NORTH ROBINSON — In a battle of two state-ranked teams, sometimes just one play could make a difference.
When Carey, the third-ranked team in Division VI, battled eighth-ranked Colonel Crawford Friday night in North Robinson, two plays were the difference.
And both plays went against the Eagles.
Because of those plays, the Blue Devils came away with a rugged 7-3 win over the Eagles in a game that was essentially the Northern 10 Athletic Conference championship game.
With the win, the Blue Devils improved to 3-0 in the conference, 6-0 overall, while the Eagles dropped a game back at 2-1 in the conference, 5-1 overall.
Both teams will be heavily favored to win the final four games of the season, showing just how critical Carey’s win was.
“This was one hell of a game,” Carey coach Jonathan Mershman said. “Both teams played really hard.”
The win was the 21st straight for the defending state-champion Blue Devils.
Both plays that cost the Eagles came in the second half after Crawford took a 3-0 halftime lead when Braxton Morton booted a 36-yard field goal with 24 seconds left.
The first came early in the third quarter when Crawford faced a fourth-and-seven at their own 36-yard line. The Eagles decided to try a pass on a fake punt. The pass was broken up at midfield and Carey took over.
One play later, Carey quarterback Lance Rickle fired a deep pass into the left corner of the end zone and Austin Niederkohr made a great catch for a touchdown.
Rickle and Niederkohr combined on a pair of 36-yard passing plays in the game. Niederkohr grabbed five passes for 99 yards.
“(Rickle) made some great throws and Austin Niederkohr made some great catches tonight,” Mershman said. “This guy played lights out.”
The second came late in the third quarter. The Eagles were on the Carey one-yard line, but a sack and an incomplete pass moved the ball back to the seven.
Colonel Crawford coach Jake Bruner decided to run on the field goal team, but the kick clanged off the right upright, no good.
In a game where both defenses dominated the game, the plays proved to be huge.
Both teams are known for their impressive run games but neither had much success. Carey held the Eagles to just 55 yards in 27 carries, forcing the Eagles to go to the air. The Eagles completed just eight of 22 passes for 68 yards.
There were a number of negative plays that hurt the Eagles, including sacks of quarterback Kam Lohr. Lohr did finish with 58 rushing yards in 16 carries, but the Blue Devils sacked him four times.
“I was so proud of the way our defense played tonight,” Mershman said. “They tried to spread us out and made us play the entire field and I was proud of the way our defense ran around and played the entire field.”
Crawford was just as brilliant on the defensive side of the ball. The Eagles permitted just 113 rushing yards in 42 carries. The Devils, however, were more successful throwing the ball, completing five of nine passes for 111 yards.
“Our defense played extremely well,” Bruner said. “We were able to stop them from running the ball and they got into the shotgun more and threw it because they had to.”
Box score
Score by quarters
Carey 0 0 7 0 — 7
Colonel Crawford 0 3 0 0 — 3
Scoring summary
Second quarter
CC — Braxton Morton 36 field goal, :24.
Third quarter
C — Austin Niederkohr 36 pass from Lance Rickle (Rickle kick), 5:31.
Individual statistics
Passing
Carey: Lance Rickle 6-10-1 111; Colonel Crawford: Kamryn Lohr 8-21-1 68, Trevor Vogt 0-1-0 0.
Rushing
Carey: Eli Steen 10-40, Landen Kemerley 5-28, Lance Rickle 11-28, Nathan Brodman 4-15, Connor Norden 6-9, Dylan Ellis 1-2, Austin Niederkohr 4-1; Colonel Crawford: Kamryn Lohr 16-58, Matt Clinard 3-6, Micah Thomas 1-(-1), Tanner Dyer 4-(-3), Trevor Vogt 3-(-5).
Receiving
Carey: Austin Niederkohr 5-99, Doug Pinkerton 1-12; Colonel Crawford: Derek Horsley 3-27, Ryan McMichael 2-15, Trevor Vogt 2-13, Matt Clinard 1-13.
Team statistics
C CC
First downs 10 11
Rushing 42-113 27-55
Passes 5-10-1 8-22-1
Yards passing 111 68
Total yards 224 123
Fumbles-lost 1-1 1-1
Penalties 6-45 6-45