Monticello’s football team had done such a good job running the ball all night that when they set up a first and goal from the seven-yard line in the final minutes in search of the tying touchdown against visiting Spotswood, one had to figure the game was headed for overtime.
But the Spotswood defense had other ideas.
The Blazers stopped Monticello running back Jerrick Ayers just short of the goal line with 1:12 remaining, preserving a 21-14 victory Friday night and handing the Mustangs their first loss of the season. Monticello (2-1) had traveled all the way down to the doorstep of the Spotswood goal line from their own 24-yard line, sparked by a huge 41-yard completion from Kevin Jarrell to Austin Haverstrom to put them in the red zone.
Three plays netted four yards, and on fourth down, a swarm of white jerseys bottled up Ayers and the Blazers’ bench went crazy as they won their second straight following last week’s victory over Western Albemarle, evening their record.
“My hat’s off to Monticello, they played a great game,” Spotswood coach Dale Shifflett said. “They were driving the ball on us and we made a fantastic goal line stand. We played a great ball game, they played a great ball game. I’d say the fans got their money’s worth.”
Most of the action took place in the third quarter. With the score tied 7-7 at halftime, Spotswood quickly jumped ahead 1:22 into the second half on a 29-yard touchdown pass from Alec High to Jonathan Good. The Blazers extended that lead to two touchdowns with 3:56 to go in the quarter when he found Aaron Hunter from six yards out.
Jarrell went down with cramps on the ensuing drive, but Mustang backup Ben Riley scored on a quarterback sneak to cut the deficit in half. Then, Monticello recovered a Spotswood fumble on the kickoff, seemingly snatching the momentum right back. But the Spotswood defense forced a three-and-out, and Monticello didn’t sniff the goal line again until the final drive.
“We knew coming into the year that we would probably hang our hat on the defense,” Shifflett said. “We had a bunch of guys returning. [Our staff] does a great job and they get better each week.”
The tie at halftime was a minor miracle for the Mustangs considering the fact that they turned the ball over four times in the first two quarters. The Blazers’ touchdown was on a seven-yard keeper by High with 10:33 remaining in the second quarter. It came after Monticello fumbled a punt and Spotswood recovered on the MHS 19. The Blazers also intercepted Mustang Jarrell three times in the half, but could turn none of those interceptions into points.
“I think we did really well in the first half, but we made some minor mistakes that kept us from scoring more,” High said. “We came out in the second half and changed those to get the lead.”
Monticello’s defense kept them in it in the first half, forcing five punts before the break. The Mustangs had gone on top midway through the first quarter when Ayers burst through the line and sprinted 36 yards to paydirt to open the scoring, and it looked like a Monticello offense that had opened its season by posting 81 points in two games would be back at it. But Spotswood’s defense stiffened after that.
“It was a Y-zone right, and I saw a really big hole,” Ayers said. “I knew I was going to run it in.”
The Mustangs did most of their damage on the ground, gaining 180 of their 255 yards of total offense via the run. Ayers gained 103 yards on 25 carries, while Jarrell added 59 yards on 10 carries.
High, who came into the game leading the Valley District in passing with 458 yards and four touchdowns, had another solid night, completing 10 of 19 passes for 227 yards. Good caught four of those passes for 120 yards.
Monticello returns to action next Friday when it travels to archrival Western Albemarle. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.
