Football Eastbrook 20, Whiting 13
Stopped short
Whiting falls to Eastbrook on touchdown in closing seconds
Stuart Glascow tried.
He did everything he could to put his team on his back.
It just wasn't quite enough.
Whiting's quarterback just couldn't get the 1 full yard he needed in a 20-13 loss to Eastbrook Friday in the Class 2A semistate at Ray P. Gallivan Field.
It was a heartbreaking defeat for the Oilers (12-2), who thought they had it late in the fourth quarter when they drove to the Panthers' 37 with 2:11 left and the game tied at 13.
Glascow, who finished with 169 yards on 30 carries, was stopped on fourth-and-1.
Glascow wasn't sure what happened on that play, but he wasn't worried about it. He was about 18 inches short.
The senior quarterback was happy to end his career with the kids he grew up playing with in his neighborhood.
“I played with these seniors since I was in third grade,” he said. “I can't say I'm upset. We played our hearts out.”
After the Panthers (13-1) stopped Whiting on fourth down, they got their final score on a 2-yard run by Blayne Altum with 18.7 seconds left.
The TD was set up by a 41-yard run by Justin Singer.
It was a fitting ending for a wild game.
Whiting spotted Eastbrook a 13-0 lead in the first half.
The Panthers scored on their first possession, going 75 yards on 12 plays. Singer finished the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run.
It didn't take long for the Panthers to add on. Edward Keasling scored on a 19-yard TD run with 3:05 left in the first quarter.
Whiting answered on its next possession when Nino Barbosa broke free from his defender and caught a 58-yard pass from Glascow.
In the second half, Whiting found its rhythm with Glascow rushing for 134 of his 169 yards.
His 4-yard TD run with 7:38 left in third quarter tied it.
Both teams were able to move the ball after that, but neither could get it in the end zone until Altum scored.
Whiting stopped Eastbrook on fourth-and-1 from the 16 with 7:11 left. That set up the Oilers' final drive.
Whiting coach Jeff Cain said it was a “tough one to lose. I'm proud of these guys. They fought back.”
Eastbrook rushed for 307 yards. The Panthers were led by Altum, who finished with 145 yards rushing on 18 carries.
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