By Stan Caldwell
stanmansportsfan.com
HATTIESBURG –Turnovers will kill even the best of teams, and Sacred Heart was no exception.
Two costly fumbles in the third quarter greased the skids for the Crusaders’ first defeat of the season as Resurrection rolled past Sacred Heart 34-24 Friday night at Klein Field in a showdown between the region’s top two teams.
RCS improved to 7-1 overall, but more importantly 4-0 in region. SH dropped to 8-1 and 3-1.
“I thought we played hard, and had plenty of chances,” said Sacred Heart coach Ed Smith. “They just outplayed us. They made more big plays and they played more physical than we did.”
A rock-rimmed defensive struggle turned around in the third quarter, as Resurrection took advantage of two fumbles and a long kick return to take a commanding lead into the fourth quarter.
“I felt like the kids were disappointed in their first-half performance,” said Resurrection acting head coach Scott Sisson. “In the locker room at halftime, they were 100 percent focused. They listened to all the coaches and did what we asked them to do.”
Sisson was in charge of the Eagles while head coach Eric Denmark was away this week at deacon’s school.
After both teams started the game by going three-and-out, SH took over after a short punt at midfield and got as far the Eagle 8-yard-line before the drive stalled, resulting in a 25-yard field goal from freshman Austin Nguyen.
“We moved the ball a little bit, but we didn’t run it as well as we wanted, and we didn’t make the plays we needed to make,” said Smith. “Our defense played really well in the first half, but offensively, we missed some opportunities.
“When you play a big game against a good team, you don’t get a lot of chances to make plays, so you’ve got to make those plays when the opportunity is there, and we didn’t do that.”
A fake punt that failed gave RCS an opportunity to drive a short field, and the Eagles didn’t waste it.
Starting at the Crusaders 39, senior quarterback Luke Schnoor connected with senior tailback Daniel Pickens for a 16-yard play, then the pair hooked up again to convert a third down with a 10-yard play.
Pickens got the touchdown – the first of four rushing scores on the night – on fourth down with a 2-yard burst up the middle.
“We just had to stay focused,” said Pickens. “Obviously, it’s a big game, a big rivalry. So we just had to keep our focus and play our game.”
That was pretty much it for the Eagle offense in the first half, as Sacred Heart held RCS to just 56 yards and only four first downs.
“Our defense played really hard the first two quarters,” said junior linebacker Gabriel Pipkins. “I just think we gave out in the last part of the fourth quarter.”
The Crusaders answered with their best drive of the night, a brisk six-play, 71-yard play, keyed by a 34-yard pass from junior Kyron Murphy to junior Adam Sneed and an 18-yard scamper by senior D.J. Booth.
Booth put SH ahead 10-7 with a 3-yard run midway through the second quarter.
Resurrection had a chance to score in the final minute of the first half after a blocked punt gave the Eagles the ball at the SH 20.
RCS appeared to score on the first play after the turnover on a pass from Schnoor to Pickens, but Pickens was flagged for offensive pass interference, and a 51-yard field goal on the final play of the half came up short.
“We had some plays that we just came up short on,” said Booth. “Overall, I’m proud of the way we played, because I know we gave our best. It just hurts that we ended up a little bit short.
“We just have to learn to let this one go and get ready for next week. We know what we’re capable of, and I don’t think they’re 10 points better than us.”
It looked like more of the same after the Eagles went three-and-out with the first possession of the second half, but on the second play after giving up the ball Hinkle pounced on a fumble near midfield, and that changed the whole tenor of the game.
“We came out looking to explode on offense in the second half, and it didn’t happen,” said Hinkle. “So we knew the defense had to step up and that’s what we did. That fumble was huge for us.”
Schnoor capped a five-play, 54-yard drive with a 25-yard run off left tackle to put RCS ahead 14-10.
That lead lasted all of 26 seconds, as junior Gary Duckworth took the kickoff 94 yards before being run down at the 1-yard-line. Booth took care of that yard on the next play to give the Crusaders the lead right back.
But the Eagles would not be denied. Senior Jaylen Harper took a squib kickoff and motored 55 yards to the SH 13. Pickens converted a fourth down at the 2-yard-line, then crashed in from there to put RCS ahead for good.
“We had too many mistakes,” said Smith. “They didn’t really force them; we just put the ball on the ground. We just didn’t take care of the football.”
It was a tale of two halves for Pickens, who finished with 93 yards on 19 carries, all but three of those yards coming in the second half.
“They had a really good halfback and he just drove us back,” said Pipkins. “Their line was good; everything about them was good. They’re just a tough opponent.”
Resurrection got the ball right back, recovering another Crusader fumble at the 39-yard-line on the first play after the kickoff, and this time it was Pickens with the big scoring burst, on a 20-yard run off left guard.
“I couldn’t be more pleased with the way our kids responded after they had the big kickoff return, then we turned right around and got a big one of our own,” said Sisson. “I thought that was the turning point of the game.
“Then our offensive line; we had a long talk with them at halftime and worked out some blocking schemes and I feel like we were able to drive the ball and burn the clock to seal the deal.”
And Booth was held in check in the second half, finishing with 87 yards on 19 runs, but only had 16 yards on six carries in the second half.
Indeed, the Eagles held the Crusaders to just 10 completions in 26 passing attempts for 129 yards.
Resurrection put the hammer down in the fourth quarter, with a soul-sapping 11-play, 83-yard drive that consumed nearly seven minute of the clock. Pickens got his fourth score of the night with a 2-yard run.
Sacred Heart responded with a 71-yard, eight-play scoring drive, with Murphy connecting with sophomore Chris Posey for an 18-yard scoring pass on fourth down.
The Crusaders got the ball right back with a successful onside kick, but senior Haydn Porter sealed the deal with an interception.
The Crusaders have a short week to get ready for their regular-season finale, next Thursday at Enterprise-Lincoln. SH can still claim the top spot in the region, depending on whether Lumberton beats Resurrection next week at Pascagoula.
“Either one of two things are going to happen,” said Smith. “We’re either going to get up off the mat, learn from this and come back fighting, which is what I think we’ll do.
“But the other thing is to let the thought of what could have been hang over us and let that affect us moving forward. We’ve got to take care of business, because depending on what happens, we could finish 1, 2, 3 or 4 (in the region).”
Meanwhile, Resurrection still has work to do to secure the region title, as the Eagles host Lumberton next Thursday in the regular-season finale, needing a win to avoid a three-way tie for the top spot in the region.
“We’re going to have to get used to this kind of game if we want to the chance to move forward in the postseason,” said Sisson. “They’re all going to be like this.”
GAME SUMMARY
Friday at Hattiesburg
Resurrection Catholic 34, Sacred Heart 24
RCS 0 7 20 7 – 34
SH 3 7 7 7 – 24
First Quarter
SH – Austin Nguyen 25 field goal, 4:57 (8 plays/42 yards/3:41 possession).
Second Quarter
RCS – Daniel Pickens 2 run (Patrick Keene kick), 9:12 (8/39/3:42).
SH – D.J. Booth 3 run (Nguyen kick), 7:38 (6/71/1:34).
Third Quarter
RCS – Luke Schnoor 25 run (Keene kick), 7:37 (5/54/1:59).
SH – Booth 1 run (Nguyen kick), 7:09 (1/1/0:26).
RCS – Pickens 2 run (Keene kick), 4:29 (5/13/2 :45).
RCS – Pickens 20 run (Kick failed), 2:11 (4/39/1:37).
Fourth Quarter
RCS – Pickens 2 run (Keene kick), 3:44 (11/83/6:55).
SH – Kyron Murphy 18 pass to Chris Posey (Nguyen kick), 1:00 (8/71/2:44).
TEAM STATISTICS
RCS SH
First downs 17 14
Total net yards 244 209
Rushes-yards 41-190 23-80
Passing yards 54 129
Comp-Att-Int 7-12-0 10-26-1
Fumbles-lost 0-0 2-2
Penalties-yards 7-75 5-41
Punts-total (avg.) 5-153 (30.6) 3-95 (31.7)
Sacks-yards 1-9 2-21
Third down 2-10 3-10
Fourth down 2-2 1-2
Time of possession 27:48 20:12
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing
Resurrection – Daniel Pickens 19-93, Luke Schnoor 12-52, Bruce Brown 8-43, Team 2-2; Sacred Heart – D.J. Booth 19-87, Kyron Murphy 4-(-7).
Passing
Resurrection – Luke Schnoor 7-12-0-54; Sacred Heart – Kyron Murphy 10-25-1-129, Austin Nguyen 0-1-0-0.
Receiving
Resurrection – Daniel Pickens 3-25, Ryan Roth 2-23, Jaylen Harper 2-6; Sacred Heart – Adam Sneed 1-34, Luke Davey 4-32, Chris Posey 3-31, Ethan Riddick 1-28, Gary Duckworth 1-4.
Photos courtesy of Trenton Gascho
