PLYMOUTH– The Lucas Cubs took on the highly favored no. 3 seed in the Plymouth Big Red on Saturday night in the Division VII Region 23 State playoffs. Lucas pulled off a wild upset with a walk off 25-yard field goal to win 37-34.
Everything seemed to be going the Big Red’s way through the first three quarters. The Big Red outscored Lucas 28-14 after three. Junior Grant Weltlin started off the scoring on the Big Red’s first play from scrimmage on a 47-yard sprint to the end zone. Senior Hunter Bailey ripped off two touchdown runs of 31 and 20 followed by a senior Chance Butcher two-yard touchdown run to complement his 20 tackles on defense.
But, the Cubs came out and put up the most impressive fourth quarters in high school football.
Well aware of their 40-24 Week 1 loss to Plymouth, the Cubs cut the lead to seven on the first play of the fourth quarter. But Bailey hit senior wide receiver Tyrell Edmiston for a 60 yard touchdown that widened the gap to two scores. The resilient Cubs were not deflated by the score and rallied with a score off of a turnover to cut the lead back to a touchdown.
The tying score came via a twisting turn of fortunes. On the following drive, Lucas junior linebacker and running back Mason Galco batted a Bailey pass up in the air that fellow junior Vince Brock snatched in a diving interception.
The Cubs rumbled to the end zone where Galco fumbled. Plymouth recovered the ball for a touchback. On the very next play, Bailey was looking for Edmiston in triple coverage. Galco was in the middle of the play once again and picked the ball off and returned the interception to the 20-yard line.
“Week one, we turned the ball over six times,” Lucas Head Coach Scott Spitler said. “It was nice to be on the other end of the turn-over battle. Mason didn’t let that fumble get to him and he was able to get a pick to help us win the game.”
The Cubs elected to run the clock down to two seconds and use their last timeout to set up a field goal.
Junior quarterback/kicker Rueben Luna lined, booted the ball through the uprights for a walk off 25-yard, game-winning field goal.
“This community deserved this win,” Spitler said. “They renewed our levy, they gave us one of the most amazing send offs I have ever been a part of, and they really showed up to support us tonight. This one is for them.”
The Cubs improve to 7-4 on the year and earn the schools first ever playoff victory. They will take on the #2 seed Berlin Center Western Reserve next Saturday at a neutral site to be announced.
Do it all: Galco tallied one of the best individual games in 2014. He ran the ball an incredible 35 times for 282 yards for three touchdowns. He also added a batted pass that lead to an interception and an interception of his own to set up the game winning field goal. “Mason is the leader of this team, and I trust him every single time to make a play when the game is on the line,” Spitler said.
Run Game/Turning Point: The Lucas Cubs piled up 339 rushing yards on 54 rushes. Senior Logan Spohn added 84 yards and a pair of touchdowns. But the turning point in the game was a pooch kick after the Cubs cut the lead to 28-14. They then drove the field and scored three seconds into the fourth to only be down seven. “That pooch kick was the turning point by far,” Spitler said. Freshman safety Jackson Hauger snagged the recovery.
“I don’t think we win the game if that does not happen,” said Spitler.
Big Red: The Plymouth Big Red finish the season with an 8-3 record, the schools first ever playoff birth, and the first winning record in 16 years. They saw two-school records fall and watched a senior class that would never see a losing record in their four years. “Every coach says this, but this group of seniors are very special to me,” Plymouth Head Coach Mark Genders said. “I am very sad to see them go. This one hurts really bad”
“The thing is, when I got here, no one wanted to make plays because they were afraid to make mistakes. On the mistakes tonight, they were from my seniors that were only trying to make plays. I cannot be mad at them for that. I am as proud as can be about this football team. And I always will be,” Genders added.
“This community deserved this win. They renewed our levy, they gave us one of the most amazing send offs I have ever been a part of, and they really showed up to support us tonight. This one is for them.” Lucas Head Coach Scott Spitler said.
