Cascade proved Friday that it is the best team in the West Central Conference this year

Monday, October 17, 2005

Cascade proved Friday that it is the best team in the West Central Conference this year.

The Cadets defeated South Putnam 25-13 to win the WCC championship, but it was not an easy win.

The Eagles defense shut down Kyle Foster's passing game, which up until Friday, was the thing that Cadets depended on. Foster was only able to connect seven of his passes for 65 yards, after throwing for more than 300 yards the week before. The Eagles held him to 38 yards passing in the first half.

Where the Cadets put the hurt of the Eagles was in the running game. Cascade rushed for 253 yards, with 217 of them coming from Travis Short.

"We were able to stop their passing game, but we weren't able to stop their running game," SPHS coach Mark Wildman said.

In the beginning it looked like the unstoppable Cadets were going to hit a wall when they were unable able to score in the first quarter, but that would later change.

The Cadets drew first blood on the Eagles, when the Cadets defense sacked Anthony Tomasino for a safety, but South Putnam bounced back and drove the ball 90 yards for Tomasino's 1-yard touchdown run to take the lead.

Cascade battled back and scored in eight plays on its next possesion to take the lead at the half.

"They were able to get good field position all night and that's what hurt us. With the field position they were getting, they were able to run the ball like they did," Wildman said.

The Eagles let the Cadets know at the start of the third quarter that they were not going to be beaten easily. Bryce Birkemeier opened the Eagles' first drive of the quarter with a 76-yard kick return that set up Drew Christy for a 24-yard touchdown run.

That would be the last time that the Eagles would see the inside of the end zone and Cascade scored three more times for the final.

"We were concerned about them running the ball on us and that is what they did," Wildman said "We were able to hold them to 22 points and that was a low enough score for us to win. We just couldn't put any points on the board. We have to be able to score more points if we want to win."

The Eagles were able to muster a total of 241 yards while the Cadets gained 06 total yards. Tomansino threw for 63 yards and had two picks while Foster threw for 65 yards and only one pick.

Cascade topped the Eagles in rushing yards, 253-102 with Short leading the way with 217 while Christy led the Eagles with 69 yards and one touchdown on 12 carries.

Hicks led Eagles receiving with 40 yards on three catches, averaging more than 13 yards per catch.

The Eagles conclude their conference play with an record of 4-2 while Cascade goes on with a 6-0 record in the WCC.

The Eagles will be back in action on Friday, when they play Southmont in the first round of the sectional at 7 p.m.

At South Putnam

South Putnam 0 6 7 0 -- 13

Cascade 0 9 13 3 -- 25

Second Quarter

C -- Safety 11:55

SP -- Tomansino 1 run (conversion failed) 2:31

Third Quarter

SP -- Christy 24 run 11:40

C -- Foster 20 pass Ames (Pruitt kick) 6:28

C -- Guthrie 4 run (Pruitt kick) 1:33

Fourth Quarter

C -- Pruitt field goal 5:19

Team Statistics

Passing-- SP -- 6-18, 63 yds 0 TD, 2 Int., C -- 7-65, 1 TD, 1 Int.

Rushing --SP -- 29-102, 2 TD, C -- 41- 253, 2 TD

Total yards -- SP -- 241, C 306

Fumbles SP 0-1, C 0-0

Individual Statistics

Passing

SP (6-18-63-0-2) Tamansino 6-18, 63 yds, 0 TD 2 Int.

C (7-65-1-1) Foster 7-65, 1 TD 1 Int.

Receiving

SP -- Cook 3-23, Hicks 3-40

C -- Daugherty 4-32, Short 1-10, Ames, 1-20, 1 TD, Singh 1-3

Rushing

SP (29-102-2 TD) Christy 12-69, 1 TD, Birkemeier 4-12, Hicks 1-11, McCallie 6-15, Rhine 1-1, Tomansino 5- (-6) 1 TD

C -- Short 35-217 yds, Hammond 6-28, 1 TD, Foster 1-12, Guthrie 1-4 1 TD

Next game -- The Eagles will be back in action on Friday, when they play Southmont in the first round of the sectional at 7 p.m.

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