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The Summit High football team was utterly dominated in its first meeting with Centaurus this season. But when the Tigers made a return trip to their Metro Conference rival on Friday, their 42-0 loss on Sept. 25 seemed to be more than a distant memory.
The Tiger defense shut down a daunting Centaurus attack and helped Summit eke out a 15-13 win in what could be the team's final game of the season.
“Our kids came to play,” SHS head coach Dylan Hollingsworth said of the difference in the teams' two matchups this fall. “That energy and emotion that we had in last week's (overtime win over Evergreen), we played with that the whole game tonight.”
Centaurus was playing the game without its starting quarterback, but with the way the Tigers played on both sides of the ball and on special teams, it may not have mattered who was behind center for the home team.
Summit quarterback Sam Dudick did most of his work with his right leg rather than his right arm in the win, helping Summit dominate field position the whole night with his booming punts. The senior put Centaurus inside its own 5-yard line twice in the game.
Meanwhile, senior tailback Rick Dreyer helped the Tigers eat up the clock, running the ball behind the stellar Tiger offensive line (Vinny Pestello, Keynan Roggasch, Trevor Barton, Henley Huang, Stuart Vanderkooi and Brady Sandsmark).
“Our offensive line was real solid tonight,” Hollingsworth said. “Just an outstanding game for them.”
It was the Summit defense, though, that got the Tigers on the board first. After pinning Centaurus deep in its own end, Summit forced a three-and-out. Then the long snap on the ensuing punt sailed over the kicker's head, and the Tigers tackled the scrambling punter for the safety.
The Tigers got a short field on the next kickoff and took advantage. The drive ended with Dudick sneaking the ball into the endzone from less than a yard out. Summit couldn't convert on the two-point conversion, however, and settled for an 8-0 lead.
After Centaurus cut the score to 8-6 just before halftime, both teams went scoreless for the third quarter. The fourth quarter seemed to be heading the same way until Dreyer took a handoff on second-and-goal from the Centaurus 9-yard line and broke in for the touchdown with only 45 seconds remaining in the game.
The Tigers elected to kick the ball deep with the 15-6 lead, and the Centaurus player returned the kickoff for a touchdown.
Now the Summit lead was only two points, as Centaurus lined up for an on-sides kick — which Centaurus recovered at midfield with 13 second left.
Out of field-goal range, Centaurus threw up a Hail Mary as time expired, but Summit senior Michael Daniels was there for the interception to clinch the win.
Hollingsworth — who credited Tiger defenders Cody Holland, Danillo Ottoborgo and Dreyer for shutting down the Centaurus offense — couldn't have been happier with how his team finished out its regular season.
“When you get your butts handed to you the first time, it's hard to come back and think you can win,” he said. “I'm just so proud of the way they played tonight. ... The growth this team has had from Week 1 to Week 10 has been so impressive. I'm just so proud of what they did.”
The Tigers (6-4) still have an outside chance of making the 16-team field for the state playoffs, though they likely won't find out until late Saturday. Either way, the Tigers finished with a .500 record or better for the sixth straight season.
The Tigers, overall, had a pretty up-and-down season that featured some impressive wins and underwhelming losses. They opened the season with a hard-fought win over Battle Mountain and improved to 2-0 the following week with a win over Englewood. Summit blew a 16-point lead the next week in a loss to Ridge View Academy and struggled to find consistency for the following weeks.
The highlight of the year for the Tigers was their thrilling Week 9 win over Evergreen at home. The Tigers struggled much of that night on offense, but staged a late fourth-quarter drive to tie the game at 14-14 to send the game to overtime. Sophomore Ridge Strickler won the game for the Tigers on a field goal.
The Tiger defense shut down a daunting Centaurus attack and helped Summit eke out a 15-13 win in what could be the team's final game of the season.
“Our kids came to play,” SHS head coach Dylan Hollingsworth said of the difference in the teams' two matchups this fall. “That energy and emotion that we had in last week's (overtime win over Evergreen), we played with that the whole game tonight.”
Centaurus was playing the game without its starting quarterback, but with the way the Tigers played on both sides of the ball and on special teams, it may not have mattered who was behind center for the home team.
Summit quarterback Sam Dudick did most of his work with his right leg rather than his right arm in the win, helping Summit dominate field position the whole night with his booming punts. The senior put Centaurus inside its own 5-yard line twice in the game.
Meanwhile, senior tailback Rick Dreyer helped the Tigers eat up the clock, running the ball behind the stellar Tiger offensive line (Vinny Pestello, Keynan Roggasch, Trevor Barton, Henley Huang, Stuart Vanderkooi and Brady Sandsmark).
“Our offensive line was real solid tonight,” Hollingsworth said. “Just an outstanding game for them.”
It was the Summit defense, though, that got the Tigers on the board first. After pinning Centaurus deep in its own end, Summit forced a three-and-out. Then the long snap on the ensuing punt sailed over the kicker's head, and the Tigers tackled the scrambling punter for the safety.
The Tigers got a short field on the next kickoff and took advantage. The drive ended with Dudick sneaking the ball into the endzone from less than a yard out. Summit couldn't convert on the two-point conversion, however, and settled for an 8-0 lead.
After Centaurus cut the score to 8-6 just before halftime, both teams went scoreless for the third quarter. The fourth quarter seemed to be heading the same way until Dreyer took a handoff on second-and-goal from the Centaurus 9-yard line and broke in for the touchdown with only 45 seconds remaining in the game.
The Tigers elected to kick the ball deep with the 15-6 lead, and the Centaurus player returned the kickoff for a touchdown.
Now the Summit lead was only two points, as Centaurus lined up for an on-sides kick — which Centaurus recovered at midfield with 13 second left.
Out of field-goal range, Centaurus threw up a Hail Mary as time expired, but Summit senior Michael Daniels was there for the interception to clinch the win.
Hollingsworth — who credited Tiger defenders Cody Holland, Danillo Ottoborgo and Dreyer for shutting down the Centaurus offense — couldn't have been happier with how his team finished out its regular season.
“When you get your butts handed to you the first time, it's hard to come back and think you can win,” he said. “I'm just so proud of the way they played tonight. ... The growth this team has had from Week 1 to Week 10 has been so impressive. I'm just so proud of what they did.”
The Tigers (6-4) still have an outside chance of making the 16-team field for the state playoffs, though they likely won't find out until late Saturday. Either way, the Tigers finished with a .500 record or better for the sixth straight season.
The Tigers, overall, had a pretty up-and-down season that featured some impressive wins and underwhelming losses. They opened the season with a hard-fought win over Battle Mountain and improved to 2-0 the following week with a win over Englewood. Summit blew a 16-point lead the next week in a loss to Ridge View Academy and struggled to find consistency for the following weeks.
The highlight of the year for the Tigers was their thrilling Week 9 win over Evergreen at home. The Tigers struggled much of that night on offense, but staged a late fourth-quarter drive to tie the game at 14-14 to send the game to overtime. Sophomore Ridge Strickler won the game for the Tigers on a field goal.
