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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend October 8, 2005 Comets stave off pesky Eagles By KRIS HENRY Mail Tribune EAGLE POINT — Just when you think you’re in control, most likely that’s when you’ve lost it. That was the case for Crater’s football team Friday night at Eagle Stadium as the Comets twice built double-digit leads and watched them fritter away. Fortunately for the Comets, however, they were able to regroup in time to pull out a much-needed 36-32 triumph over Eagle Point in a key Southern Oregon Conference clash. With the win, Crater improved to 3-3 overall and 1-2 in SOC play, while Eagle Point dropped to 3-3 and 0-3. "I think we might have taken a little break and thought it was over," said Crater senior lineman Charlie Alexander of his team’s big leads, "but we overcame that and stepped up pretty big tonight." Advertisement In all fairness, each team had a handful of players who took their game up a notch in the SOC rivalry — but none more than Eagle Point’s Mychal Williams. The 5-foot-11, 160-pound wide receiver and defensive back was a huge thorn in Crater’s side with his all-around exploits. When the Eagles needed a play, it was Williams who made it to sustain drives or put points on the board. The senior hauled in 11 passes for 156 yards — including a 65-yard bomb from Brandt Nevin with the Eagles down 29-12 — and also returned a kickoff 85 yards for a score after Crater rebuilt its lead to 36-26 with 1:59 to play. "Mychal played a great game," said Crater coach John Beck. "He’s really a good competitor and playmaker. He’s a good multi-sport athlete with basketball who really comes out and plays hard." It was the kind of effort Eagle Point head coach Harry Hedrick said his team could have used more of in the back-and-forth affair. "The play of Mychal Williams was super," said Hedrick. "If we can get that level of play out of the rest of the players that would change the direction of a lot of games." All the kudos in the world, however, provided little solace for Williams after the game. "I laid it all out on the field tonight, it just wasn’t enough," he said. "It’s very disappointing. We really wanted that win. It’s Crater and they’re our rivals and now we’re 0-3 in conference. It’s really heartbreaking." While Williams was a difference-maker to be sure, he certainly wasn’t alone in that regard as each team traded jabs with their respective playmakers. For Crater, junior Tyler Davis helped the Comets surge to a 14-0 lead with a 57-yard touchdown run on the first play from scrimmage, and then followed that up after a Callan Hartzer interception with a 27-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Brian Theis. Davis finished with 101 yards rushing on three carries and pulled down five passes for 59. Those first-quarter heroics were soon offset by Eagle Point junior Kris Butler, who celebrated his 17th birthday by scoring on runs of 8 and 24 yards to pull the Eagles to within 14-12 early in the second quarter. After a Cody Clark 6-yard touchdown run and Jordan Clark’s third straight PAT made it 21-12 at halftime, the Comets built their lead back up to double figures when Hartzer bulled over from the 1 to cap a 12-play, 62-yard drive with 1:17 to go in the third quarter. When the ensuing snap for a PAT landed short, holder Cory Staniforth alertly hopped up and scrambled in for a two-point conversion to make it 29-12. Crater’s celebration was short-lived, however, as Nevin spotted a streaking Williams behind the defense of Jesse Warren and Bryce Peila and hit him perfectly in stride for a 65-yard score. Nevin later marched the Eagles 89 yards in 16 plays for a scoring drive that was capped off with a 10-yard TD pass to Butler to make it 29-26 with 2:59 to play. Nevin finished with 340 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions on 22-for-42 passing. Undaunted, the Comets stormed right back after EP’s onside kick went out of bounds. On the second play from scrimmage, Hartzer took an inside handoff, bounced right and outraced everyone 53 yards to paydirt to make it 36-26 with 1:59 to play. Hartzer finished with 104 yards on 16 carries and might have scored four times had an interception return for a score and another long TD run not been nullified by penalties. "I thought Callan was a workhorse and real physical runner out there," Beck said of the senior. "That was the best he’s run all year." Williams broke free on the ensuing kickoff to score his second touchdown, but that was the end of the Eagles’ surge as another onside kick went out of bounds and Hartzer iced the game on the ground. "The kids hung in there even though we had those touchdowns called back and handled the adversity," said Beck. "We got a little tight at the end but give (the Eagles) credit, too, because they didn’t quit. It was a good, hard-fought battle between two teams that had to win." While there were positives to be sure on EP’s sideline, Hedrick couldn’t help but lament what could have been had his team been able to execute a little better. "It was the mistakes that got us," said Hedrick. "We had fumbles, interceptions, missed tackles and blown assignments, and all those things add up throughout the course of the game. We just couldn’t overcome that." Thanks to a teacher in-service day next Friday, both teams will have a short week to prepare as Eagle Point plays host to Ashland and Roseburg is at Crater on Thursday. "Now we have a chance, which is all you can ask for," Beck said of gaining what he deemed a must-win over EP. "We’ve just got to go out and regroup real quick and get ready for one of the best teams in the state in Roseburg." Reach reporter Kris Henry at 776-4488, or e-mail Comets stave off pesky Eagles ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker Custom Build Computers Computer Security Discount Hotel Reservations Casinos Canada dvd-r Generic Viagra Myspace Windermere Van Vleet Deep Muscle Stimulator Sports Equipment Online Casino Reviews Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Online Casino Fundraisers Student Loans Sudoku Online Advertisement s