Val T.

Nov 26 min read

Late interception helps Eastern hold off Rochester in sectional semis

Beck runs for 197 yards, 2 TDs, but Zebras commit 3 turnovers

BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS

Sports Editor, RTC

GREENTOWN — Rochester senior wide receiver Drew Bowers beat Eastern sophomore defensive back Bently Hullinger for a 21-yard touchdown reception on the last play of the first half of their Class 2A, Sectional 36 semifinal Friday.

An Eastern assistant coach told Hullinger to not despair. They told him he would get a chance to atone later.

The Eastern coach’s prediction was accurate. But the Rochester sideline might beg to differ.

Ultimately, Hullinger intercepted Carson Paulik’s pass intended for Bowers on a double reverse flea-flicker in the end zone for a touchback with 53.6 seconds left to secure Eastern’s 28-24 win.

Eastern won their sixth straight game and improved to 7-4. They will travel to Tipton, a 21-0 winner over Alexandria in the other semifinal, in next Friday’s final.

Rochester finished 8-3.

Isaiah Pickett ran for two touchdowns, and Gibson Eagle threw two touchdown passes – one to Braylen Word and one to Kaleb Hurt – for the Comets.

Brant Beck ran 27 times for 197 yards and two touchdowns for the Zebras in the loss. Trenton Meadows had 62 yards on 14 carries, and he also scored three two-point conversions. Kale Shotts had 37 yards on 11 carries.

Rochester had three turnovers, including Hullinger’s game-clinching interception. Eastern had no turnovers.

“You’ve got to understand the feeling of what it’s like,” Rochester coach Ron Shaffer said. “If you want to play for championships, you know, the little mistakes become big mistakes. And then penalties become huge, and turnovers will kill you in the playoffs.”

Trailing by four, Rochester took over at their own 25 after Owen Tolle’s 41-yard punt with 4:49 left.

On fourth-and-2 from the 33, Brant Beck ran for 4 yards and a first down. A 10-yard pass from Paulik to Grant Clark resulted in another first down.

Ethan Bailey’s 8-yard reception and a Beck 3-yard tote on third-and-1 led to a first down at the Eastern 40.

Trenton Meadows’ 8-yard run made it second-and-2 from the Eastern 32, and Shaffer called timeout with 1:05 left.

After the timeout, Paulik handed off to Meadows at the left wing, who then handed off to Beck running parallel to the line of scrimmage. He quickly lateraled back to Paulik, who aimed deep for Bowers at the goal line.

Hullinger had Bowers in one-on-one coverage. Bowers appeared to try to catch it and cradle the ball between the crook of his arm and his chest at the 2-yard-line. Hullinger surrounded Bowers with his right arm.

Bowers tried to get his second hand on the ball to secure it, but Hullinger reached in and yanked the ball away as he fell into the end zone.

One official extended his hand, palm down, and waved it. Another pointed toward Eastern. Interception, touchback, game over.

“He was pretty down on himself,” Eastern coach Josh Edwards said of Hullinger’s mental state after giving up Bowers’ touchdown at the end of the half. “And actually, one of my assistant coaches, who is actually a former player of mine, went to him at halftime and told him… ‘You’re going to have a chance to make a play.’ And I tell you what, that’s just grit. That’s all that was. That was just grit. I talked to my team about being fortified, how God puts us in situations that will make us stronger, just like making a knife or a sword. You get put in the fire. You get hammered. You get beat around. And then you get stronger and stronger and stronger. And that was a good example of Bently right there just being fortified and being strong.”

Shaffer inquired with the referee to ask if it was a simultaneous possession. Per national high school rules, simultaneous possession favors the offense, and simultaneous possession in the end zone is a touchdown.

“If it’s simultaneous possession at that point, the ball’s dead,” Shaffer said. “It’s a touchdown. You’re in the end zone. They didn’t see it that way.”

Eastern never scored after the 9:29 mark of the third quarter on a 25-yard pass from Eagle to Hurt in the back corner of the end zone made it 28-16.

Rochester drove from their own 20 to the Eastern 39 in 11 plays, but the Eastern defense stopped Shotts for 1 yard on fourth-and-2 from the 40.

Rochester would force a punt and take over at their own 10. They then drove 90 yards in 12 plays. Beck had runs of 22, 13 and 12 yards on the drive, and he found the end zone on the 12-yard run with 5:53 left, running behind blocks from Shotts and James Gardner.

Paulik rolled to his right and found Meadows in the front corner of the end zone to make it 28-24.

“I think it was just figuring out what we had as far as things we could attack, certain players we could attack,” Shaffer said of how the rushing attack, which amassed 307 yards, improved as the game progressed. “And I thought execution got better. We just didn’t execute very well for about the first two or three quarters.”

Eastern’s next possession resulted in a three-and-out with Clarence Garrett in coverage on a pass intended for Word on third-and-8. The Eastern passing attack did not have a completion in the fourth quarter.

Rochester had the ball back.

“We actually brought our corners up a little bit stronger and play a little bit different coverage to try to help,” Shaffer said of the halftime defensive adjustments. “They were getting the bubble screen on us in early downs, and we wanted to limit that. And I think we just played our technique better.”

Rochester took their first lead at 8-7 on Beck’s 5-yard touchdown run on the first play of the second quarter and Meadows’ ensuing two-point conversion run.

But Hullinger returned the kickoff to the Eastern 35, and a facemask penalty on Rochester moved it to midfield.

Four plays later, after two false start penalties turned a first-and-10 into a first-and-20, Eagle threw a 42-yard touchdown strike to Word from a clean pocket even though Rochester was called for a pass interference penalty.

Tolle’s extra point made it 14-8.

After a three-and-out and a 22-yard punt from Paulik, Eastern drove 48 yards in seven plays. Eagle hit Tolle for 18 yards on fourth-and-6 from the Rochester 34, and on the next play, Pickett went off the left side of the line for a 16-yard touchdown run that made it 21-8.

Eastern had a chance to extend their lead further when Brayden Mayfield recovered a mishandled pitch from Paulik to Meadows with 4:38 left in the half.

But Rochester forced a punt and then drove 80 yards in three minutes.

On fourth-and-1 from their own 29, Beck ran around the left perimeter for 25 yards. Three plays later, Meadows had a 6-yard run on fourth-and-2.

Paulik then had a 14-yard scramble and got out of bounds with 3.5 seconds left in the half to convert a third-and-13.

Paulik then threw a 21-yard touchdown pass with Bowers adjusting to the ball in midair and making the catch for a score as time expired in the half. Meadows’ two-point conversion run on a counter made it 21-16.

Edwards shuddered afterwards when asked about Rochester’s ground attack.

“You don’t stop it,” Edwards said. “We didn’t stop it. We slowed it down a little bit. What we did do, which I think allowed for us to get the victory, was we prevented big chunk plays of 30 to 40 yards, which we had seen on film.

“And those kids are outstanding. That’s a very good football team. If we played 10 games, it’s probably five and five. We got a few breaks here and there. We got some turnovers early which obviously helped, right? But Rochester was a phenomenal football team that was probably the favorite to win the sectional. And again, play this game again, and they might beat us. … I thought both teams were class acts, Rochester and Eastern. I thought they just went out and played football – well-coached, hard-nosed kids from Rochester, but I’m proud of our guys.”

Rochester’s Maddox Jewell fumbled the opening kickoff and Eastern’s Cody Tarrh recovered on the 16. After Eagle completed passes covering 8 yards to Abe Edwards and 6 yards to Word, Pickett scored from the 3 to give Eastern a 7-0 lead.

“It’s a big turnaround when you want to go down and try to set the tone on the first series, and yet they get to set the tone,” Shaffer said of the importance of the fumbled kickoff. “You lose a possession.”

Rochester then sustained a 12-play drive, but Beck was stopped for 1 yard on fourth-and 2 from the 17.

But Rochester forced a punt and drove 62 yards in seven plays.

Eastern (Greentown) 28, Rochester 24

Rochester 0 16 0 8 – 24

Eastern 7 14 7 0 – 28

First quarter

EAST – Isaiah Pickett 3 run (Owen Tolle kick)

Second quarter

RHS – Brant Beck 5 run (Trenton Meadows run)

EAST – Braylen Word 42 pass from Gibson Eagle (Owen Tolle kick)

EAST – Pickett 16 run (Tolle kick)

RHS – Drew Bowers 21 pass from Carson Paulik (Meadows run)