Looking to avoid a third straight loss while also sending off senior players on a high note, the Warsaw football team took on Mishawaka in its final home game of the season Friday night. For the third straight week, it was a tight game down the stretch, but this time, the Tigers were able to come up with a big stop when needed to get back on track with a 21-13 win on Senior Night.
“That one feels good. The fact is that two teams played awfully hard for 48 minutes and that game could have gone either way,” Warsaw head coach Bart Curtis said after the game. “I’m so proud of these kids. This was a team that took it to us in both of the last two years. They are a physical, surgical football team. This is an exciting win.”
Before the game, 24 senior football players were honored.
“I remember when they were middle schoolers and there were 52 of them. We lost 28 of them but we kept the right 24.” Curtis said. “I couldn’t be prouder. They’ve meant so much to this team and this community, to have them experience a moment like this is really special.”
Starting the game on defense, Warsaw began the game with a huge play. With Mishawaka facing a third and long after a big stand, the Cavemen elected to pass. It was a poor decision, as Tristan Wilson was able to play it perfectly, coming up with an interception and a big return that gave the Tigers the ball at the Cavemen 40.
It wouldn’t be long until the team gave it right back. For the second straight week, Warsaw turned the ball over on the opening possession, with Daylon Fitzpatrick coughing up the ball in field goal range to give it right back to Mishawaka.
The home defense responded well to the sudden change, forcing a three-and-out immediately after heading back onto the field. The visitors fumbled the ball themselves on the second play of the drive, but were able to pounce on it for a four yard loss.
After getting the ball back, Warsaw was able to start moving the ball well. A speed option play to Tucker Reed got the team going, and it was quickly followed by a long run by quarterback Quinton Brock. Just outside of the red zone, the Tigers were able to strike first, as an outside carry by Reed would end up going the distance for a 27-yard touchdown run. After last week’s extra-point attempts had plenty of problems, senior Mason Smythe had no trouble booting it through the uprights here to make it a 7-0 game with 1:20 left in the first.
Mishawaka had a great response up their sleeves. On the second play of the ensuing drive, running back Jackson Snyder was able to find some daylight and broke free for a big run that got the team onto the Warsaw side of the field. After a pair of penalties backed them up 10 yards, Snyder did it again, with another long carry that put them into the red zone. After a few plays had the Cavemen knocking on the door, Snyder finished things off by punching it in from one yard out to tie the game up two minutes into the second quarter.

    Sophomore Tucker Reed cuts back to the middle of the field en route to scoring Warsaw's first touchdown during Friday night's home game against Mishawaka...Nieter

Not much would occur for the rest of the first half, with Warsaw punting twice and Mishawaka punting once as the second quarter rolled along. The second Tiger punt gave the ball back to the visitors with two minutes left in the half at the 20-yard line.
It looked as if the Cavemen were content to run out the clock after a running play that was followed by the running of the clock, but that was not to be. A trick play resulted in a huge passing play for the Cavemen, with a flea-flicker getting the ball to the Warsaw 30. It would have been a touchdown, if not for a big time tackle by Wilson in the secondary.
This put Mishawaka in business. They’d get into the red zone and to the five with time running out quickly. Facing a third and two, the Tiger defense came up with a huge spot to bring up 4th down with 20 seconds remaining. With no timeouts left, the visitors rushed their field goal unit out onto the field for a short kick at the end of the half. It worked to perfection, as the Cavemen were able to boot the ball through the uprights as time expired to take a 10-7 lead into halftime.
Needing a big spark, the Tigers got it on the first play from scrimmage to begin the third quarter. Brock was able to find some breathing room on a carry to the outside, breaking free and getting a big gain all the way to the Mishawaka 30 on a 50-yard run. The rest of the drive was much more methodical, with plenty of Warsaw players getting opportunities to move the ball down the field as the team inched closer and closer to the end zone. Eventually, four minutes into the drive, senior Evan Davis found the corner of the end zone on a speed option to retake the lead at 14-10.
The Tigers had multiple opportunities to get off of the field on third downs on the following Caveman drive, but were unable to do so, surrendering some of that momentum back to the visitors. Mishawaka was able to pick up all of the first downs it needed in what turned into a very long and effective drive, tiring out the Warsaw defense on a possession that drained almost the entirety of the last eight minutes of the quarter and got the Cavemen into the red zone. Finally, the Tigers were able to come up with a big play that forced a fourth down and resulted in another field goal for the visitors. The kick was good, making it a 14-13 game with just eight seconds left in the third quarter. Bending but not breaking, Warsaw was able to retain the lead after being on the field for nearly eight minutes.
Looking to give Mishawaka a bit of their own medicine, the Tigers took the air out of the football and took their time after getting the ball back. After securing just two first downs, Warsaw had already burned over three minutes of clock into the fourth. That would be as far as they’d get though, as the turnover bug reared its ugly head once again at the worst possible moment. Brock had it stripped on a keeper, and it was recovered by the Cavemen to give the visitors life and the ball at the Warsaw 46 with eight minutes to go.
Looking to avoid a third straight week of heartbreak, the home defense was able to come up with a play just as big on the drive that followed. On a third and short for Mishawaka, the D stripped the ball loose, and it was recovered by Matthew Flores-Ortega to give the Tigers the ball right back with seven minutes left.
“Things were looking pretty bleak,” Curtis admitted.
On the first play after getting the ball back, Brock was much more sure handed, taking a counter play 37 yards and deep into Mishawaka territory as time continued to tick away. As Warsaw faced a massive third down, a little over five minutes remained in the game. The quarterback decided to keep it himself, and needing five, he got six. This got the ball to the Cavemen 10 as the home side continued to burn clock.
“We wanted to take our time. We were fine with scoring three points here, even though we definitely wanted six,” Curtis said.
An offsides call against the visitors made it first and goal from the five with four minutes to go. Two carries by Brody Duncan only picked up a yard total, but burned another minute of clock and forced Mishawaka to use their second timeout of the half. On the crucial third down play, Tigers broke out a rare passing play, where Brock was able to find his senior receiver Ethan Egolf in the back corner of the end zone for a massive touchdown with 2:50 left. The point after was good, making it an eight-point game, still a one-possession affair.
“Last week was a fiasco, we should have kicked and didn’t so this week we decided to, and put it on them to go the length of the field,” Curtis said.
Within a minute of getting the ball back, the Cavemen had already gotten the ball to their own 40. Looking to avoid some last minute heartbreak for the third straight week, the Tiger defense was able to buck up here, forcing two straight incompletions and a short run to bring up a 4th and 8 with 1:17 left. With a chance to finish things off, the Tigers were finally able to expel the demons of previous games by forcing another incompletion to finish things off and secure the senior night win.
“This was a killer for us in each of the last two weeks, but we overcame it tonight,” Curtis said. “Tonight we were fortunate enough to make the winning plays against a very good football .team”
Warsaw (4-3, 3-2 Northern Lakes Conference) travels to NorthWood next week.