PREP FOOTBALL 2016: Gauchos do it again; win with wild comeback

Casa Grande roared back in the final seconds to grab a second consecutive cardiac-testing football win by edging Montgomery, 25-24, in a North Bay League thriller in Santa Rosa on Friday.

The Gauchos had to rally after yielding two touchdowns to the upset-minded Vikings who went ahead 24-17 in the final stanza. It looked very much like Montgomery would post its first victory over Casa since 2005.

Montgomery had the ball in its own territory with time running out and ran three plays on the ground making the Gauchos use all their time outs. A Viking punt forced Casa to start the last series on its own 40-yard line with less than a minute remaining.

With quarterback Garrett Buffo at the controls, the Gauchos connected on a couple of short passes along the sidelines, but time was not an ally.

In what might be the biggest play of the night for Casa, Buffo connected with senior wide receiver Brandon Keefer on a slick pass completion along the left sideline for 29 yards to keep the Gauchos’ chances alive. Keefer had to shift focus to his outside shoulder to make the twisting grab.

Buffo, in rhythm, hooked up with Clay Smedshammer two plays later in front of the Viking secondary. It was good for a score, and the margin was cut to 24-23.

“We felt we had the momentum, and their wasn’t much doubt that we would go for two points,” said a still pumped up coach Trent Herzog. “We were down so many running backs the past few weeks, and figured why not. That is what high school sports are about isn’t it? On the road you go for the win.”

Buffo continued his magical Friday by locating fullback Mikey Morarity in the right flat, and he made a sure-handed catch with only 17 ticks left to give Casa Grande the margin of victory.

It was a wrenching loss for the Vikings who slipped to 0-5 in the NBL.

A 98-yard kickoff return touchdown by Mackenzie Volkmuth for a score and a go-ahead passing touchdown by quarterback Bryce Borroughs appeared to pad Montgomery enough on the scoreboard to win it before the Gaucho comeback drive.

Casa (2-3 league) held a 7-3 lead at halftime on a five-yard bootleg jaunt into the end zone by Buffo in the first quarter. Buffo went in untouched.

Until that point, the best weapon wielded by the Gauchos was punter Frank Gawronski. His eight punts in the early going kept Montgomery pinned in its own territory. At one point, he boomed two consecutive kicks for over 40 yards aided by turf bounces after a penalty caused the ball to be brought back to the original line of scrimmage on the initial kick.

The only Viking score in the first half came on a field goal after a 54-yard drive.

Montgomery went ahead for the second time on a 52-yard march. Burroughs connected for a 17-yard touchdown to Austin Rapolla who sidestepped a Gaucho defender for the touchdown.

A fumble recovery by Trevor Naugle on a muffed punt booted by Gawronski set up a one-yard push by Travis Voight into the end zone for a 14-10 Gaucho lead.

Another alert Gaucho fumble recovery by Zian Kovach on a well-placed onside kick set the stage for a 33-yard field goal by Keefer, and the Gauchos led 17-10.

Then came a breakdown on special teams on the kickoff return, followed by a second touchdown toss by Burroughs. It didn’t look good for Casa until the final drive.

Travis Voight had a terrific game on the defensive side of the football for the Gauchos. Voight was especially effective in the second half when he bull rushed into the Viking backfield causing multiple rushed passing attempts. Josh Grayson, Billy Brown and Keefer all turned in strong defensive efforts as well.

At the end of the game as the wild celebration began, Voight made his way to mid-field to privately acknowledge the efforts of Viking quarterback Burroughs.

The Gauchos controlled the ball on the ground with 164 total yards. Senior back Brian Kolodin led the way with 77 hard-earned yards on 18 carries behind good blocking up front. Keefer had four catches for 61 yards, and his sideline grab was a game changer. Dulio Froes had a team leading 67 receiving yards.

Montgomery won the junior varsity game, 26-18, before the Viking homecoming festivities began in front of a big home crowd.