Jaxon Anderson blocked a punt for Worth County to give them a chance to score, but Orrick, which preaches stripping the ball, did so and got the ball right back.
Orrick was playing shorthanded, without Blake Buchanan, who was the heart and soul of their offense all year (concussion). Worth County forced another three and out and Alex Rinehart had a diving catch to keep a drive alive despite the rain and Andrew Alarcon ripped off carries of 15 and 6 yards down to the 5. Finally, with 6:10 left in the first quarter, Alex Rinehart got loose and into the end zone to make it 6-0.
Ethan Wilson, who was pressed into service at quarterback when Buchanan went down, guided his team into Tiger territory at the 37, but was dropped for a loss and back to back sacks from Andrew Alarcon and Jaxon Anderson forced them to punt.
Aydan Gladstone aired one out to Alex Rinehart to the 15 and Worth County threatened again, but then they repeatedly forgot to account for one-man wrecking crew Aaron Brooke, who leads Orrick with over 10 tackles a game and made a living in the Tiger backfield all night long. They gave the ball up on downs and then Wilson aired it out to Gabe McAfee for 63 yards to tie it up at 6-6 with 8:57 left in the second quarter.
Worth County drove down as far as the Bearcat 25, but then ran into one-man monster Brooke again and could go no farther. The teams exchanged turnovers before half as Alex Rinehart got a pick and returned it to the Orrick 36 to kill a drive, but Aydan Gladstone threw into traffic in the closing seconds and got it picked.
The Tigers finally got on the board again to start the second half as Alex Rinehart found rare daylight for a 14 yard option pitch and added four more before Aydan Gladstone threw a play action pass to Reed McIntyre, whose catch and run went for 41 yards and a score with 10:43 left. Aydan Gladstone ran in the extra points to make it 14-6.
The Tigers had a golden opportunity to break it open after a shanked put put them in good field position at the Bearcat 30, but once again, they forgot to account for Aaron Brooke, who dropped Gladstone for a loss and got a sack; the Tigers also shot themselves with a targeting penalty.
Orrick ripped off gains of 12 from Wilson and 12 from Blake McAfee down to the Tiger 21 and was in prime position to score. But then a blow to the head penalty wiped out one play and an illegal block wiped out another back to their own 35. It didn’t seem to matter as Wilson threw a long strike to Gabe McAfee for an apparent 45 yard score that would have made it 14-12, but as the teams were lining up for the extra point try that would have tied it, all of a sudden, one of the referees came rushing in to call a huddle. After the huddle was over, the score was wiped off, an illegal formation was called, and the ball was incorrectly spotted back to the 35, instead of the 30. It didn’t matter, as the Tigers held and Orrick was forced to punt.
Worth County ran into Aaron Brooke again and was forced to punt, and Orrick was driving again to tie or come within two as the fourth quarter started. They aired it out to Devin Opoka for 32 yards to the Tiger 36, but a pass interference call, a pass breakup by Andrew Alarcon, and a sack by Jaxon Anderson and Jackson Runde put the ball on the Orrick 23. Jaxon Anderson got his second blocked punt of the night and the ball was spotted on the Orrick 11. This time, Worth County made the most of their chance as Alex Rinehart got a block from Jackson Runde and scored with 7:43 left in the game. Aydan Gladstone ran in the extra points to make it 22-6.
In desperation, Orrick went for it on fourth and nine at their own 34, but Wilson was flushed from the pocket and threw it away, giving the Tigers another short field to work with. This time, a keeper by Aydan Gladstone fooled everyone for 12 yards and then Alex Rinehart outran everyone for 21 yards with 4:18 left to make it 28-6.
Aydan Gladstone and Alex Rinehart each had pass breakups and Justin Dye blew up a reverse in the closing seconds.
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