E’burg wins with no time to spare

Bulldogs top EV in final seconds ||

YAKIMA, Wash. — Until the final second of their CWAC opener at East Valley on Friday night, the Ellensburg Bulldogs essentially dominated a game they seemed fated to lose.

Then, of course, came that final second: A quarterback sneak that may or may not have reached the end zone — and, if it did, did so by no more than an inch or two — and a two-point conversion pass to a tight end so wide open that its descent into his hands was, at least from that receiver’s perspective, “nerve-wracking.”

“We stole one,” Ellensburg coach Randy Affholter said. “Plain and simple.”

Actually, had East Valley held on to win, the Red Devils would have had every reason to feel exactly the same sentiment. The Bulldogs marched up and down the field all night long, racking up 335 total yards to East Valley’s 129, only to be thwarted again and again in the red zone.

East Valley linebacker Kaleb Schrank personally kept the Bulldogs out of the end zone, not just once but twice.

First, he stopped Ellensburg tailback Damien Roseberry on fourth-and-goal two yards from the end zone late in the third quarter. Then, on the Bulldogs’ next possession, Roseberry was on his way to a 29-yard touchdown run when, barely a yard from the end zone, Schrank punched the ball from his grasp. It bounded into the end zone, where safety Seth Powell pounced on it.

After all of that, it appeared Jordan West’s three-yard touchdown pass to Kris Janis — set up by Bobby Martinez’s 37-yard burst around right end — would stand up for East Valley (1-1, 0-1 CWAC). But that was the Devils’ only drive of any significance, and after forcing one final three-and-out, Ellensburg got the ball at its own 40 with 2:18 remaining.

Bulldog quarterback Matt Bennett, as he had all game, came up with big plays — not with his arm, but with his feet. He rushed for 148 yards on the night, including an 18-yard scramble on fourth-and-10 in that final drive that put Ellensburg on the EV 19.

Only 21 seconds remained.

The next play, with everybody at Earl Barden Field expecting a pass, Bennett instead handed the ball to senior fullback J Foley — who, thanks to a clearing block by tackle Erik Lillquist, had room to run.

“There was a huge hole,” said Foley, who admitted being just as stunned by the call as everybody else. “I was very surprised. Time’s trickling down, and we’re running the ball? But hey, gotta not think about it — you just gotta run with all your heart.”

Foley made it all the way to the 1-yard-line, and after an incomplete pass, with no time outs left and the game in its final 10 seconds, Ellensburg was probably down to its last play.

Bennett went to Affholter and told him, “I want the ball.”

Affholter called a quarterback sneak, and Bennett pushed in behind left guard Michael Anderson and center Parker Berman, just barely across the goal line — with one second left on the clock.

“It was a great push (by the offensive line),” Bennett said. “Their linebackers were blitzing, and they picked them up. I just ducked my head and got it — by probably a few inches. If that.”

On the two-point conversion, Bennett took the deep snap and looked to his right, where all of the offensive flow went. But tight end Mac Mitchell, who had lined up on the right side, was sneaking across the back of the end zone and was all alone to the left when Bennett turned and lofted the ball to him.

“Nerve-wracking,” Bennett grinned during the postgame celebration. “It took forever to get there. I had 10 guys blocking their butts off. I couldn’t drop it.”

He didn’t.

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