HAGERSTOWN — Up to a point, Allegany had all control at Saint James.With 9:59 remaining, Khiante Bible scored a stunning 32-yard touchdown run to give the Campers a 33-25 lead. They had never trailed till then, amassing 385 yards through ground play, 200 of which were accounted for by Jackson Resh.
But in the final seven minutes, two touchdowns by Saint James grabbed the win.The final, a one-yard rush by Jayden Yates with 41 seconds left, gave the Saints the lead for good. Saint James defeated No. 5 Allegany 37-33 on Thursday thanks to a spectacular comeback led by Yates, who passed for 212 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another 115.
Ball was uncatchable
10-play, 80-yard series, capped by a six-yard Resh touchdown run, put Allegany ahead a game-high 27-18 with 5:26 left in the third quarter. It was let down by Allegany’s pass defense after that. when three quarters, the Saint James (4-2) deficit was down to 27-25 when a botched tackle on a short ball to Calvin Moss resulting in a 70-yard catch-and-run score.
With 6:19 remaining in the fourth quarter, Yates again connected with Moss for a 25-yard pass to make it a two-point game.During the drive, the Campers (1-4) were called for pass interference on a ball that appeared to be uncatchable.
Allegany had the chance to run out the clock with a long drive after stopping the game’s final two-point attempt to stay ahead 33–31.Resh ran for a first down, but Allegany’s drive was thwarted by a false start on a second-and-8 on its own 40, forcing the team to punt the ball away, which ended up being its lone punt of the game.
John Root, the head coach of Saint James, described the team as “just very resilient kids.” It’s peculiar. There was no doubt in my mind. Allegany is trying, so the outcome is obviously up for debate, but I knew our youngsters wouldn’t give up. They just keep battling. “Sadly, someone had to lose that game, but we defeated them this year just as we had defeated them the year before.
After a defensive stand and a nine-yard touchdown run by Bible to give the team a 15-7 lead, Allegany had a chance to get distance.Taking over on its own 20 with 4:43 to go in the half, Allegany fumbled on its second play, and Saint James’ William Taffe came up with his second recovery of the game.
Taffe recovered to end the second series for the Campers, but Saint James immediately responded. Allegany’s fumbles were recovered by Amanni Blowe and Kason Sims.With 200 running yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries, Resh led Allegany. Aidyn Mckenzie contributed 89 yards and a score on 12 totes, while Bible ran for 92 yards and two scores on 12 passes.
With 5:04 remaining in the first quarter, Mckenzie ran five yards for the game’s opening touchdown. Two minutes later, Yates connected with Marcello Anderson for a 10-yard touchdown throw, tying the score at 7-7.
His leg seems limitless
Bible’s first touchdown was countered by a three-yard touchdown run by Liam Hall, and Yates scored on the two-point attempt to make the score 15 all.Allegany led 21–15 at the half after driving 80 yards in five plays, the longest of which was a 54-yard Mckenzie scamper.
With a four-yard touchdown run, Resh concluded the series.Jorge Diaz-Nicolas scored the opening points of the second half for Saint James with 10:16 remaining in the third quarter on a 53-yard field goal.The kick was strong from another and had a lot of leg.
Root remarked of his place-kicker, a Catoctin transfer who is originally from Spain, “His leg just seems limitless.” “He hasn’t received a college offer.” Kickers receive relatively little attention. I will be amazed if he doesn’t receive one.
Next Friday, the Campers will play Southern(1-3) in an attempt to gain momentum before finishing the regular season with games against Keyser, Northern, and Fort Hill.“We just have to keep working,” Hansel remarked. “I don’t give up easily. These kids on staff, they never give up. We will not submit it via mail. We need to triumph. We really need one.