2009 - GAME 5

ST. JAMES 13, @ Montgomery Academy 10

STJ            0        0       7       6         13

M A 
         0      10       0       0         10

SCORING SUMMARY:


M A  (2)  4:49   Harris 30 pass from Mangum                (Bemis kick)       0 -  7
M A  (2)  0:02   Bemis 46 FG                                                                    0 - 10
STJ   (3)  9:43   Poe 1 run                                            (Weldon kick)       7 - 10
STJ   (4)  0:32   Slayton 2 run                                         (kick failed)      13 - 10


September 25, 2009  McLemore Field   Game Conditions:  Partly Cloudy, humid  Game Temperature:  84   Wind:  SE  3 - 5

SEE A COMPLETE VIDEO REPLAY OF THIS GAME - CLICK HERE





Taylor Poe (# 14) breaks through the Eagle defensive line on a key third down play for 12 yards and a Trojan first down ... setting up ...




John Slayton (#20) plowing into the endzone behind the blocking of the Trojan line for the go-ahead touchdown.
(Photos courtesy of Kevin and Mary Ann Ostrye)



For the third consecutive week, St. James overcame a last minute deficit as John Slayton dove off right guard for a two yard touchdown with just over 30 seconds remaining to lift the Trojans to their fourth consecutive victory, and their first over Capital City Conference rival Montgomery Academy in four years, as St. James defeated the Eagles 13 - 10 in front of the Eagles' Homecoming crowd.

Unlike any of the previous four games this season, the Trojans came out and frankly looked lethargic on offense.  Until the final two plays of the first quarter, so did the Eagles, as both defenses were stiff early.  The first five possessions ended in punts with St. James converting only two first downs and M A converting none.  Starting from their own 21, the Eagles brought in Ben Mangum to replace starting quarterback Jackson Muller.  Mangum's 2 yard run and his 20 yard pass completion to Tucker Harris gave M A their initial two first downs to end the first quarter.  Azerie Lewis picked up another first down several plays later, but the Trojan defense held as Zac Steele sacked Mangum back to the Trojan 36.  A sixth punt ensued, but it was muffed and the Eagles fell on the loose ball at the Trojan 5 yard line.

After a one yard run, the Eagles returned the favor as Muller, back in, fumbled the ball and St. James recovered just short of the goal line, stopping a serious Eagle threat.  Three plays netted no gain, but B.J. Weldon's punt pushed the Eagles back to the Trojan 42.  Jeffrey Ashurst immediately cut the distance in half with a 21 yard run on first down.  Two plays gaining a total of one yard and two consecutive false start penalties pushed the ball back to the 30.  Mangum had returned, and he tossed a nifty pass to Harris, whose fingertip catch and stretch into the endzone gave the Eagles the first score of the game.  Michael Bemis' extra point put the Eagles up 7 - 0 late in the first half.

After a 13 yard run by Nick Ostrye, the longest first half gain by St. James, they again were stopped and a short punt gave M A another scoring chance from their own 47.
Mangum, on his leg and several short passes, moved the ball as close as the Trojan 28.  From there, Bemis was called in to attempt a 46 yard field goal, which he just squeezed over the crossbar and inside the left upright for an Eagle 10 point lead.  This (officially) 46 yard kickoff was the longest ever converted against a Trojan team.  The kickoff eliminated any remaining time for St. James to try and score.

The momentum changed immediately on the second half opening kickoff.  B.J. Weldon lofted a high kick which hit at about the 24 yard line and began rolling and bouncing toward the sidelines.  The wet ground softened the blow, and as Eagle Niell McCorvey stood waiting for the ball to dribble out of bounds, it never did, and Crawford Steinberg ran in and snatched the ball at the 16 yard line.  He tried to advance the ball, but it was correctly blown dead; however St. James had earned possession.  John Slayton picked up 15 yards on 4 carries, and on the fifth play, Taylor Poe called his own number for a one yard touchdown.  Weldon's point had the Trojans back in the game early in the third quarter, trailing only 10 - 7.

The Eagles failed to garner a first down, and a shanked punt gave the Trojans good field position at the Eagle 48.  However, an untimely unsportsmanlike conduct penalty pushed the Trojans back, and they punted as well.  The Eagles again moved the ball, primarily on the legs of Lewis and Ashurst and short completions by Muller.  A 16 yard run by Lewis which would have moved the ball down to the Trojan 13 was mostly negated by a holding penalty.  On the next play, Muller's pass was overthrown and intercepted by Drew Brantley, who was on one knee preventing what would have likely been a long return.

Like the last few plays of the first quarter, St. James again took advantage as Lee Ketzler's 17 yard completion to Brandyn Baker on the last play of the third quarter gave the Trojans momentum.  St. James drove as far as the Eagle 26, but two consecutive sacks of Ketzler gave the Eagles the ball on downs with just over 8 minutes remaining in the game.  Lewis picked up 25 yards on 4 consecutive runs, and it appeared the Eagles might have enough field to run out the clock.  Ashurst picked up 9 yards on the next 2 plays, but on third down, as Muller was trying to call a time out, the ball was snapped and luckily fallen on by M A.  On fourth down, another snap was faulty and fumbled, and St. James took over with 4:01 to go at their own 26 yard line.

Slayton ran for 7, Nick Ostrye ran for 5, and Poe completed a pass to Weldon for 10 yards on the first three plays to get the ball near midfield.  After two plays, Poe's nifty 12 yard run (seen above) kept the drive alive.  Two plays later, an interception by Harris was negated by a pass interference penalty, and the Trojans had first down at the Eagle 25 with 1:38 remaining.  An 8 yard completion to Baker and a 3 yard run by Slayton gave St. James another first down.  Two plays later, another pass interference penalty (which prevented a likely touchdown catch) gave St. James first and goal at the 7 with about a minute remaining.  Slayton picked up 3 on first down, and 1 on second down on a play which picked up an extra yard and a half due to a face mask penalty, the third one on M A on this drive.  The Eagles called time out with 36.7 seconds remaining, and on what appeared to be exactly the same play to win the previous week against Opp, Slayton picked up the final five feet for a Trojan touchdown.  Weldon's extra point was wide right, but St. James had again come from behind in the last minute of the game to take a 13 - 10 lead.

After a kickoff return, M A had the ball on their own 32 with 25 seconds remaining.  However, on first down, Weldon more than made up for his missed point by intercepting Mangum's pass and returning it to the Eagle 27, allowing St. James to run out the clock on their fourth consecutive victory.



SIDELINE STATISTICS  - GAME FIVE

ST. JAMES      RUSHING    39 attempts  107 yards  2 TDs  (2.74 yards per carry)

                        20   Slayton        20 / 72  (1 TD)     19   Ostrye          5 / 33         7   Olsey           5 / 11
                        14   Poe               6 /   5  (1 TD)       9   Pattie           1 /  2          6   Ketzler       2 / - 16

                        PASSING    5 completions  13 attempts  0 INTs  54 yards  0 TDs  (2 sacks of, - 16 yards)

                        14   Poe             4 - 11 - 0   39 yards
                          6   Ketzler        1 -  2 -  0   15 yards  (2 sacks, - 16 yards)

                        RECEIVING

                        45   Baker            3 / 40       1   Weldon        1 / 10        9   Pattie           1 / 4

                        TOTAL YARDS:   163

                        KICKS:  XP  1 / 2                FG  0 / 0
                        2 POINT CONVERSIONS:  0 / 0
                        KICKOFFS:  3  (44,42,38)                                       PUNTS:  6  (40,29,36,41,17,25)
                        KO RETURNS:  4  (11,17,13,0o)                             PUNT RETURNS:  2  (6,-6f)
                        INTERCEPTION RETURNS:  2 (0,14)
                        FIRST DOWNS:   14  (9 rushing, 3 passing, 2 penalty)
                        FUMBLES:  2, lost 1
                        TURNOVER MARGIN:   + 2
                        PENALTIES:  2
/ 20 yards
                        TIME OF POSSESSION:  24:56

MONT ACAD   RUSHING    34 attempts  120 yards  0 TDs  (3.53 yards per carry)
                        PASSING      8 completions 18 attempts  2 INTs  98 yards  1 TD  (1 sack of, - 3 yards)
                        TOTAL YARDS:   218

                        KICKS:  XP  1 / 1                FG  1 / 1  (46 made, opponent record)
                        2 POINT CONVERSIONS:  0 / 0
                        KICKOFFS:  3  (53,54,34)                                        PUNTS:  4  (38,46,25,14)

                        KO RETURNS:  2  (13,10)                                       PUNT RETURNS:  1 (0)
                        FIRST DOWNS:   11  (7 rushing, 4 passing)
                        FUMBLES:  3, lost 1
                        PENALTIES:  7 / 48 yards
                        TIME OF POSSESSION:  23:04


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