Trojans stop two-point conversion for 28-27 win over Elk Grove - Gold Country Media - Matt Long
 

Photo by Bill Sullivan Photography

Oak Ridge couldn't get out of its own way in the first half Friday night at Elk Grove. In the second, the Trojans scored 28 points and stopped an Elk Grove two-point conversion attempt with no time left on the clock to win the game, 28-27.

It was a great lesson for team; never give up and keep fighting. The Trojans could never grab momentum in the first half and trailed 13-0. In the second, they scored on all four possessions and the defense came up big when it needed to after a long night of chasing Elk Grove quarterback Ethan Archuleta, a fast and quick 5-8, 170-pounder who was a nightmare to tackle. On the two-point conversion, Archuleta tried to squeeze in the end zone by running straight up the middle, but the Trojan defense closed the gaps and held him short of the goal line.

"I'm proud of the kids and the coaches," Oak Ridge coach Casey Taylor said. "It takes 48 minutes, but I tonight it was 48 minutes and one play. We needed this win after losing to Vacaville on the last play and then not playing last week. We wanted to get off to a good start, but they came out and took it to us. We felt fortunate to only be down 13-0 at the half. I'm proud of the effort. Guys started to compete. We handled their size on offense better in the second half. Maddox (Varella) made some great plays. It was a classic heavyweight fight; two fighters going back and forth."

Given Archuleta's shifty and elusive running all night long, one had to feel his chances of scoring on the final play were pretty good, especially considering how the Thundering Herd got themselves in that position. After the Trojans scored the go-ahead touchdown, a 53-yard touchdown pass from Varella to John Hayward with 2:30 to play, the Thundering Herd moved the ball 70 yards on 10 plays; converting a fourth-and-10 play with a 38-yard pass from Archuleta to Gio Bellecci. With two Trojans on him, Bellecci jumped and made the unlikely catch. Two plays later with three seconds left on the clock, Archuleta found Chris Dodson for the score. With all the momentum back on their side, Elk Grove still couldn't punch the ball in the end zone for the winning two-point conversion.

"It was a great game, and it was rough, I'm not going to lie," said Oak Ridge junior defensive end Connor Dasmann, who had a key fumble recovery that led to Oak Ridge's game-winning touchdown and extra point. "We had some bad plays and made some mistakes, but we finished the job. We played hard, fast and disciplined; that's Oak Ridge football. They punched us in the mouth in the first half, but we came back and executed better in the second half."

Oak Ridge's first score of the game came late in the third quarter on a six-yard pass from Varella 12-of-19, 238 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT) to Hayward (3 catches, 72 yards, 2 TDs). Elk Grove answered with a three-yard run from Zeke Burnett early in the fourth quarter and the ensuing two-point conversion by Burnett gave them a 21-7 lead.

On Oak Ridge's next play from scrimmage, Reese Catchings burst up the right sideline, cut back toward the center of the field and scored on a 75-yard touchdown run that seemed to lift the Trojans. Catchings finished with 143 yards rushing on 19 carries and two scores. He also caught three balls for 17 yards.

"We started off slow, but in the second half we came together as a team," Catchings said. "We were hyped. We executed and made plays."

After forcing an Elk Grove punt, Oak Ridge got back to work offensively with a fast and efficient four-play drive. Varella made two big runs up the middle, one for 20 yards and another for a first down to start the drive. He then threw a 26-yard pass to Sean Dwyer before an 11-yard TD run by Catchings tied the game at 21, which set the stage for Dasmann's fumble recovery at Oak Ridge's own 10-yard line and the exciting finish.

The first half was a different story. Two turnovers, a couple dropped passes, a handful of penalties and poor execution kept the Trojans out of the end zone, not to mention some good defensive play from Elk Grove. After starting quarterback Drew Cowart threw an interception ending Oak Ridge's second possession, Varella came in to play quarterback and played the remainder of the game.

"We made some adjustments at halftime, but it was mostly that we executed better," Varella said of the team's better play in the second half. "This win shows we can overcome adversity. It shows we are mentally tough, and it showed how badly we wanted it."

Taylor said the win was significant.

"The Vacaville game, losing that game on the last play, that experience helped us tonight," Taylor said. "This was a playoff-type game. These are the kind of games you need to win in the playoffs; games like this that are tied with six minutes to play in the game. This was a big and special win for the team."