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Eagles fly past Ashland Eagle Point knocks off the Grizzlies for the first time in 15 seasons By DON HUNT EAGLE POINT - Trailing 12-0 late in the first half, the Eagle Point High football team needed a break to jump-start its sinking fortunes. Sam Dodenhoff and Andrew Tree were just the men for the job. Dodenhoff blasted Ashland running back Ty Haggard on a sweep, the ball popped loose and Tree picked it out of the air and ran 63 yards for a touchdown. The fumble recovery was the first of eight turnovers the Eagles forced on their way to a 27-19 comeback victory Friday night. The outcome left both teams with 2-4 records and snapped Eagle Point's five-game losing streak. "That was their cutback play and we had it scouted," said Dodenhoff, the Eagles' hard-nosed senior linebacker. "I saw one of their lineman pull and a light bulb came on in my head. "I flew up, made the hit and then the next thing I knew Tree was running down the sideline for a touchdown." The Eagles recovered two more fumbles on the night and intercepted five passes as they defeated the Grizzlies for the first time since 1986. Tree wound up with two fumble recoveries and an interception to lead the turnover onslaught. "We've been prone to turnovers all season and we coughed the ball up a bunch tonight," said Ashland coach Jim Nagel, whose team went into the game with a minus-11 turnover ratio and came out of it at minus-16. "The turnovers just killed us. "We're obviously a struggling football team right now." The Grizzlies' woebegone defense also took another pounding as Eagle Point racked up 256 yards rushing and 319 yards overall. Both of the Eagles' starting running backs went over 100 yards as Victor Shelton piled up 111 yards on 17 carries and two touchdowns and Chris Boyd added 103 on 21 attempts and one score. Shelton scooted 21 yards to paydirt through a gaping hole over left tackle with 9:05 to play for Eagle Point's final touchdown. "I never got touched on that play," said Shelton, who went over the 100-yard mark for the first time this season. "Our line really dominated." Despite all of its troubles, Ashland had one last chance to mount a drive and tie the score with 1:16 to play. Starting from their own 14-yard line, the Grizzlies quickly moved to the Eagle Point 44 as quarterback Cameron Voget hit Eddie Griffin for 13 yards and Nick Palmesano for 30 more. Voget then nearly hooked up with Ryan Decker inside the Eagle Point 10, but the ball was a bit overthrown and slipped off Decker's outstretched hands. On the following play, Brandon Sychia registered the Eagles' fifth interception of the night. "It was nice to come back and win the game after being down early," Eagle Point coach Mike Johnston said. "Sometimes when you've been losing it's hard to maintain your confidence when you get in a game and have some adversity. "But our guys played right through it and just kept playing hard. We had a lot of guys step up on defense and both Shelton and Boyd ran hard." Ashland took the lead late in the first quarter after Voget made a diving interception of a Robert Slayton pass at the Eagle Point 25. Five plays later Voget hit Griffin on an 11-yard touchdown pass, but Decker's extra-point attempt sailed wide to the right and the Grizz had to settle for a 6-0 lead. Ashland then got a big break midway through the second period when a punt hit the leg of Eagle Point return man Tom Lind at the Eagles' 1-yard line. One play later, Haggard plunged over right tackle and the Grizzlies had a 12-0 advantage. More good fortune came Ashland's way a couple of minutes later when Dodenhoff tried a fake punt that backfired, giving the Grizzlies the ball at the Eagle Point 36. But Dodenhoff and Tree teamed up for their instant heroics on the very next play, and little went right for the Grizzlies the rest of the game. Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.