Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Hat Trick! Devils post 7-6 win over Prescott part II

It was three and out for Prescott as the Wolves were only able to gain eight yards.

With time running out, the Devils let the punt roll dead at the Gurdon 11, with Plyler taking a knee to end the half with the score unchanged at 7-6.

Period three began with Prescott's Decolen Prater taking the kick at the eight, returning it to the 38 to give the Wolves decent field position.

A trap to Teague put the ball at the 49, with Vanhook moving to the Gurdon 45 on a sweep.

From there, it was all Gurdon defense. Vanhook was caught for a loss of two, with the Wolves flagged for illegal procedure. Martin was picked off by Walter Hart.

Hart snatched the pass at the Devil 45, returning it to midfield before being caught.

Laster was stopped on first down, but Gatlin broke free to the 30 on the next snap.

The Devils marched steadily downfield to Prescott's three before fumbling the ball away and losing a perfect scoring opportunity.

Vanhook gave the Wolves some breathing room on first down as he made it to the 13.

However, his next carry wound up on the ground, with Gurdon falling on the loose ball at the 13.

Again, it looked as though the Devils would punch the ball over the goal line and increase their lead, but it wasn't to be.

First down resulted in a six-yard loss, and Plyler was unable to connect with his receivers on second and third down. Eddie Fort lined up for a 36-yard field goal attempt, only to have his kick sail wide left.

The Wolves took over at their own 20 with 2:23 to go in the third.

Both teams were hit with penalties on the next play, Gurdon for grabbing a facemask, and Prescott for holding. The penalties offset and they had to do it all over again.

The flags also nullified an 11-yard gain by Damarcus Craven.

Craven got seven of the lost yards back on the next play, before Woodley helped the Wolves earn a first down with his four-yard run.

Another holding penalty killed Prescott's drive, as did the Devil defense.

The third period came to an end with Norwood gaining eight on a counter, putting the ball at the Prescott 28.

A lot can happen in 12 minutes, especially in high school football. However, what happened in the final 12 minutes, for the most part, was things going Gurdon's way.

The quarter opened with Craven stopped for no gain on third down, forcing a punt.

Williams fielded the kick at the Devil's 38, returning it to the 43.

It was three and out for the Devils, as they were only able to get to Prescott's 48, a yard short of the necessary 10 for a first down.

Moseley saw the entire front line of Prescott rush in on the punt attempt, ran for his life and booted the ball on the run. His punt rolled to the Prescott two, pinning the Wolves with their ears to their own goal line.

The Wolves fought back, relying heavily on Teague's hard running, as they moved to their 20 before Gurdon's defense pushed them back to the 13, where they were forced to punt.

The ball rolled dead at Gurdon's 47 with 5:58 left in the contest. Prescott's offense never saw it again.

Gurdon relied on its running game to chew time off the clock, as the Devils moved to the Prescott four as time expired.

No win for the Devils is ever any sweeter than a win over Prescott. What made this one even better was it being Gurdon's first victory of the season.

Statistically the Devils were dominant as well.

Plyler was two of five for 26 yards, while Martin was 0-6 with an interception.

The Wolves were forced to punt five times, for 179 yards, while Gurdon punted twice for 76 yards.

Usually the Devils are heavily penalized. This wasn't the case Friday night as Gurdon was only flagged three times for 25 yards. Prescott saw laundry fall five times for 30 yards in loss.

Gurdon's defense sacked Martin twice, while Plyler was caught but once by the Wolf defense.

Where the Devils had problems was in putting the ball on the ground. Gurdon fumbled five times, losing two. Prescott lost its only fumble of the night.

The Devils had 13 first downs to Prescott's six.

In all, the Devils ran 47 offensive plays, while Prescott ran 36.

Gurdon had 26 yards passing to zero for Prescott, with the Devil ground game gaining 152 yards, while the Wolves managed 119 yards.

So, in total yards, Gurdon out-gained Prescott 152-119.

Laster was the workhorse for the Devils, as he carried the ball 24 times for 125 yards.

Hart carried the ball five times, losing 25 yards.

K.P. Meeks ran eight times for 25 yards, while Plyler had three carries for three yards gain.

Gatlin ran the ball twice for 24 yards.

Next on the list for Gurdon is league rival Mineral Springs. The Hornets stole one at Go-Devil Stadium last year, and the Devils are looking for payback.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.