GEN          0        7        6        6             19

STJ           7        0        0        0               7

SCORING SUMMARY:

  
October 29, 2004.  Carlisle Field.    7:00 PM  SENIOR NIGHT   Partly cloudy, muggy, no wind.  Game temperature:  71

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Saint James continued its recent rash of turnovers, committing 6 this game, 3 in the red zone, and despite outgaining Geneva more than 6 to 1 in yardage in the first half, earned no better than a halftime tie.  The Trojans could not reach the endzone in the second half as the Panthers converted two very short drives into touchdowns as they clinched the runner-up spot in Region 2 with a 19 - 7 victory over the Trojans at Carlisle Field.

The Trojans drove 80 yards on their first possession for a touchdown.  Tyler Murphy, who again threw for over 300 yards, completed first down passes to Taylor Thompson for 12, Bruce Alter for 15, and converted a fourth and 1 with a nice 31 yard pass and run to John Enslen which moved the ball down to the Panther 10.  On third down, Murphy fired a strike over the middle to Alter for the final 5 yards and an early touchdown.

After a Geneva three and out, Saint James was driving again.  However, during a pass completion down to the Panther 6, the ball was wrestled away by the tacklers for the first of those six costly turnovers.  However, another three and out and a punt return by Matt Ward had the Trojans again deep in Panther territory starting a new drive at the 39.  However, on the second play of the second quarter, Saint James fumbled again at the Geneva 16.  The Panthers were again forced to punt, and Saint James took over on their own 45.  A nice catch by Alter advanced the ball 22 yards, and Matt Burke caught another pass later for 14 yards.  Alter's 9 yard reception gave Saint James a fourth and 1 at the 10, and after a time out, the Trojans elected to go for a field goal.  The kick appeared good from a distance but was waved wide and ruled no good.

From there, Geneva finally got their offense in gear and converted their first two first downs of the game, after the Trojans had racked up eight.  A sack later did force another Panther punt, and the inadvertent whistle rared its ugly head again in a Trojan game.  A fair catch attempt was muffed by the Trojan receiver, but the whistle blew while the ball was still loose and in play.  Rules require a replay in that instance, much to the deserved anger of the Panther fans whose team had recovered the muff.  Trojan lineman Zach Sealy caught a pass after a deflection, and Saint James moved down to the Geneva 45 after two more first downs.  However, a Murphy pass was targeted well and intercepted over the middle by Michael Scott who had a running start from his own 38 and just eluded a Murphy tackle deep in Trojan territory to cash in the interception return touchdown.  Brian Haney kicked the extra point, and Geneva had tied the game thanks to its defense.

After a Saint James punt, Geneva had one last opportunity, but a Taylor Thompson interception, what would be the only Geneva turnover of the evening, at the Trojan 30 ended that threat.

The Panthers came out and moved the ball well on their initial second half drive, almost exclusively on the ground.  Geneva chose to punt from the Trojan 39, and the misfortune continued for Saint James as the ball hit the receiver on either the helmet or a shoulder pad and was quickly pounced on by several Panthers at the Trojan 4 yard line.  From there, it took only one play for Josh Brownell to dart in for the touchdown.  However, the extra point was wide and Geneva's first lead was shaky, at 13 - 7.

On the second play of the Trojan drive, Murphy completed his longest pass of the year, a 62 yard post catch and run to Matt Ward, who was finally brought down at the Panther 17.  On third down from the 10, a Murphy pass was tipped by receiver and defender, and landed in the hands of Geneva's Kyle Roney who was kneeling in the endzone.  The touchback was the result of the third red zone Trojan turnover of the game.  The Panthers picked up two first downs by pass, and punted deep into Trojan territory as the third quarter was ending.

Saint James managed to get just short of midfield before punting again, and the Geneva ground game began to grind out the fourth quarter clock.  The Panthers went from their 25 to the Trojan 25 before attempting a 43 yard field goal which was plenty long but wide, and Saint James was still within one score with 5:34 remaining.  However, the Trojans could only gain 8 yards on 4 plays and turned the ball back over deep in their own territory.  On fourth down from the Trojan 18, quarterback Jake Helms called his own number on a well-timed and beautifully-executed quarterback bootleg run, being tackled within inches of the endzone.  On the next play, Anthony Dennard snuck over from inside the one.  Geneva tried a two point pass, but it was batted down by Trojan Kevin Simpson.  However, the lead had grown to 12 with only 2½ minutes remaining.

The Trojans picked up one first down, but the sixth turnover proved to be the nail in the coffin as Martell Myhand intercepted a pass and returned it to the Trojan 19.  Saint James used time outs, but gave up a first down on a fourth down encroachment penalty, and Geneva simply ran out the clock and locked up that all-important first round home playoff game, resigning the Trojans to travel to tough territory for their opening playoff matchup two weeks down the road.

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GAME NINE SIDELINE STATISTICS:

SAINT JAMES  RUSHING   22 attempts  18 yards  0 TDs  (< 1 yard per carry)

                           30   Ward           2 / 8          9   Murphy            12 / 7            34   Hoover      4 / 6
                           19   Newton        1 / 1        22   Alter                 3 / - 4

                           PASSING   23 completions   36 attempts   3 INTs   302 yards  1 TD  (2 sacks of, 12 yards)

                             9   Murphy       23 - 36 - 3     302 yards     1 TD  (2 sacks, - 12 yards)

                           RECEIVING

                           30   Ward           4 / 89        2   Thompson         8 / 80            22   Alter         5 / 52  (1 TD)
                           14   Enslen         3 / 51       19   Newton             1 / 15            88   Burke       1 / 14
                           70   Sealy           1 /  1

                           TOTAL YARDS:   320

                           KICKS:  XP  1 / 1                FG  0 / 1   (28 missed)
                           2 POINT CONVERSIONS:  0 / 0
                           KICKOFFS:  2 (59,49)                                  PUNTS:  2  (40,42)
                           KO RETURNS:  1 (17)                                 PUNT RETURNS:   4 (0fc,8,0fc,0f)
                           INTERCEPTION RETURNS:  1 (0)
                           FIRST DOWNS:   15  (3 rushing, 12 passing)
                           FUMBLES:  3, lost 3
                           TURNOVER MARGIN:   - 5
                           PENALTIES:  5 / 25 yards
                           TIME OF POSSESSION:  23:02

GENEVA           RUSHING   44 attempts  118 yards   2 TDs   (2.68 yards per carry)
                           PASSING      9 completions  15 attempts  1 INT  59 yards  0 TDs  (1 sack of, 3 yards)
                           TOTAL YARDS:   177

                           KICKS:  XP  1 / 2                 FG  0 / 1  (43 missed)
                           2 POINT CONVERSIONS:  0 / 1
                           KICKOFFS:  4 (EZ,OB,56,EZ)                     PUNTS:  6  (26,32,39,30,35,36)
                           KO RETURNS:  2  (5,22)                             PUNT RETURNS:  2  (8,17)
                           INTERCEPTION RETURNS:  3  (62TD,0,13)
                           FIRST DOWNS:  13  (10 rushing, 2 passing, 1 penalty)
                           FUMBLES:  0
                           PENALTIES:  1 / 5 yards
                           TIME OF POSSESSION:  24:58