Sports
De Smet Rallies Late in the Fourth Quarter For Win At Hazelwood East
In what was being billed as the best high school football game of the week, the De Smet Spartans grinded out a 14-12 victory Saturday at Hazelwood East.
In what was being billed as the best high school football game of the week, the Spartans grinded out a 14-12 victory Saturday at Hazelwood East.
The 1 p.m. kickoff was moved up to 11 a.m. as the temperature was forecasted to teeter over the 100-degree mark. Both De Smet and Hazelwood East saw players leave the game due to cramping and heat exhaustion.
De Smet quarterback Conner Harrison felt the after-effects of the weather as he claimed some soreness as well as a nagging headache.
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“I’ve got a headache,” Harrison said. “I definitely took a lot of shots out there, but the biggest thing is that I’ve got to stay healthy out there and not let my team down. I’m sore right now, but I’m going to be okay and I’m feeling good about the win.”
De Smet head football coach Pat Mahoney was happy with how his Spartans battled throughout the entire game. The turning point in the game occurred when the Spartan defense stopped a Hazelwood East drive just inside the De Smet five-yard line, midway through the fourth quarter.
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“The defense was out there the entire game,” Mahoney said. “I mean, I can’t even imagine how tired those boys are. They just played their butts off.”
Defensive lineman Donnie White also thought that De Smet’s defensive stance midway through the fourth quarter was the game changer for the Spartans.
“That was a big turning point in the game for us,” White said. “The defense just stepped up. The offense got the ball back and went down the field and scored and that’s what we needed.”
Hazelwood East (1-1) took a 6-0 lead when quarterback Trey Hill scored on a 35-yard touchdown midway through the second quarter. The point after touchdown attempt failed for Hazelwood East, which would prove to cost them the game late.
Hill carried the ball six times for 160 yards rushing and one touchdown. He also completed five of 13 passes for 106 yards passing and one touchdown.
“I felt that we performed really well,” Hill said. “We gave up a few penalties, but should have taken advantage of the opportunities that we had. Our mental mistakes just killed us.”
De Smet (2-0) would battle back late in the second quarter as Harrison connected with Durron Neal for a 25-yard touchdown pass as the Spartans took a 7-6 lead.
Hazelwood East regained the lead in the third quarter as Hill threw a 65-yard touchdown pass to Dallas Vaughn, but another missed P.A.T. meant East only held a 12-7 lead.
Harrison would give De Smet the win with just over three minutes to play in the game as he scampered to his right for a 19-yard touchdown to give the Spartans a 14-12 lead.
“I didn’t have time to throw the ball and there was nobody over there,” Harrison said. “It was wide open for me to score.”
De Smet (2-0) returns to action Saturday evening at 6:45 p.m. as the Spartans take on CBC at the Edward Jones Dome in a Metro Catholic Conference matchup as part of the Great American Rivalry Series.