McClain unable to hold Blue Lions at bay in 4th quarter

WASHINGTON C.H. — The weather was soggy and the field was muddy, but the play at Gardner Park for both the Washington Blue Lions and the McClain Tigers might have been their most competitive of the season.

The game came down to a couple drives late in the fourth quarter.

But it was the Blue Lions who dug just a little bit deeper and scored the game-winning touchdown with 2:00 left in regulation to take the final lead of the game for a 27-20 Tigers defeat, moving them to 0-7 on the season.

"Our kids fought hard, they put it on the line, and unfortunately, we just made too many mistakes again," MHS head coach Randy Closson said. "We've tried to stop the penalties, and a penalty gave them a first down.

"Offensively, we just missed some opportunities."

As for the final drive for the Blue Lions, it went nine plays for 78 yards, as they began on their own 22-yard line.

The first run of the game-winning drive, which began with 6:23 left in the fourth, started with a 30-yard run by Kyle Garrett, followed by a 12-yard scamper from quarterback C.J. Taylor.

Garrett finished with 10 carries for 60 yards.

On first-and-10 from the MHS 37-yard line, Aaron Greer powered his way for a 19-yard gain through the middle of the Tigers' defense. With the ball on the 19-yard line, Greer had a 7-yard gain.

Greer led the Blue Lions with 108 yards rushing on 23 carries.

Later in the drive on third-and-2 from the 10-yard line, Greer was stopped, but a 5-yard face mask penalty on MHS gave the host Blue Lions a first-and-goal from the 8-yard line. The ensuing play saw Greer gain five yards, and then two yards, to set up third-and-goal from the MHS 1-yard line.

Greer finished what he started with a 1-yard touchdown run with 2:00 on the clock, completing the 4:23 drive. Garrett caught a pass for a 2-point conversion for the seven-point lead.

As for that final drive, Washington head coach Corey Dye spoke about those final moments in the game.

"Right after we got that stop (MHS was forced to a turnover on downs), I looked at our line and said 'guys, win this game for us," Washington head coach Corey Dye said. "Credit Coach Closson, they (MHS) had a great defensive game plan against our run. They knew if they were going to defeat us, they would have to stop our run.

"They were successful in the first three quarters of really slowing us down, but a night like tonight, it is almost impossible to throw the ball. We made some big plays, and fortunately for us, we were able to leave here with a victory."

The Tigers had one final drive, but they had three straight incomplete passes, and on fourth-and-10 on their own 30, Washington's Austin Wilson made the final stop by tackling the Tigers' ball carrier.

As for how the game began, the momentum came from the Blue Lions (2-2, 2-5) with Wilson recovering a fumble by MHS, on the third offensive play of the South Central Ohio League game.

The Blue Lions recovered the ball on their own 41-yard line with 10:39 left in the opening quarter, and 15 plays (59 yards) later, they were in the end zone with a 6-0 lead as Greer scored on a 2-yard run with 3:43 left in the quarter. The PAT was no good for a WSHS lead of six points.

McClain (0-4 in the SCOL) answered with points on, of all things, a punt. The Tigers had to punt on a fourth-and-26 scenario on their own 47-yard line. The Blue Lions mishandled the punt from Shane Hall, and WSHS eventually lost the ball in the end zone, as MHS tackled them for a two-point safety with 1:18 left in the first.

WSHS eventually took a 13-2 lead with 4:59 left in the second as the rain continued to fall all night in Fayette County. The touchdown came on fourth-and-goal and a four-yard run from Eric Barden. The PAT by Garrett Schall gave the Blue Lions an 11-point lead. Barden totaled 67 yards rushing on 10 carries.

The Tigers responded with a touchdown on a 24-yard dash to the end zone by Hall, who just became a full back this week. The Blue Lions' defense over-pursued on the defensive front, and Hall raced right past all of them for six points on a second down run. The TD and missed 2-point conversion opportunity left the Tigers down five points with 1:36 left in the first half.

MHS didn't hold back their first possession of the third quarter.

Alex Hollar had a 22-yard run on the first play of the drive, but that was nothing compared to his second run of the same drive. That run saw the senior race 58 yards behind good blocking from his offensive line, opening a hole for him to reach the end zone with 9:53 left in the quarter. Even with a blocked PAT, the Tigers took a 14-13 lead.

Hollar wasn't done making big plays just yet.

With 6:21 left in the third, on third-and-1, the speedster for the Tigers outperformed his previous touchdown, this time going 74 yards to pay dirt, giving MHS a 20-13 lead. Again, the Tigers were unable to convert a 2-point conversion.

Hollar finished the game with a game-high 228 yards rushing on 23 carries, averaging 9.9 yards per carry.

Washington responded with a TD with 40.5 seconds left in the third, with a pass from Taylor to the end zone. The pass was then deflected by the Tigers, but that deflection was caught for six points by Kyle Wilson in a "right place at the right time" type of situation. Taylor finished 4-for-7 passing for 61 yards.

The TD reception went for 14 yards and brought the Blue Lions to within one point of tying the score, as the PAT was no good by WSHS.

For the game, the Tigers totaled 293 yards of offense, all rushing, while the Blue Lions totaled 332 yards on the offensive side, 271 yards rushing.

The McClain Tigers travel to East Clinton (1-3, 1-6) next Friday, while the Washington Blue Lions face the Chillicothe Cavaliers (3-1, 4-3). EC won 3-0 in overtime Friday against Hillsboro at Richards Memorial Field.

GAME NOTES: Hollar had a kickoff return of over 50 yards in the first quarter … back in the lineup for the Tigers for the first time this season since having an injury during 2-a-days was senior linebacker Caleb Rayburn … Dylan Wheaton had a big third down tackle for MHS … Jarrett Milnes and Randall Mischal combined for a sack that resulted in a 7-yard loss … Milnes had a fumble recovery that was caused by Baxter Wagner.