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Werbin passes South to 28-7 all-star victory By Steve Hunter for the Mail Tribune PORTLAND - Quarterback Jimmy Werbin of Ashland picked up right where he left off six months ago. In only two quarters of play, Werbin completed 11 of 24 passes for 236 yards and three touchdowns as South defeated North 28-7 in the Les Schwab Oregon Bowl high school all-star football game Saturday night before a crowd of 7,135 at Civic Stadium. Werbin, who led Ashland to the Class 4A state title with a win over Roseburg in December, threw two touchdown passes in the third quarter to give South a 28-7 lead after it led 6-0 at halftime in a game featuring the top graduated seniors in the state. "I didn't know how we were going to do," Werbin said. "I knew the North had a lot of good players. We just wanted to come out, have fun and see what happens." On South's first possession of the second half, Werbin threw a 22-yard pass to Tim Euhus of Churchill and a 36-yard touchdown pass to Dave Langhaim of Mountain View. A two-point conversion pass to Euhus from Werbin made it 14-0. After North responded with a 2-yard touchdown run by Nathaniel Guard of Gresham to cut the lead to 14-7, Werbin completed a 26-yard pass to Joshua Heacock of Thurston to help set up a 2-yard touchdown run by Brad Ralph of Crater to make it 20-7. Werbin, headed to Southern Oregon University, went to work again late in the third quarter after South stopped North on three straight downs. After a 40-yard pass to Mike Litten of Churchill, South had two penalties before Werbin had an 8-yard run and Travis Burgher of Marshfield rushed for 19 yards. Werbin then threw a 16-yard touchdown pass to Heacock and a two-point conversion pass to Euhus to give South a 28-7 lead with 3 minutes, 25 seconds left in the third quarter. "I was just happy to be here," Werbin said about being named the most valuable player of the game. "Getting the MVP is just an addition to my happiness. I was just glad I could have a good game." South took a 6-0 lead when Werbin, who was the Southern Oregon Conference co-offensive player of the year with Roseburg quarterback Kevin Linderman, threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Heacock with 5:58 left in the first quarter. Werbin completed 4 of 6 passes for 57 yards to ignite the 67-yard drive. Austin Mason of Ashland had three receptions for 45 yards, including a 29-yard catch on a third-and-eight play from the North 46. In the first half, Werbin completed 5 of 12 passes for 92 yards with one interception. Mason finished the game with five receptions for 92 yards. Werbin played behind a strong offensive line, including Ryan Schorovsky and Roger Walsh of Ashland, Matt Davis (6-5, 300 pounds) of North Salem and Bryce Bohlander (6-7, 275) of McNary. North had a chance to score just before the end of the first half, but Tyson Bell of Sandy missed a 29-yard field goal attempt. Quarterback Casey Kelly of Westview completed 6 of 8 passes for 66 yards to put North in scoring position at the South 7. Kelly completed 19 of 42 passes for 209 yards with two interceptions. Guard had seven receptions for 62 yards. Guard also had 35 yards rushing on 12 carries. Ralph had 28 yards on seven carries. Eagle Point running back Sean Johnston had 16 yards on four carries. North played without running backs Luke Staley of Tualatin and Matt Floberg of Jesuit. Staley left early for Brigham Young University while Floberg suffered a hamstring injury in practice. Today's Sports Index Mail Tribune Copyright� The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, OR U.S.A.