STJ 7 6 0 20 33
St. James scored three
touchdowns in just over a six minute period of the fourth
quarter to
break open a close game, allowing the Trojans its first
playoff win in
twelve seasons as they defeated the visiting and penalty-prone
Carver-Birmingham Rams
33 - 12.
After a Carver punt, the
Trojans took over on their own 20 and drove 80 yards for the
first
score of the game. An early 16 yard completion from
Craig Bowman
to Jason Smith on third down was the key play. Bowman
added a 14
yard run, and Smith's 16 yard run to the one yard line set up
Bowman's
quarterback sneak touchdown. Lee Hassell's extra point
gave St.
James a 7 - 0 lead with over 7 minutes remaining in the first
quarter.
Carver was driving, but a
holding penalty, one of seventeen penalties the Rams committed
in the game and
most of those of the major variety, stopped the drive.
However,
with an
increasing wind at their back, a nice punt was downed at the
Trojan
1. The Trojans grounded out good yardage, actually into
Ram
territory, but eventually had to punt as well. From
Carver's own
17, on first down, a halfback pass went for 53 yards.
Two
penalties and three plays later, Carver scored on a 4 yard
touchdown
run by Terrence Allen. The extra point failed, so St.
James held
a shaky one point
lead early in the second quarter.
After a St. James punt,
Carver
turned the ball over on downs after driving as deep as the
Trojan
27. Two plays later, St. James returned the favor by
bobbling a
lateral which actually appeared to be a forward pass.
However,
Rick Fidel overcame the mistake with an interception at the
Trojan 2
which he returned 22 yards out of danger with 2:48 remaining
in the
half. The Trojans later were forced to punt, but the Ram
receiver
muffed the catch and St. James pounced on the loose ball at
the Carver
38. A dubious personal foul penalty on Carver added 15
yards to a
quarterback keeper, and the Trojans ran the 2 minute (actually
the 1
minute 14 second) offense impressively. Smith's
pass
reception from Bowman moved the ball to the 2, where he
carried in for
the touchdown 2 plays later with only 15 seconds remaining in
the
half. Hassell's kick into the wind swirled and was no
good, but
the Trojans had a touchdown lead going into the warm locker
room.
The two teams kept it close
to
the vest in a scoreless third quarter. The Trojans held
the ball
nearly four minutes despite gaining only 17 yards before
losing a
fumble at the
Ram 44. The Rams held the ball over 5 minutes, but the
drive only
netted four yards after a fourth down pass completion lost 9
yards from
the St. James 31. From the 40,
the Trojans began a 10 play drive exclusively on the ground,
with one
penalty thrown in. Jake McMillan's 11 yard run to the
Ram 19 was
the key play of the drive, and he
was rewarded with a 7 yard carry for the touchdown.
Hassell's
kick was true, and the lead was a more comfortable one, at 20
- 6,
early
in the fourth quarter.
Carver, this quarter
against
the wind, punted short and the Trojans had only a 60 yard
field to
traverse. Michael Reid's 8 yard rumble on 3rd and 5 set
up a 26
yard run by Bowman to the 19, where Smith took the ball in on
the next
play. The extra point was wide, but the lead was boosted
to 20
with nearly half of the final quarter expired.
On third down of the Rams'
next drive, Ryan Sexton intercepted a pass and returned it 20
yards to
the Carver 24. After a first down run by Smith to the 10
yard
line, the
game quickly deteriorated, primarily due to Carver
frustration.
Two personal fouls, one unsportsmanlike
conduct penalty, and three Ram ejections later, the ball was
on the 2,
where Smith carried easily for the touchdown. Another
endzone
personal foul after Hassell's extra point would have
threatened an
early stoppage to a regular season game, but this playoff game
continued onward with 4+ minutes remaining
and St. James safely in control at 33 - 6.
The Trojan reserves were
called on to defend what would be the final drive as major
penalties
continued to be racked up on both sides. Carver did
manage to
score on a 1
yard run by Chris Benton with 4 seconds to go, but to add
insult to
injury, St. James
intercepted the two point conversion pass to cement the final
margin of
33 - 12 which paved the way for the Trojans to advance in the
playoffs
for the first time in a dozen years.
=============================================================================================================================
SIDELINE STATISTICS - GAME ELEVEN
ST JAMES: RUSHING: 50 carries 275 yards 5 TDs (5.50 yards per carry)
7 Smith 26 /
145
(3 TDs) 2 Bowman
13 / 95 (1 TD)
19
McMillan 7 /
28 (1
TD)
35
Reid
4
/ 7
PASSING: 6 attempts 3 completions 0 INTs 0 TDs 35 yards
2 Bowman 3 - 6 - 0 35 yards
RECEIVING:
7
Smith
2 /
24
19
McMillan
1
/ 11
TOTAL
YARDS: 310
KICKS:
XP 3 /
5
FG
0 / 0
2 POINT CONVERSIONS: 0
/ 0
KICKOFFS:
5
(41,36,OB,OB,OB)
PUNTS:
3 (22,29,25)
KO
RETURNS: 3
(15,15,25)
PUNT
RETURNS: 1 (7)
FIRST DOWNS: 17 (14
rushing, 1 passing, 2
penalty)
INTERCEPTION
RETURNS: 2 (22,20)
FUMBLES: 3,
lost 2
TURNOVER
MARGIN: + 1
PENALTIES:
7 / 69
TIME OF
POSSESSION: 23:56
CARVER:
RUSHING 35
attempts 147 yards 2 TDs
(4.20 yards per carry)
PASSING
15 attempts 7 completions 2
INTs 105 yards
TOTAL
YARDS: 252
KICKS: XP 0 /
1
FG
0 / 0
2 POINT CONVERSIONS: 0 / 1
KICKOFFS: 3 (49,48,EZ)
PUNTS: 3 (40,47,28)
KO
RETURNS: 2
(18,13)
PUNT RETURNS: 2 (1,-5f)
FIRST
DOWNS: 9 (8 rushing, 1 passing)
FUMBLES:
2, lost 1
PENALTIES:
17 / 114 yards
TIME OF POSSESSION: 24:04