Vikings Snap Five-Game Skid
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Anthony [email protected]
In a game that had five lead changes, it was the Tippecanoe Valley Vikings who scored last, defeating the visiting Bremen Lions 28-24 at home Friday and snapping a five-game losing streak that dated back to Week 7 last year.[[In-content Ad]]"It was a rollercoaster ride - up and down," Bremen coach Rich Moren said. "We just didn't seal the deal when we had chances and opportunities."
And Bremen had chances.
After falling behind 21-17 early in the fourth quarter, the Lions reclaimed the lead at 24-21 on a 69-yard touchdown pass from sophomore Nate Leeper to senior Cody Barrier on a 3rd-and-2 play.
With 3:28 remaining in the contest, Valley sophomore quarterback Bret Cooper then went 3-for-3 on his team's ensuing drive, setting up the Vikings for a 1st-and-10 from the Bremen 38-yard line.
With the passing game working, Valley continued the trend with a quick pass behind the line of scrimmage to senior Trent Swihart who promptly heaved it downfield to a wide open Josh Pinkowski for a touchdown and 28-24 lead.
"Those aren't just things we draw up on the sideline," Valley coach Jeff Shriver said of the double-pass play. "We practice those and it looked good."
Prior to the defining drive, Cooper had only gone 1-for-5 for 11 yards in the game.
"I can't say enough about the composure Bret Cooper played with, stepping in for Gus Lukens, who's injured," Shriver said. "Bret really stepped up and led our team to a comeback."
But the game wasn't over yet.
With 2:06 remaining, a shaky Valley special teams then squibbed the kickoff, which was recovered by the Lions at their own 47-yard line.
However, on Leeper's first pass attempt, Valley sophomore James Gregory picked him off, looking to have sealed the contest.
But that wasn't the case.
Instead of running the clock out with a few quarterback kneels, Valley handed the ball off to senior Michael Lewis, who had the ball stripped with Bremen recovering it at their own 46-yard line.
The fumble was Lewis' second of the game, but that didn't prevent him from having an otherwise stellar game, rushing for 119 yards and two touchdowns, while also recording an interception in the first quarter.
"He could very well have dwelled on a couple fumbles, but he came out and made big plays when he had to make big plays to help us win," Shriver said.
Following the fumble, it was up to the Vikings defense to step up, and that's just what it did, holding the Lions on four downs, finally putting an end to the game.
"Our theme this season has been to be physically and mentally tougher than we've been in the past - last year especially," Shriver said. "Tonight, I think our guys showed that. It would have been easy to give up when we got burned with that (69-yard touchdown pass)."
That 69-yard touchdown was just one of the five times Leeper hooked up with Barrier, who posted 127 yards and two scores.
"We made some big plays and they made some big plays," Shriver said. "We made some mistakes, they made some mistakes."
Valley's biggest mistakes occurred on special teams.
Aside from the squib kicks, the punt team was also burned by Bremen senior Drew Bennitt, who opened the night's scoring with a 39-yard return touchdown in the first quarter.
If it hadn't been for the punt return and the long touchdown pass, the Vikings may have had a much easier victory as the defense allowed just 47 rushing yards on 24 attempts.
"As long as we continue to improve and develop each week, I think we can become a very good football team," Shriver said. "I think that's ahead for us."
Valley opens its Three Rivers Conference schedule Friday at Manchester at 7 p.m.
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In a game that had five lead changes, it was the Tippecanoe Valley Vikings who scored last, defeating the visiting Bremen Lions 28-24 at home Friday and snapping a five-game losing streak that dated back to Week 7 last year.[[In-content Ad]]"It was a rollercoaster ride - up and down," Bremen coach Rich Moren said. "We just didn't seal the deal when we had chances and opportunities."
And Bremen had chances.
After falling behind 21-17 early in the fourth quarter, the Lions reclaimed the lead at 24-21 on a 69-yard touchdown pass from sophomore Nate Leeper to senior Cody Barrier on a 3rd-and-2 play.
With 3:28 remaining in the contest, Valley sophomore quarterback Bret Cooper then went 3-for-3 on his team's ensuing drive, setting up the Vikings for a 1st-and-10 from the Bremen 38-yard line.
With the passing game working, Valley continued the trend with a quick pass behind the line of scrimmage to senior Trent Swihart who promptly heaved it downfield to a wide open Josh Pinkowski for a touchdown and 28-24 lead.
"Those aren't just things we draw up on the sideline," Valley coach Jeff Shriver said of the double-pass play. "We practice those and it looked good."
Prior to the defining drive, Cooper had only gone 1-for-5 for 11 yards in the game.
"I can't say enough about the composure Bret Cooper played with, stepping in for Gus Lukens, who's injured," Shriver said. "Bret really stepped up and led our team to a comeback."
But the game wasn't over yet.
With 2:06 remaining, a shaky Valley special teams then squibbed the kickoff, which was recovered by the Lions at their own 47-yard line.
However, on Leeper's first pass attempt, Valley sophomore James Gregory picked him off, looking to have sealed the contest.
But that wasn't the case.
Instead of running the clock out with a few quarterback kneels, Valley handed the ball off to senior Michael Lewis, who had the ball stripped with Bremen recovering it at their own 46-yard line.
The fumble was Lewis' second of the game, but that didn't prevent him from having an otherwise stellar game, rushing for 119 yards and two touchdowns, while also recording an interception in the first quarter.
"He could very well have dwelled on a couple fumbles, but he came out and made big plays when he had to make big plays to help us win," Shriver said.
Following the fumble, it was up to the Vikings defense to step up, and that's just what it did, holding the Lions on four downs, finally putting an end to the game.
"Our theme this season has been to be physically and mentally tougher than we've been in the past - last year especially," Shriver said. "Tonight, I think our guys showed that. It would have been easy to give up when we got burned with that (69-yard touchdown pass)."
That 69-yard touchdown was just one of the five times Leeper hooked up with Barrier, who posted 127 yards and two scores.
"We made some big plays and they made some big plays," Shriver said. "We made some mistakes, they made some mistakes."
Valley's biggest mistakes occurred on special teams.
Aside from the squib kicks, the punt team was also burned by Bremen senior Drew Bennitt, who opened the night's scoring with a 39-yard return touchdown in the first quarter.
If it hadn't been for the punt return and the long touchdown pass, the Vikings may have had a much easier victory as the defense allowed just 47 rushing yards on 24 attempts.
"As long as we continue to improve and develop each week, I think we can become a very good football team," Shriver said. "I think that's ahead for us."
Valley opens its Three Rivers Conference schedule Friday at Manchester at 7 p.m.
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