Cougars Fall Short In Roanoke The
Pulaski County Cougars held onto a four point lead until the final moments
of the game Friday night in Roanoke, but the Cave Spring Knights were able
to score with under a minute to go to steal away a 22-20 win. "It's
really disappointing" said Cougar Head Coach Todd Jones. "Our
kids fought their hearts out tonight, and to see us fall that late in the
game makes it even tougher. I thought we played well at times, but we are
going to have to find a way to make a big play now and then. Our kids
never gave up though, and even when Cave Spring scored with under a minute
left, our kids went right back to work and started moving the ball down
field." The
Cougars got on the scoreboard first, after both teams battled back and
fourth through a scoreless first quarter. With 10:53 left in the second
quarter Pierce Rigney took the handoff and pushed 9 yards through the Cave
Spring defense to give Pulaski a 6-0 lead after the extra point attempt
was bobbled on the hold. The Knights didn't waste any time getting back on
track, and with 10 minutes left in the half running back Sam Wright took
the ball off the left side and raced 65 yards to pay dirt. A successful
two point conversion run by quarterback Reece Kingery put the Knights in
the lead 8-6. Malik
Eaves took the kickoff back to the Cougar 45 yard line, setting Pulaski up
in good field position. The Cougars used a solid rushing attack to move
the ball to the Knights two yard line, but on third and goal quarterback
Tyler Dotson was hit immediately as he turned to hand the ball off, and
the ball fell free. Cave Spring recovered at the nine yard line. The final
score of the first half came with just 1:27 left, when the Knight topped
off a long drive with a three yard scoring run by Wright. Kingery passed
to Ryan Gerhardt for the two point conversion, giving the Knights a 16-6
lead. Pulaski took the kickoff back to their own 42, but another Cougar
fumble set the Knights up with a chance to hit pay dirt again before
halftime. With the final seconds ticking off the clock, Cody Long
intercepted a Kingery pass to end the Knights scoring hopes as both teams
headed for the locker room. Pulaski
kicked off to start the second half, and the Knights decided to try their
luck through the air. On third and nine with 11:13 on the clock, Kingery
dropped back and sent his pass to the flats, where Cougar defender Elijah
Wesley was ready and waiting. Wesley intercepted the pass, picked up a few
blockers, and went 45 yards down the Cougar sideline for the score. Cody
Long took the ball into the endzone for the two point conversion, putting
the score at 16-14 Cave Spring. The
Knights returned the kickoff to their own 30 yard line, and went to work
with a heavy dose of Sam Wright. On fourth and goal the Knights again
attempted to pass the ball, and this time Cougar Corky Hall stepped in to
intercept the pass. Pulaski used a solid running attack from Pierce
Rigney, Cody Long, Marcus McClanahan, and Rick Cobbs to move the ball into
the redzone. On fourth and goal Long took the ball across the goal line
from two yards out. The two point conversion was no good, leaving the
Cougars ahead 20-16. The
Knights final drive of the game started on their own 39 yard line. Nine
plays later, the Knights found themselves facing a fourth down with five
yards to go. Kingery dropped back, found his receivers covered, and
scrambled for the right side of the field. Avoiding several Cougar
tackling attempts, he managed to get just enough yardage for the first
down, keeping the Knights hopes alive. Six consecutive runs by Wright
later, Cave Springs found themselves with a fourth and goal inside the one
yard line. Wright took the handoff and carried it into the endzone for his
third and final score of the evening. The failed two point attempt left
the scoreboard at 22-20 Cave Spring. The
Cougars had one final drive left, and only 58.4 seconds left on the clock.
Zack Dao returned the kickoff to the Cougars 42 yard line. On first down
Dotson took off to the home side of the field for a nine yard gain. Rick
Cobbs took the ball to the visitor’s side for a first down, and then ran
again before the Cougars called their final timeout. McClanahan carried
the ball for first down yardage, and an incomplete pass on first down
stopped the clock for the Cougars. A second incomplete pass from Dotson to
Zack Akers left Pulaski with just 8.5 seconds on third down. Under
pressure from the Knights as the clock ticked to zero, Dotson’s final
pass of the game was intercepted by Cave Springs Jordan Bryant to end the
game. Pulaski
finished with 46 rushing attempts for 208 yards, while Cave Spring had 49
attempts for 295 yards. The Cougars were 0 for 3 passing with an
interception, while the Knights were 7 of 14 for 52 yards with 3
interceptions. The Cougars totaled 208 yards with 14 first downs, while
Cave Spring earned 347 total yards and 20 first downs. McClanahan
led the Cougars rushing attack with 19 attempts for 95 yards. Rigney
carried the ball18 times for 92 yards, while Cobbs carried 4 times for 42
yards. Long had one rush for 2 yards. For the Knights, Wright carried the
load with 42 carries for 270 yards. His performance also allowed him to
surpass the all time rushing record at Cave Spring, formerly held by Tiki
Barber. Tony Simmons carried the ball 3 times for 13 yards, and Kingery
carried 7 times for 25 yards. The Cougars will travel back to Bogle Field next Friday to face the Hidden Valley Titans. Kickoff is set for 7:30.
Game Pictures
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