Second half turnovers cost Colonels in loss at Calhoun
The Calhoun Yellow Jackets took advantage of three second half turnovers and stymied the Cass offense Friday night for a 30-16 home win over the Colonels.
The win by Calhoun secured the Region 7-5A championship for 2022 and will send the Yellow Jackets to the Class 5A state playoffs as a No. 1-seed.
Cass, who will be a No. 4-seed in the state playoffs, led 8-3 until late in the second quarter and trailed 9-8 at halftime.
The Colonels fumbled the second half's opening kickoff and had two more turnovers over the final two periods as Calhoun pulled away to a 30-8 lead and an eventual 14-point win.
Yellow Jackets’ kicker, Carlos Lopez, kicked a 31-yard field goal with 3:41 remaining in the first quarter to give Calhoun a 3-0 lead on their second offensive possession of the night.
Cass answered with their ensuing drive, marching 56 yards on 10 plays to take an 8-3 lead with 10:21 remaining in the second quarter. Freshman quarterback Brodie McWhorter escaped pressure and flipped a short 8-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Henderson for the score. Cass added a two-point conversion when PAT holder Devin Henderson executed a fake and tossed a fade route pass to Maddix Young. After possession exchanges, Calhoun’s Cam Curtis had a nice punt return to the Cass 49-yard line and then a personal foul penalty on the Colonels set up the Yellow Jackets at the Cass 34-yard line.
Seven plays later and following several wildcat formation runs by Emaree Winston, Calhoun’s Corbin Fuller capped the scoring drive with a 1-yard run. A two-point conversion pass was broken up by the Colonels’ defense leaving the score 9-8 with 2:18 remaining in the half.
Cass drove back down the field and reached the Yellow Jackets’ 10-yard line, but a last-second field goal attempt was blocked as time expired in the half.
On the opening kickoff of the second half, Cass misplayed a high-arcing kick and Calhoun recovered the ricochet at the Colonels’ 28-yard line. Two plays later, Yellow Jackets’ quarterback Trey Townsend hit receiver Dustin Kerns with a 27-yard touchdown strike. A PAT kick by Lopez gave Calhoun a 16-8 lead with 10:17 to go in the third quarter.
Calhoun’s next scoring drive began late in the third quarter and finished at the beginning of the fourth. This time, Townsend fired a 28-yard touchdown pass to Curtis who made a one-handed stab over two Cass defenders in the back of the end zone. Lopez added the kick and Calhoun was ahead 23-8 with 11:50 remaining.
Caden Williams added a 31-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter to finish off a 68-yard drive and the Yellow Jackets had pulled away, 30-8 with 3:17 left in the game.
Cass posted a final touchdown with 1:28 remaining. McWhorter connected with Jayshaun Brown-Whatley for a 36-yard touchdown pass. The same duo then hooked up for a two-point conversion pass resulting in a 30-16 final score.
With their victory, Calhoun (7-3, 4-1) wins the 2022 Region 7-5A championship and will host the No. 4 seed from Region 8-5A on Saturday, November 12.
Cass (4-6, 2-3) will open the Class 5A state playoffs on the road at Region 8-5A champion Jefferson. That first round game will also be on Saturday, November 12.
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