A Lionhearted Comeback Falls Short

A Lionhearted Comeback Falls Short

Photos by Alexis Mercer
Story by Ken DeLaat

Lansing Catholic 49 Newaygo 36
Don’t be fooled by the score. It looks like a lot and believe me for a large part of the game it was a lot. However a gutsy late comeback by the Lions had the game in doubt until the final minutes.
This game had several chapters. The hosts got the crowd rockin’ and rollin’ early when they took the kickoff and put together a productive run oriented drive that culminated with Porter Slominski hitting a hole and weaving his way 24 yards to draw first blood. The conversion kick sailed right and the Lions took the lead at 6-0.
It took one play to lose it. After the kickoff LC started with the ball on their own 35. Xavier Luea took off downfield and Alex Fernandez fired a perfect pass that landed in the streaking Luea’s hands as he went untouched to the endzone for a 65 yarder and the conversion put the visitors up 7-6.

The Lions put together another impressive drive and facing 3rd and goal Blake Kerr hit Henry Wood for a 6 yard strike, then Ethan Reyburn busted through for the 2 point conversion and the Lions went up 14-7. It didn’t take long and despite a sack and a blocked pass the Cougars gained yards in chunks thanks to their passing game and after Fernandez hit Braden Rabideau for a TD, the kick knotted the score at 14.
Newaygo needed a lengthy drive to keep the ball out of Fernandez’s hands as much as possible and had it going as they drove inside Cougar territory but after Kerr broke away on a bootleg he got the ball punched out and LC recovered inside their own 10. After a 20 yard run negated by a holding call the Cougars were pushed back to the 5. Fernandez hit Luea for a first down, ran for another himself then mixed passes and runs until the team reached the one yard line when he took it in for the 21-14 lead after conversion.

After the kick the Lions went to work. Julian Guajardo carried a pack of defenders another 10 yards after he was first hit to give the Lions a first down but a fumble on the next play gave it back to the Cougars who scored 6 plays later for a 28-14 lead.
Once again the Lions put together a drive that saw a fumble to put the ball back in the hands of Fernandez. Using a hurry-up offense they got into Lion territory, then tossed a couple of sideliners to kill the clock. With less than half a minute to halftime the Fernandez to Rabideau connection led to a 35 yard TD and the teams went to intermission with the Cougars holding a commanding 35-14 lead. It was a somber crowd on the Newaygo side as the players headed for the locker room.Then what had been bad got even worse.

When the Cougars took 6 plays to march down and score to start the second half it gave them a 4 touchdown lead with 21 minutes to go. A lead like this can be emotionally deflating particularly in the one and done that the postseason is. At least it seemed over to the faithful in the stands. They were still cheering on their Lions, but the wave of optimism at entry began to give way to the reality of the situation. They were getting it handed to them and this remarkable season was about to be over.
Then came a show of heart on the Lion side that was as impressive as it was inspiring. Newaygo marched from their own 20 with Reyburn pounding the line for yardage and Kerr freeing himself from a sure sack to toss to Wesley Manning. A horse-collar call turned a Kerr sack into a gain and two plays later Kerr hit Slominski to make it 42-20.

LC, holding a 3 TD lead, attempted a bit of razzle dazzle with a pitch to Rabideau who tossed a pass in the flat that Hunter Yearsovich stepped in front of to cradle the ball and give the Lions  possession.  Slominski busted a couple of tackles for a big gainer then Guajardo once again took defenders for a ride on his back as he battled to inside the one. Kerr took it in for 6 and after Guajardo busted through for 2 it was a 2 touchdown game. And the Lions weren’t done. 
On the kickoff a hard hit sprung the ball loose and Xavier Stroud pounced on it. The Lion offense was back in business. Kerr hit Manning for a first down then found Yearsovich who dragged defenders to the 3.Two plays later Kerr stuck it in from a yard out and with 2:50 on the clock the Lions had improbably clawed their way back into a game that looked to be a rout a short time ago and trailed by just 6, 42-36.
Alas it was not to be. The Cougars were grinding out yardage and time until they found themselves sitting 4th and long with 12 ticks on the clock. Fernandez put an exclamation point on the game by finding Rabideau once again for a long scoring strike that gave the Cougars the final score and ice the game.

The Lions may not be moving on but they played their hearts out going up against a quality team who has  the best qb I’ve seen on a high school field in many years. Fernandez put on a clinic of poise and precision as he rifled passes to his favorite targets all day long.
The Lions made their followers proud. They didn't dwell on their mistakes, they worked their tails off to overcome them and nearly, very nearly found that miracle finish.
Kudos to the players who have given their fans a thrill as they powered their way deeper into the playoffs than any local squad has done in the expanded playoff era. 
And never underestimate what Coach Munger and his staff has done here. 
Regardless of the result Saturday the Newaygo Lion players have put together a successful season adding a District Championship trophy to the case and setting a school record by scoring 389 points on the season.
Nicely done Lions.