2012 - GAME 5

  @ Trinity 31, Saint James 28   
STJ          7       7       0     14         28
 
 TRI          3     14       7       7         31
SCORING SUMMARY:

STJ  (1)  10:18   Moody 38 run                                 (Alter kick)     7 -   0
TRI  (1)    1:22   Engle 24 FG                                                           7 -   3
TRI  (2)    9:40   Hynniman 66 run                           (Engle kick)     7 - 10
STJ  (2)    9:11   Moody 84 run                                 (Alter kick)    14 - 10
TRI  (2)    5:04   Adams 20 pass from Wood             (Engle kick)   14 - 17
TRI  (3)    4:32   Adams 10 pass from Wood             (Engle kick)   14 - 24
STJ  (4)    8:15   Woodson 1 run                               (Alter kick)    21 - 24
STJ  (4)    5:27   Duncan 42 run                                (Alter kick)    28 - 24
TRI  (4)    4:44   Bethea 26 pass from Wood             (Engle kick)   28 - 31

September 28, 2012.  Boykin Field.   Game Conditions:  Mostly cloudy   Game Temperature:  79  Wind:  negligible

For the first time in the 2012 season, Saint James had to put up with numerous penalties and too many turnovers, but somehow managed to pile up enough offense to have a chance at the end of the game which came up just yards short, and for the seventh consecutive time, the Trinity Wildcats left the field victorious with a thrilling, hard-fought 31 - 28 victory over the visiting Trojans.

Touchdowns on opening drives against Trinity in the past have been extremely rare, but on this night it took Saint James less than two minutes to dent the scoreboard.  C.J. Duncan completed a 36 yard pass on the first scrimmage play of the game to Jalen Harris to move the ball to near midfield.  Duncan kept for 14 yards on the next play for another first down, and after a pass completion which gained no yardage, Moody took the handoff and burst through the line and into the Wildcat secondary outracing potential tacklers for an early touchdown.  Matthew Alter's extra point gave the Trojans a quick 7 - 0 lead.

It appeared the Trojans could take control early as the Wildcats fumbled away the kickoff, and Zac Taylor recovered for the Trojans at the Wildcat 26.  Unfortunately, it would be the only turnover of the evening for Trinity and more unfortunately, Saint James could not convert the gift into a score.  Four plays actually lost a net of seven yards, and Trinity finally could run its first scrimmage play.  Mostly on the short passing game of Allen Wood, Trinity moved down the field as close as the Saint James 21 before Wood was sacked for a nine yard loss by Ed White.  From the Trojan 30, a poor punt only traveled a net of three yards, but Saint James was unable to pick up the bouncing ball and advance it.

Suddenly, the turnover bug would strike Saint James as a botched handoff on first down was recovered by Trinity's Walker Harris at the Trojan 21.  This time, Trinity would put points on the board.   Driving as close as the Saint James 7 before an incomplete pass on third down, Jake Engle was called in to convert a 24 yard field goal, which he did, and the Wildcats were on the board with three points immediately following the first of four Trojan lost fumbles on the evening.

Despite a short kickoff return, the Trojans were moving the ball again, as they did with surprising ease all night against the Wildcats, but the ball was knocked away from Duncan on one of his runs and was recovered by Trinity's Ty Mattox at the Wildcat 34.  On the next play, Trinity picked up nearly three-quarters of their total rushing yardage for the game as Chris Hynniman took a handoff up the middle off the right tackle and found a hole in the Saint James defense through which he sprinted and rushed nearly untouched for a 66 yard touchdown.  Engle's extra point gave Trinity a three point lead and the Trojans found themselves behind for the first time this season.

Not for long.  After Frank Moody was hit hard on a kickoff return at his own 16 yard line, he shook off the owwie and on the next play ran almost a mirror image of the play on which Trinity's Hynniman had scored before, darting off left tackle and heading for the near sidelines as he pulled away for an 84 yard touchdown run, the fifth longest in school history.  Alter's extra point gave the Trojans the lead back at 14 - 10 in a precursor to continued offensive fireworks, especially on the Trojans' side.

Trinity however was not finished scoring in the first half.  They promptly drove 78 yards after the quick Moody score, thanks in part to a dubious defensive pass interference penalty, one of several extremely costly penalties the Trojans committed.  Hynniman caught a 12 yard pass and two plays later ran for another 15 yards.  Several plays later, Allen Wood tossed his first touchdown pass of the game to Robert Adams from the Trojan 20.  The extra point gave the lead back to Trinity at 17 - 14 with time winding down in the first half.

However, Saint James drove nearly the length of the field and had a more than legitimate chance to score.  After an out of bounds kickoff, Moody and Hunter Smith each had first down runs, and on fourth down and five from the Trinity 35, Duncan ran for 18 himself and another first down.  With time running low in the half, Saint James could only get to the Trinity 10 before Alter was called in to attempt a 27 yard field goal.  After two Trinity timeouts to ice the kicker, the resulting kick from the left hashmark was deflected and went wide and short.  A penalty flag was thrown for roughing the kicker, but since the ball had indeed been touched, the penalty was waved off and the scoring chance went by the wayside as the halftime ceremonies began.

The third quarter far more resembled Saint James / Trinity matchups of old - hard hitting defensive slugfests both ways, as neither team could gain yardage and alternated punts.  However, on the Trojans' second possession, a first play fumble gave the Wildcats excellent field position at the Saint James 37.  A late hit out of bounds penalty nearly cut the needed yardage in half, and several plays later Allen Wood, who was not being pressured too heavily, had plenty of time to find Wood in the endzone for a ten yard touchdown reception.  The extra point gave the Wildcats a ten point lead late in the third quarter and the "Here We Go Again" mindset was lurking.  Even more so when again Saint James fumbled away possession giving Trinity possession just inside the midfield stripe.  A defensive offside penalty gave the Wildcats a first down, but a sack by Kane Davenport led to an endzone punt on the opening play of the fourth quarter and a now or never situation for Saint James.

They responded by bringing the fresh legs of sophomore Jonathan Robinson.  His first carry of the game went for 15 yards, and William Olsey's 11 yard pass reception on the sidelines on the next play gave Saint James two quick first downs.  On the next play, Robinson carried for another 10 yards and the only accepted penalty of the evening by Trinity, a horsecollar tackle, tacked on another 15 yards.  Two plays later, Duncan carried for 17 of his 162 yards down to the Wildcat 9, and on fourth down from about four feet out, Walker Woodson was given the handoff and he just got across the goal line on a dive play.  The extra point cut the Trinity lead to three with still over eight minutes remaining in the game.

A kickoff return of nearly forty yards had the Wildcats in good field position, but the Trojans defense stiffened and forced a punt which Woodson fair caught on the 30.  Two plays gained no yards, but another sideline pass to Olsey for 18 kept Saint James in business.  Duncan ran for 10 on the next play, and then broke loose on an extraordinary run on the near sideline, avoiding the boundary and several tacklers before diving across the goal line into the endzone for a touchdown.  A flag was tossed, and an unsportsmanlike conduct foul was called, but the touchdown stood.  Alter's extra point had given the Trojans the momentum and the lead, 28 - 24, with still over five minutes remaining.

The penalty moved the kickoff back to the 25 yard line, and the Wildcats took full advantage after returning the kick into Trojan territory.  Wood found Win Grice on a nice pass over the middle for 23 yards on first down, and after an incompletion, he found Steadman Bethea on a short route on the Trinity sidelines which he turned upfield into a 26 yard catch and run and an extra point just as quickly had Trinity back in front 31 - 28 with plenty of time, over 4½ minutes, still remaining.

Saint James for the third time in the fourth quarter nearly drove the length of the field again.  Duncan, Robinson, and Hunter Smith alternated runs against the tiring Wildcat defenders and moved up the field in chunks.   Faced with fourth down and 5 from the Wildcat 33, Duncan called his own number and managed to pick up 6 yards and a game-continuing first down.  A 14 yard completion to Olsey was negated by an ineligible receiver penalty, but Walker Woodson caught an 18 yard pass to give the Trojans first down at the Trinity 15 with 30 seconds and one timeout remaining.  Robinson picked up 8 yards on the next play, but confusion on substitutions led to Saint James unwillingly calling their final timeout with 17 seconds left.  Duncan called his own number on the play and tried to weave through the defenders but could neither gain yardage or get out of bounds, and not enough time remained for the referees to spot the ball and all the players to line up onsides before the clock expired.  Once again the Trojans were so, so close but yet so far away in certainly one of the most painful losses all time in the series.

SIDELINE STATISTICS  - GAME FIVE

SAINT JAMES   RUSHING    49 attempts  412 yards  4 TDs   (8.41 yards per carry)

                           20   Moody      15 / 166  (2 TDs)     5   Duncan       16 / 162      (1 TD)       3   Robinson          9 / 51
                           44   Smith          3 /   20                  4   Woodson       6 /  13      (1 TD)

                          PASSING       7 completions  14 attempts  0 INTs  116 yards  0 TDs

                            5   Duncan      7 - 14 - 0     116 yards

                          RECEIVING

                            9   Harris           2 / 59                    7   Olsey            3 / 29                       19   Farmer             1 / 15
                            4   Woodson      1 / 13

                          TOTAL YARDS:   528  (second highest total in school history)

                          KICKS:  XP  4 / 4                FG  0 / 1  (27 missed)
                          2 POINT CONVERSIONS:  0 / 0
                          KICKOFFS:   5  (50,57,54,57,47)                            PUNTS:   1  (34)
                          KO RETURNS:   5  (10,7+3,12,21,18)                     PUNT RETURNS:  2  (0,0fc)
                           FIRST DOWNS:   26  (20 rushing, 5 passing, 1 penalty)
                          FUMBLES:  4, lost 4
                          TURNOVER MARGIN:   - 3
                          POINTS OFF TURNOVERS:  0
                          PENALTIES:  8 / 75 yards
                          TIME OF POSSESSION:  27:08

TRINITY           RUSHING    19 attempts  89 yards  1 TD  (4.68 yards per carry, 66 yards on one carry)
                          PASSING     17 completions  34 attempts  0 INTs  150 yards  3 TDs
                          TOTAL YARDS:   239

                           KICKS:  XP  4 / 4                FG  1 / 1  (24 made)
                          2 POINT CONVERSIONS:  0 / 0
                          KICKOFFS:  7  (58,58,56,54,OB,54,57)                  PUNTS:  5  (3,57,40,42,29)
                          KO RETURNS:   5  (16f,19,22,38,23)                     PUNT RETURNS:  1  (0fc)
                          FIRST DOWNS:   15  (4 rushing, 8 passing, 3 penalty)
                          FUMBLES:  2, lost 1
                          POINTS OFF TURNOVERS:  17
                          PENALTIES:  1 / 15 yards
                          TIME OF POSSESSION:   20:52

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