Homestead had the sophomore who came in with the gaudy season stats, but it Warsaw, led by a pair of senior standouts and a stingy defense, that came away with the win in Friday's Class 5A Sectional 3 semifinal showdown on a very muddy Fisher Field.
Powered by a running game that saw four-year starters Andy Conrad and Justin Clemens combine for 137 yards on 39 carries and a defense that has given up a total of 13 points in the last four games, the Tigers beat visiting Homestead 10-7 in the wind and driving rain."This is a big, big win for us," said Warsaw coach Phil Jensen, whose Tigers improved to 7-4 on the season with their sixth-straight win. "This was a great all-around team effort. I'm really proud of them. I'm happy to see the smiles on their faces."
With the win, Warsaw will host Fort Wayne Snider Friday in the Sectional 3 championship game. The Panthers (9-2) advanced to the title tilt with a 35-0 win over Summit Athletic Conference rival North Side (3-8).
"We've got our work cut out for us," said Jensen, whose team advanced to the sectional championship game for just the third time in school history. "Snider is a great team. It's a great program with a lot of tradition. I believe in this team, and I know they believe in themselves. All that matters is that the people in the locker room, the coach and the players, believe."
With the three-point loss, Homestead, which came into Friday's game averaging 38 points per game, ended its season with a 9-2 record.
Though the Spartans came in with just one loss on the season, one of Homestead's downfalls was playing in sloppy field conditions.
Their only loss of the season, a 21-7 setback in Week 8 at Norwell, came in the rain and mud.
Though Homestead beat conference rival Carroll 26-3 in last week's sectional opener, its offense sputtered at times.
And even though the Spartans took the opening kickoff and drove 80 yards in 11:10 on 20 plays to take a 7-0 lead on junior Brad Mills' 2-yard touchdown run and Austin Wilburns extra-point kick, Homestead had problems playing in the less-than-ideal conditions.
"I think it did," Homestead coach Chad Zolman said when asked if the weather and field conditions affected his team. "We're built for speed and quickness. You can't turn the ball over three times in a game like this and expect to win. Warsaw was able to keep it on the ground and get us."
The Spartans turned the ball over three times, all three - two fumbles and an interception - were charged to sophomore quarterback Zach Terrell.
Terrell entered the game with 1,818 passing yards with 24 touchdowns and four interceptions, all the while rushing for 703 yards and 12 scores.
Of his now five interceptions this season, Terrell threw three against Warsaw, which fell 31-17 at Homestead in Week 2.
Terrell completed 2 of 5 passes for 26 yards and rushed 10 times for 19 yards Friday against the Tigers.
The 6-foot-3, 180-pound Terrell had all the hype surrounding him.
As it turned out, it was the experience of guys like Conrad and Clemens that won out for the Tigers.
Conrad carried the ball 19 times for 103 yards, while Clemens tallied 34 yards on 20 carries. The bulk of Clemens' yards came at key points in the game, including a 1-yard carry on a fourth-and-1 situation late in the fourth quarter that allowed the Tigers to move the chains and run more time off the clock.
"When you watch Warsaw on film, you see guys like Conrad and Clemens, they stick out," said Zolman. "It seems like they've been out there 10 years. We knew they would go to them, especially on this type of field. They're big, strong backs, and they made plays when they had to."
After recovering a Homestead fumble in the second quarter, the host Tigers took over on the Spartans' 14-yard line and capped a four-play drive with an 8-yard touchdown pass from Clemens to junior Cody Bragg.
Until last week's sectional opener at Northrop, Bragg hadn't caught a pass this season.
He now has three receptions, two of of them going for touchdowns.
"That was a great play," Jensen said of the touchdown pass. "Cody fought his way upfield, the offensive line did a great job blocking and Justin got him the ball. That was a big play."
That play, followed by senior Matt Franco's extra-point kick, tied the game with 3:36 remaining in the first half.
Senior defensive back Brendan Barber picked off a Terrell pass midway through the third quarter, and the Tigers turned that into a 27-yard field goal by Franco with three seconds remaining in the frame.
Ironically it was a special teams play that proved to be the game-winner for the Tigers.
In Warsaw's game at Homestead earlier this season, the Spartans blocked a punt when they trailed the Tigers 10-0. That blocked punt sparked an offensive onslaught of 31-unanswered points.
Outside of the long first-quarter drive, Homestead's offense didn't bully the Tigers around this time.
"Warsaw is a good team," said Zolman. "They're very well-coached."
Clemens finished the game 3 of 7 through the air for 33 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions.
Junior Jalen Roscoe caught a 14-yard pass for a first down for Warsaw, while senior Zack Linky caught an 11-yard pass that produced a first down for the Tigers.
For Homestead, Mills lead the way with 19 carries for 96 yards.
Conrad entered Friday's contest needing 147 yards to break Brad Seiss' career rushing record of 3,652 yards.
Conrad has rushed for nearly 1,400 yards this season, a season that will continue at least one more week.
