A Nail-Biter Ending For Bears
Mike Woicicki, 93.5 KKBN
Anyone who likes exciting football would have been happy to be at Summerville High last night. The Bears took their 4 and 0 record into the game against the 4 and 1 Stone Ridge Christian Knights, and there were 48 minutes of non-stop action. It was nip and tuck all night, with the Knights using their double wing running formation to control the game for long stretches of time and the Bears scoring quickly in contrast. For most of the game, there was no telling who might win, but when the dust cleared, the Bears walked off the field with a 34-26 victory and a 5-0 preseason record.
The huge Summerville Homecoming crowd was quieted just three minutes into the game when the Knights surprised the Bears with a 36-yard TD pass and two-point conversion to take an 8-0 lead. Three minutes later, a 6-yard TD pass (Braylon Leveroos to Auston Hike) and a Trimeloni kick made it 8 to 7. In the second quarter, the Bears scored two TDs, one on a 13-yard Leveroos to Kyle Curran pass and the other on a Leveroos to Bryce Leveroos pass of 17 yards. The Knights, however, kept the game close with a 1-yard TD run after an eight-minute drive, and the half came to an end with the Bears up 20 to 14.
The second half started with a bang for the Bears with a two-play drive of 57 yards. Both plays were Kai Elkins runs, first a 43-yard ramble to the 14-yard line and then the 14-yard TD. The Knights, however, put together a six-and-a-half-minute drive of their own, and the score at the end of three quarters was 27 to 20 Bears.
The Bears put on a nice long drive, and it looked like they were headed for a score when they fumbled on the Knight’s 5-yard line and turned it over. The Knights held the ball for seven and a half minutes and scored their fourth TD of the night but failed on the two-point conversion attempt, and the Bears held on to a one-point lead. With 5:25 left in the game, the Bears started their last drive on the Knight’s 47-yard line. From there, they methodically drove the ball down the field using only runs and forcing the Knights to use all three of their timeouts. Leveroos finished the drive with a TD run and another Trimeloni kick to go ahead 34 to 26. Still, the Knights did not give up. After taking the kickoff with less than a minute left, they completed a 10-yard pass and had 15 yards tacked on to the play via a Bears’ facemask penalty. Thinking they could tie the game with one big play, they tried a running back pass, but the Bears defensed it perfectly, causing a fumble with a Bear recovery to end the long, exciting night.
Kyle Curran earned player of the game honors by catching 3 passes for 28 yards and a TD and also for playing a fine all-around defensive game.
In other action, Calaveras (1-5) beat Galt (3-2), 35-31. Next week they have home field advantage when they line up against the Sonora High Wildcats, who are coming off a four-game winning streak following the season-opening loss against Oakdale. The Wildcats had a bye-week and so did Bret Harte. The Bullfrogs will play the Argonaut Mustangs on their home turf next week. Summerville football airs on 93.5 KKBN, and Sonora High is on AM 1450 and FM 102.7 KVML.
