Wildcats meet goal with 34-21 victory over Rocks
BY ED WRIGHT
STAFF WRITER
When Plymouth quarterback Brent Jones stepped into the end zone to cap a 10-yard touchdown run with three minutes left in Friday night's game against Salem, it was one small step for Jones, but one giant leap for the Wildcats' football program.
Jones' TD clinched Plymouth's 34-21 victory and sewed up a playoff berth for the 6-2 Wildcats in their first season with seniors.
"This program has been all about setting high expectations right from the beginning," said Plymouth coach Jay Blaylock. "We've always talked about winning championships and setting the bar high. Tonight, we met our first goal.
"We made some mistakes tonight that Salem took advantage of and kept them in it, but I'm very proud of the team for what it has accomplished this season. Making the playoffs is great, but we have to keep getting better."
The game was a cross-campus sequel to a Week 2 showdown between the two teams that Plymouth won going away, 42-7.
"Our kids came to play tonight," said Salem coach Bob Cummings. "In some of our games this year, we've taken a quarter off here and there, and it's cost us. Tonight, we played hard for all four quarters. Plymouth is a good football team and they made some big plays against us. But I thought our kids played well."
Playing before a large and enthusiastic homecoming crowd, the Rocks struck first when quarterback Kevin Bradley bulled his way into the end zone from two yards out to cap an 11-play, 78-yard drive. Jon Pomorski's first of three successful extra-point attempts made it 7-0 with 9:21 left in the opening quarter.
The Wildcats responded on their next series when Jeff Harrison burst up the middle for a 42-yard TD run with 1:04 left in the first quarter. Salem still secured a 7-6 lead after the Wildcats' extra-point attempt sailed wide left.
Harrison had given Plymouth outstanding field position a few plays earlier when he returned a kickoff 27 yards to the Plymouth 47.
Salem threatened again on its next drive, but Bradley was tackled behind the line of scrimmage by Ali Saleem and Taylor Fox on a fourth-and-two play from the Plymouth 43.
The Wildcats grabbed the lead on their next play when Jones hit tight end Josh Le Duc with a tight spiral at the Salem 30. The 6-foot-4, 214-pound Le Duc broke a tackle, kept his balance and sprinted untouched into the end zone to put the Wildcats ahead, 12-7. Jones hit Anthony Green with a two-point conversion pass to make it 14-7.
Undeterred, the Rocks knotted the game at 14-14 on the ensuing drive - an eight-minute, 78-yarder - that was finished off with an 18-yard, third-and-goal touchdown pass from Bradley to Mike Marek with 1:07 to go in the half.
After Salem's kick-off rolled out of bounds, Plymouth took over at its 35 and quickly regained the momentum when Le Duc - who was playing quarterback - hit Jones - who was playing wide receiver - with a short pass that the elusive speedster turned into a 50-yard completion to the Rocks' 15.
Three plays later, following a strong stand by the Salem defense, Plymouth lined up for a 25-yard field goal, however, Salem was called for offsides on the play, giving the Wildcats a first down on the three with 16 seconds left.
With no time-outs to work with, Jones lofted a pass into the corner of the end zone that wide-out Justin Brodehl jumped high to snare and give Plymouth a 20-14 half-time advantage.
"Even though we only had a minute left, we knew our offense had to keep coming after them," Blaylock said, reflecting on the key scoring drive that closed out the first half. "We just put the ball in our best athletes' hands and let them go to work.
"Due to injuries the past two seasons, this was Justin's first varsity game, so it was great to see him make a play like that."
After Salem went three-and-out to start the second half, Plymouth extended its lead to 28-14 with a nine-play, 78-yard scoring drive that was capped by Jones' three-yard run. Nate Gholston tacked on a two-point conversion run to make it a 14-point game.
The gutsy Rocks kept battling and cut their deficit to 28-21 with 7:32 to play on Matt Kenison's two-yard TD gallop. Salem then attempted an onside kick that the Wildcats recovered at their 49. Nine plays later, Jones scored the game's final, playoffs-clinching TD.
Plymouth out-gained Salem in total yards, 302-264. Harrison had a career night, rushing for 123 yards on 11 carries.
"I just followed my blocks and ran through the holes," Harrison said of his big night.
Jones racked up 128 total yards - 64 passing, 42 receiving and 22 rushing. Le Duc completed both his passing attempts for 43 yards and reeled in three aerials for 68.
Bradley finished with 93 yards rushing on 22 carries. The senior also completed 5-of-10 passes for 57 yards.
Kyle Boling picked up 55 yards on 12 attempts for Salem while Kenison churned out 43 on nine carries.
The Wildcats were whistled for 10 penalties for 100 yards. The Rocks were flagged four times for 40.
