South Adams scored in the opening minute, then gave up 32 straight points over a matter of a quarter, seemingly losing all hope of picking up the win at Tri Friday night.
Then Tytus Lehman and the Starfire defense said, “Not tonight.”
One of the most remarkable periods of football, lasting all of 52 seconds, brought the Starfires back into the game and they subsequently stunned the hosts for a 43-32 victory.
That 52-second run included finishing off a scoring drive to finally put some points on the board with a 1-yard run from Wes Summersett.
Coach Grant Moser then elected to go with the onside kick and Jackson Garcia played it perfectly, recovering his own kick after ten yards to give the Stars the ball.
The Stars needed just two plays to return to the end zone, using yet another trick play to cut the lead to 11 as Wes Summersett made a spectacular catch and run to stun the hosts.
Jackson Garcia didn’t need to run another onside kick because his touchback pinned the Titans deep in their own territory and on their very first play of the drive, they coughed up the ball, setting up Lehman to take two shots at the end zone with his team smelling blood from the fearful hosts. He connected on his second attempt, completing the trifecta of touchdowns with a wide-open Caiden Neuenschwander from 22 yards out.
From that point on, it almost felt like it was South Adams who was in the lead, with Tri helplessly trying to save the game. That feeling was evident when the Titans’ next drive stalled on the seven-yard line and the team chose to go for it instead of kicking. The Starfire defense made the stop and Lehman quickly got the offense out past the twenty-yard line with a strike to Derek McKean for 18 yards.
Caiden Neuenschwander atoned for a penalty on the next play by making an over-the-shoulder catch on a deep route from Lehman, racing down the middle of the field for an 81-yard touchdown to cap off the incredible comeback.
The Stars trailed 32-7 with less than eight minutes to play in the third quarter. As the clock sat at 2:01 remaining in the third, the scoreboard read: South Adams 36 Tri 32.
Lehman finished the game with 297 yards passing and four touchdowns. The Starfire offense did not turn the ball over in the semifinal game, although they did surrender two points with a safety in the first quarter.
Will Patterson led the team in rushing with 37 yards, with most of it coming on his touchdown in the opening minute. The Stars had just 38 yards rushing as a team.
Neuenschwander, McKean and Summersett each had five catches, with Neuenschwander leading the way with 132 yards and three scores.
Grant O’Dell led the team in tackles with ten. Nathan Plattner had eight.
SCORING SUMMARY
Quarter 1
SA – 11:03 – Will Patterson 25-yd run, Garcia PAT Good, 7-0
T – 7:49 – Tytus Lehman falls on bad snap in end zone, SAFETY, 7-2
T – 6:35 – Cameron Boone 1-yd run, Fischer PAT good, 7-9
T – 1:59 – Masyn Chalfant 11-yd run, Boone run good, 7-17
Quarter 2
T – 11:50 – Isaiah DeWitt 47-yd run, Chalfant run good, 7-25
T – 8:45 – Cole Melton 1-yd run, Fischer PAT good, 7-32
Quarter 3
SA – 7:34 – Wes Summersett 1-yd run, Lehman pass no good, 13-32
SA – 7:11 – Wes Summersett 36-yd catch from Tytus Lehman, Lehman run good, 21-32
SA – 6:48 – Caiden Neuenschwander 22-yd catch from Tytus Lehman, Lehman pass to Will Patterson good, 29-32
SA – 2:01 – Caiden Neuenschwander 81-yd catch from Tytus Lehman, Garcia PAT good, 36-32
Quarter 4
SA – 2:14 – Caiden Neuenschwander 24-yd catch from Tytus Lehman, Garcia PAT good, 43-32
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