Gallatin’s defense put the Bulldogs in position to win Friday night.
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Gallatin’s defense put the Bulldogs in position to win Friday night. Justin Duffy’s punting sealed the deal.
The Bulldogs pitched a shutout against the Braymer Bobcats in the second half of their Class 1, District 12 opener, and came away with a 28-14 victory that gave them a leg up in the three-team battle for a spot in post season play. Gallatin needs only a victory this week to clinch its second straight district title and post season appearance.
Gallatin’s second half performance was all about defensive stands after the Bulldogs took their opening third quarter possession 65 yards to reclaim the lead, 18-14. Braymer answered by driving to Gallatin’s 15-yard line, thanks to a 35-yard pass completion from Quinn Brown to Derek Adkison, but the Cats could not crack and resurgent Bulldog defense.
Clayton Baker tackled Jake Houston for a 4-yard loss thanks to Brett Wilkinson’s outside containment. Brown tried to pass on third down but he went down under a sea of Bulldog tacklers. Zach Gutzmer dropped Brown for a 9-yard loss that gave the Bulldogs possession of the ball on downs.
The Bobcat offense got more of the same on its next series. Houston picked up 7 on a carry, but lost 6 when Stephen Wood and Riley Rains combined for a stop in the backfield. Corey Lee dropped a scrambling Brown for no gain. A delay penalty and incomplete pass ended the drive when Wood smothered the intended receiver.
The Bulldogs tacked on an insurance score with 7:58 to play in the game. Wood, who finished with 173 yards on the ground, picked up 37 before getting shoved out of bounds at the Bobcat 3-yard line. Nic Burrell carried for 2, then slanted behind Gutzmer for the touchdown. An extra-point attempt turned into a 2-point conversion when Burrell fielded a high snap from center and skated around end into the end zone.
Braymer wasn’t done offensively. The Cats drove to the Bulldog 13-yard line in 6 plays, with Houston doing most of the damage. Facing third and 3, Houston got the call but fell for a 3-yard loss after a collision with defensive end Mark Maillet. A fourth down pass from Brown to Marshall Smith was broken up at the goal line by a triple-team effort by the Bulldog secondary.
The Bulldogs were able to take over 3 precious minutes off the clock with a drive that stalled at midfield.
Enter Gallatin’s candidate for post season punting honors.
Duffy, who already had 2 punts of 40 yards or more on his game resume, launched a 48-yarder that hit inside the Bobcat 5-yard line, bounced sideways and was downed at the 2. With 1:38 remaining, Baker, coming back from last week’s shoulder injury, punctuated a Bulldog victory by sacking Brown in the end zone for a 2-point safety.
Gallatin built a 12-0 lead in the first period. Burrell hit tight end Andrew Adksion for double-digit gains, and Wood rumbled 23 yards to set up Burrell’s 2-yard TD run. A 25-yard return of an interception by Burrell set up a second score with 4:27 left. Wood sprang to the outside for 56 yards after Derek Love rolled a Bobcat defender in his way.
The Bobcats returned to dominate second quarter play with a pair of scoring drives that ate up 11 of 12 minutes on the game clock. Houston capped an 80-yard series with a 6-yard scoring plunge, and polished off a 64-yard drive with a one-yard run. Tyler Phillips kicked both extra points to give the Cats a 14-12 cushion at the break.
Houston led all rushers in the game with 203 yards on 33 carries, but gained only 67 yards, including a 34-yard carry, in the second half.
@10left = Rare afternoon game on tap
The Bulldogs break from routine this week when they travel to Lexington to face Wentworth Military Academy in a rare Saturday afternoon contest. Kickoff time is 1:30 p.m.
Wentworth brings a very respectable 6-2 record into what will be Gallatin’s final district game. If the Bulldogs win Saturday, they will face the winner of District 11 (Concordia, Concordia: St. Paul and Santa Fe) in a Class 1 sectional on Wednesday, Nov. 9, at the site of the D11 winner.
St. Paul, the only D11 team with more than one victory, beat Concordia, 44-7, last Friday to jump into the district driver’s seat. St. Paul brings a 3-4 record into this week’s action. Concordia is 1-6. Santa Fe, last year’s D11 champ, is 1-5. All three D11 squads have wins over Windsor.
Gallatin and Wentworth, as yet, share no common opponent. The Dragons beat Polo, 20-14 in overtime, early in the season. Polo, in turn, defeated Braymer, 36-31. Wentworth lost to University Charter Academy, 20-6. Braymer defeated UCA, 42-6, in its season opener.
Two of Wentworth’s victories have come in 8-man action 50-14 over Norborne, and 13-0 over Hardin-Central. Other WMA results include a 38-0 loss to Crest Ridge, and victories over Concordia (24-8), Northwest of Hughesville (34-0) and Missouri Military Academy (72-0).