Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Wolves handle Cobras, 30-13-, in homecoming win

Anyone just looking at the statistics would think Fountain Lake beat Prescott.

The Cobras gained more overall yards than Prescott, had fewer turnovers and penalties.

However, the Wolves came out on top of an inferior team, 30-13, to keep their slim playoff hopes alive.

The homecoming game began with Prescott winning the opening toss, but deferring until the second half.

This gave the Cobras first shot at trying to score.

David Jones fielded the kick at the 23, returning it to the 27.

Jones gained two on first down, but saw quarterback Robert Wallace fumble, but recover the ball on the 15. An incomplete pass on third down forced the Cobras to punt.

R.J. Vanhook caught the ball at the Prescott 49, setting the Wolves up with great field position as he rambled to the Cobra 41.

However, the Wolves were nailed with a clipping penalty on their first play and moved backwards, getting the game off to an inauspicious start.

Vanhook carried twice, getting to the Cobra 45 before Zach Martin was picked off by Wallace at the 28. Wallace returned the interception to the 44.

The Cobras began moving downfield on the strength of Jones's running. He led his team into Prescott territory to the 40 before the Wolfpack defense showed up and sacked Wallace twice, forcing a punt.

The punt hit the ground, rolled and was touched by Vanhook, who was unable to find a handle. Fountain Lake found one and took over at the Prescott 37.

It seemed neither team wanted to score early on, as mistakes plagued both squads.

The Cobras ran two plays, moving to Prescott's 21 before getting flagged for illegal procedure.

Drew Oxner followed this by getting caught in the backfield at the 29.

But, the Wolves returned the favor by jumping offsides and putting the Cobras at the 24.

Wallace found Jones with a pass to break the impasse and put Fountain Lake up 6-0. The point after was good, giving the Cobras a 7-0 lead with 2:06 left in the first quarter.

Haris Williams took the short kick at the 32, returning it to the 45 for Prescott.

Then it was back to Vanhook, who carried four times to the Cobra 17. Martel Woodley got in a run for two yards on the fourth play, giving Vanhook a bit of a breather.

Still, period one ended with Fountain Lake up 7-0. The quarter went by fast lasting 22 minutes.

Two plays into the second quarter Prescott was on the board as Vanhook went in from the two with 11:33 remaining.

Coach Kirk Armitage ignored trying for a point after, opting instead for a two-point conversion attempt. Martin hit Woodley in the flat to give the Wolves an 8-7 lead.

The second quarter was good for the Wolves as they put 23 points on the board.

Jeremy Alred took the kick at the 25 and lost five yards back to the 20 as the Wolves swarmed him on the kick coverage.

Wallace gained four on a quarterback keeper, with Jones adding three on second down. Wallace hit Oxner at the 40 on third down to keep the drive alive.

However, the Cobras went out of their way to shoot themselves in the foot soon thereafter by getting called for delay of the game and having an ineligible receiver downfield.

Prescott put the Cobras out of their misery by recovering a Wallace fumble at the Fountain Lake 36.

Five plays later, the 64 yard drive was capped by Vanhook going in from the eight to make the score 14-7. A second two-point conversion increased the lead to 16-7.

Vanhook carried the ball four times in the drive, with Craig Teague getting the call on the other run.

Tommy Wallace took the kick at the 15, returning it to the 35 for Fountain Lake.