Bears Claw to the End, Fall Late to Grizzlies, 27-24

Posted: Oct 20, 2013

It doesn't get much more exciting than Friday night under the lights when the first play of the game is a 99 yard kickoff return by JD White to score a touchdown. The Cambridge Bears made some pretty spectacular plays only to fall 27-24 in the last 11 seconds of the game, to the Region leading Creekview Grizzlies.

It was, as simply put by Head Coach Bennett, "a heckuva game." Coach Bennett acknowledged his team played their tails off and said "I couldn't have been more proud of their efforts."

As a result of an outstanding defensive effort, Creekview was held scoreless in the first quarter. This was thanks in part to 2 sacks by senior Tyren Ceballos-Rivera. First quarter offense played strong stringing together a drive which included contributions by Brock Nielson with two rushes for 43 yards. QB Brian Moore ran a 12 yard keeper and hit receivers John Hurst and Nathan Kish. Unfortunately with 45 yards in personal foul penalties and a missed snap and field goal attempt, the Bears were unable to score again in the first quarter.

Second quarter saw some standout defense by Nick Oakes who made some big plays. Creekview was able to score a touchdown and on a Bears fumble, they scored again to make it 14-7. The Bears answered with a 30 yard kickoff return by Oakes and again QB Moore impressively led the drives which included 3 passes to Christian Johnston, a perfectly executed reverse with Nielson and Hunter Smith, a QB keeper and a 9 yard pass to Smith for a touchdown. Point after by kicker Clayton Hammer was good to tie the game at 14-14.

The back and forth continued with some exceptional defense by senior Zeke Gormley who broke up several pass plays but the Bears went to the halftime break behind 21-14.

Third quarter the Bears hung in there with all out effort on defense. Significant, timely, stops were made by Kryshna Tanksley and Nathan Kish who looked professional as he timed his tackle to force an incomplete pass. A truly stellar pass reception by John Hurst for 12 yards energized the drive. This set up a 40 yard highlight pass of the game when Moore led the open C. Johnston who caught it for a touchdown. Hammer kicked in the tying point. 21-21

With 2:14 minutes left on the clock, Bears opted for a field goal attempt. With pressure that was palpable by the fans, Hammer put it through the uprights to tie the game one last time at 24-24.

The sad end to this game came when Creekview managed to get in field goal range once more despite valiant efforts by defense, in particular, junior Josh Kania who pushed the Grizzlies back for a loss. The game ended with a score of 27-24 and some deeply disappointed Bears players, coaches, and fans.

On the bright side, the Bears looked pretty awesome, like a team that could win the remaining two regular season games, and there was a strong sense of pride about their overall effort and level of play.

Next game is Friday, Oct. 25th at North Springs.

Go Bears!