By John Rittenhouse
In what was expected to be an entertaining game that lived up to its billing, the Hills-Beaver Creek-Ellsworth Patriots nipped Sioux Valley-Round Lake-Brewster 21-20 in a classic nine-man football game played in Hills Friday.
The clash pitted two teams that were ranked in the top 10 of the state's nine-man poll.
The seventh-ranked Patriots lost what was a nine-advantage earlier in the game when second-ranked SV-RL-B moved in front 20-15 with a touchdown early in the fourth quarter.
H-BC-E, however, regained the lead at 21-20 with 4:30 left and used an interception in the final seconds to preserve a one-point victory.
According to Patriot coach Dan Ellingson, who couldn't remember the last time H-BC-E won a game as big this one, the victory should improve his team's standing in the state poll.
Not only that, the win should give the Patriots some confidence heading into tomorrow's game against defending state champion Westbrook-Walnut Grove in Westbrook.
"It was a great game," Ellingson admitted. "It was a game that was expected to be close, and it ended up being a one-point game that wasnÕt decided until we intercepted a pass on the second to the last play. It was a big win for us both in the conference race and for the upcoming section seedings."
The contest featured a number of big plays, and SV-RL-B produced two of them early in the first quarter while opening a 6-0 lead.
H-BC-E received the kick to start the game, but what would turn into a big night for Patriot tailback Chris Reid didn't start that way as his fumble on the first play from scrimmage was recovered by the Raiders.
Moments later, SV-RL-B tailback Paul Paplow dashed 35 yards for a touchdown. A failed conversion run followed the touchdown.
The score remained 6-0 until the second quarter, when the Patriots scored 15 straight points to take a nine-point advantage before the intermission.
Chris Tiesler tied the game at six with a four-yard run that capped a long drive early in the second period. Tyler Bush added the extra point to give the Patriots a 7-6 edge.
Reid, who ran the ball 22 times for 230 yards in the game, gained some redemption for his early fumble during H-BC-E's next offensive possession. Displaying his ability to strike from anywhere on the field, Reid dashed through the SV-RL-B defense for a 63-yard touchdown run. Tiesler carried in the conversion to make it a 15-6 game after the touchdown.
According to Ellingson, good blocking from his H-BC-E teammates allowed Reid to terrorize the Raider defense throughout the night.
"We ran the ball very well against them. It seemed like we got a good surge from our offensive line. Reid was able to get past the line of scrimmage and make his cuts down field. Our linemen did a great job, and so did (fullback) Lyle DeBoer with his lead blocks," Ellingson said.
The momentum shifted into SV-RL-B's favor after halftime.
After the teams exchanged punts to start the third quarter, Raider reserve fullback Corey Place rumbled 30 yards for a touchdown to cap his team's second possession of the half. A failed conversion run left the Raiders facing a three-point deficit at 15-12.
Place came up big for the Raiders again when he scored from seven yards away before running in the two-point conversion during the first minute of the fourth quarter to give the Raiders a 20-15 advantage.
H-BC-E, which turned the ball over five times in the game, had a halfback pass intercepted to end the possession following Place's second touchdown run.
The Patriot defense forced the Raiders to punt moments later, giving the H-BC-E offense the ball at its own 33-yard line. From there the Patriots went on a 67-yard, six-play drive that ended with Reid scoring on a 38-yard scamper with 4:30 left to play. A run for a conversion came up short, leaving H-BC-E with a 21-20 edge.
SV-RL-B got the ball back twice in the gameÕs final minutes but couldn't produce the winning points.
The Raiders did advance the ball to the H-BC-E 35 with 23 seconds remaining, but a third-and-13 pass was picked off by Patriot Brad Haak at the five-yard line to secure the victory.
"Our defense played very well," Ellingson said. "They had 62 offensive plays in the game. Other than a couple of big runs, we held them in check. Our linebackers (Curt Schilling, Jesse Leuthold and Reid) had a combined 51 tackles, so they were outstanding. We did a great job of gang-tackling."
The Patriots will need another solid defensive effort tomorrow in Westbrook, where they face a 5-1 Charger team that is on a five-game winning streak.
"They lost their first game of the year to SV-RL-B, but they had a bunch of young kids who were starting for the first time then. They have their starting quarterback coming back from a state championship team. They have a good tailback, a load of a fullback who started at guard for them last season, and the fastest receiver we've faced this year. It will be a big test for us," Ellingson said.
Team statistics
H-BC-E: 302 rushing yards, zero passing yards, 302 total yards, 12 first downs, four penalties for 35 yards, five turnovers.
SV-RL-B: 260 rushing yards, 23 passing yards, 283 total yards, nine first downs, five penalties (yards were unavailable), two turnovers.
Individual statistics
Rushing: Reid 22-230, DeBoer 15-63, Tiesler 3-11, David Top 3-minus 2.
Passing: Top 0-5 for zero yards, DeBoer 0-1 for zero yards.
Defense: Schilling 25 tackles, Leuthold 14 tackles, Reid 12 tackles, Kyle Braun 11 tackles, Haak nine tackles and two interceptions, Lee Walraven one sack.