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The West Prairie-La Harpe Cyclones used a 4th quarter comeback to overcome the host Beardstown Tigers on Friday night in West Central Conference action. The 15-3 victory gives WP-LH an 8-1 regular season finish and sole possession of 2nd place in the WCC. The win also provides the Cyclones with some much needed momentum and confidence as they enter this weekend's I.H.S.A. playoffs.
The Tigers and the Cyclones both came into this game at 7-1 and looking to improve their playoff status. The first half featured a defensive struggle despite both teams averaging 40+ points coming in. The halftime buzzer found the two squads knotted at zero and realizing that the game would probably go down to the wire.
Beardstown finally was able to come through offensively when a long pass set them up inside the Cyclone 10-yard line. The WP-LH defense stiffened again and held the Tigers to a 22-yard field goal attempt. The kick was good and gave the hosts a 3-0 advantage with 7:26 to go in the 3rd period.
The Tigers appeared on the verge of breaking the game open when they moved the ball down inside the WP-LH 10-yard line again on their next possession. The Cyclone defense came up big however as they stripped the ball away from a Tiger runner and junior defensive back Jason Poulter recovered at the WP-LH 5-yard line.
That play would prove to be the spark the Cyclones needed as they put together a 15-play drive to go 95 yards to score. Hard-nosed running by senior backs Stephen Butterfield and Christopher Link was mixed with some nifty ball handling by quarterback Chase DeCounter to key the drive. DeCounter finally capped the drive with a 1-yard plunge into the endzone. Freshman placekicker Matt Woolam split the uprights on the extra point kick for a 7-3 Cyclone advantage with 7:55 left to go in the contest.
Beardstown's comeback attempt was quickly thwarted when senior linebacker Brett Pendell picked off his second interception of the game. The Cyclones then took possession at midfield and systematically marched the ball downfield for a decisive score. DeCounter again finished the drive with a 1-yard dive to paydirt. The PAT kick was blocked for a 13-3 Cyclone edge with only 2:44 left.
A great kickoff by Cyclone senior Dusty Moore pinned the Tigers deep in their own territory as they would try to mount a comeback. Faced with 3rd and long, the Beardstown QB was caught behind the line of scrimmage by Cyclone defensive end Justin Mohr. As Mohr was about to fling the Tiger to the ground, the QB tried to throw the ball away. The disoriented signal caller then threw the ball 30 yards out the back of his own endzone. By rule, this was a safety for the Cyclones and basically ended the game and all Beardstown hopes of a comeback.
The West Prairie-La Harpe defense was fantastic on this night as they held the explosive Tiger offense out of the endzone. They held Beardstown to 150 yards of total offense. (They came in averaging close to 400) and came up with the big play every time they needed it. It was by far the Cyclones best defensive effort of the year and hopefully sets the tone for their effort during the playoffs.
Linebacker Christopher Link led the way with 13 total tackles, including two for losses. Across the board everyone came up big, with Brett Pendell, Chase DeCounter, Brian Covert, Stephen Butterfield, Justin Mohr, Ben Cox, Matt Swanson, Eric Magee, Ty Huston, and Jon Zaehringer all being involved in at least 3 tackles. This was the total team effort needed for a win of this type.
The Cyclone offense started slow, but finished huge in this game. Besides yardage and points, the WP-LH offensive unit helped the defense by dominating the time of possession. In the end the Cyclones held the ball for nearly 32 of the game's 48 minutes.
WP-LH picked up 275 yards, all on the ground, in this pivotal game. Butterfield led the way with 109 yards on 16 carries, in what could certainly be called the best performance of his career. This is the time for seniors to step up and he certainly did just that.
Also stepping up were fellow seniors, Link (12 carries for 71 yards), DeCounter 17 for 78 and Pendell (5 for 15) as the Cyclone ground game chewed up yardage and time. This would prove very important as WP-LH wore down the Tigers.
Much of the credit for this outstanding power ground game must go to the inspired play of the Cyclone offensive line. Seniors Jacob Bice, Isaac Rogers, Justin Mohr, Ty Huston, Dusty Moore, and Matt Swanson were joined by junior center Ben Cox in pounding away at the heart of the Tigers and helped set up the 4th quarter rally.
The Cyclones now will enter the second season as the I.H.S.A. playoffs begin this weekend. WP-LH will be playing in Class 3-A and will be a #1 seed in their Quadrant. The Cyclones open playoff action this Saturday afternoon by hosting the Petersburg Porta Bluejays at Sciota's Baumann Field. Porta is a member of the Prairieland Conference and comes in at 6-3. The game is set to kickoff at 2:00 p.m.