights took a 24-3 lead.
Valley knocked at the door one once more late in the fourth quarter, but a fumble on the 3-yard line was recovered by Marian's Brammer.
The Knights ran four more plays and then the last seconds ran out on the game and Tippecanoe Valley's season.
"I was disappointed with the way we played tonight," said Bibler. "We gave them the pitches for long touchdown runs."
Lascano led the Kinghts with 10 rushes for 185 yards, while his teammate Mike Davidson had 42 yards rushing on 19 carries. Lascano also caught two passes for 24 yards.
Rice led the Valley ground attack with 44 yards on 10 carries. Kevin Day added 23 yards on four carries, and Kevin Paxton had five rushes for 18 yards.
Valley fumbled and lost the ball four times, while Marian had two fumbles but lost only one.
"They played more error-free football than we did tonight," said Bibler. "We killed ourselved with turnovers and bad field position."
Marian advances to the sectional final game against NorthWood next Friday. The Vikings finish the season with an 8-3 record.
"Overall we had a good year," said Bibler. "If you think back to the first game against North Judson, we didn't know how things would turn out. I think we put together a good run."
MISHAWAKA MARIAN 24
TIPPECANOE VALLEY 3
Marian 3 0 14 7 - 24
Valley 0 0 0 3 - 3
M V
First downs 5 6
Rushing yards 247 74
Passing yards 35 67
Comp.-Att.-Int. 3-4-0 5-15-2
Total offense 282 141
Fumbles/lost 2-1 4-4
Punts/ave. 5-33 5-33
Penalties/yards 11-63 2-10
First Quarter
M - J.R. Marchbank 21 field goal, 6:33, 3-0 M
Third Quarter
M - Alex Lascano 56 run (Conrad Brammer kick), 9:19, 10-0 M
M -ÊLascano 5 run (Brammer kick) , 3:05, 17-0 M
Fourth Quarter
V -ÊChris Hurd 24 field goal, 11:05, 17-3 M
M - Lascano 95 run (Brammer kick), 10:44, 24-3 M
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - Marian: Lascano 10-185, Mike Davidson 19-42, Brendan Krueger 10-12; Valley: Jon Rice 10-44, Kevin Paxton 5-18, Kevin Day 4-23
Passing - Marian: Krueger 5-15-35, 0 INT, 0 TD; Valley: David Beyers 5-14-67, 1 INT, 0 TD; Shawn Severns 0-1-0 1 INT, 0 TD
Receiving - Marian: Lascano 2-24, Mark Rykovich 1-22; Valley: Brandon McCombs 1-23, Alex Frantz 1-15, Paxton 1-14 [[In-content Ad]]