Chris Yingling | Echo
A late fourth-quarter comeback attempt was not enough for the Taylor football team to topple No. 8 Saint Francis on Senior Day, as Taylor fell to the Cougars 20-12.
Saint Francis controlled much of the first half, scoring 14 unanswered points. The Trojan defense stayed strong despite the first-half surge. Sophomore safety Tyler Mills intercepted the ball on USF's first drive, keeping the Cougars' scoring opportunities to a minimum.
Two drives later, freshman Dovi Gamble blocked his first of two kicks of the day with a blocked field goal on USF's third drive.
"I had a will to change the game," MSFA Special Teams Player of the Week Gamble said. "It was pure focus and relying on my speed to get where I needed to be to make the play."
Another big special teams play put a spark into the Trojans as senior Luke Currens returned a punt 20 yards to the 32-yard line, putting the Trojans in excellent field position.
Immediately after, freshman quarterback Justice Odom led a 32-yard drive, capping it with a nine-yard touchdown run to make the score 14-7 going into halftime.
After halftime, Gamble struck again with his second blocked kick of the day. He was able to get his hands up and block a USF punt out the back of the end zone, forcing a safety and closing the gap to 14-9.
Taylor's offense moved the ball 65 yards on the ensuing possession until finally stalling. Sophomore Alec Eickert was able to split the uprights with a 43-yard field goal, cutting the lead to 14-12 in favor of Saint Francis.
A few good Taylor comeback attempts stalled in the red zone as turnovers limited any scoring attempts for the Trojan offense.
"Turnovers and red zone were our biggest concern," said head coach Ron Korfmacher. "We'd like to get touchdowns instead of field goals and then down the stretch we had some bad interceptions, but the guys played hard."
Saint Francis finally broke through the Taylor defense, scoring a touchdown with just over two minutes left in the game. The extra-point attempt sailed wide-left and gave the Trojans an eight-point deficit, instead of nine, but the final drive was shut down by a USF interception and upset hopes vanished.
Sophomore receiver Shawn Lashbrook enjoyed another good day, leading the Trojan receivers with 12 receptions for 109 yards. The game marked Lashbrook's fifth consecutive 100-yard game.
Gamble logged two blocked kicks, six tackles, two tackles for losses and a sack on the day. Junior linebacker Dan McKenna and junior defensive back Adam Sauder each registered eight tackles while sophomore defensive lineman Jake Venable recorded two sacks.
This was the final home game for 11 Taylor football seniors. The senior class was recognized before the game.
Taylor will close out the season at Saint Francis in Illinois tomorrow with kickoff at 1 p.m.
Photography by Timothy P. Riethmiller
