Osky outlasts Demon comeback

After a wild fourth quarter, it all boiled down to one play.

The Washington football team was able to capitalize on a late interception with 1:30 left in the game, putting in a touchdown, and they were forced with a decision.

Down by one, the Demons could go for the extra point and try to tie the game, or go for it all and try to get the two-point conversion, which would put Washington up late.

Immediately after Jaivonn Willis crossed the goal line for his rushing touchdown, his third of the game, each member of the Washington football team was ready to go for the win, and that fell right in line with the decision made on the sidelines.

?When the defense was on the field with about five minutes to go, the offensive coaches got together about if we were going to go for two (if the situation arose) and what the play call would be,? Washington football head coach Garrison Carter said. ?We came to a decision, and we knew for sure we would go for two. We were fortunate enough to get the ball back and score, then it made things clearer when every kid on the field held up two fingers to go for it. Credit to Oskaloosa, they made a big play.?

Oskaloosa ultimately stopped the Demon run up the middle 1-yard from getting into the end zone, and after the onside kick went out of bounds, the Demons fell in the contest, 28-27.

?Obviously we are disappointed,? Carter said. ?Every year you enter the year hoping to compete for a state title and with the new playoff system, that dream was cut short of the playoffs. Nobody is happy about that, but you can?t take anything away from the way our kids played on Friday night. There was a lot of adversity on them all season. They battled their hearts out but we couldn?t quite get over the hump.?

The loss drops Washington to 5-3 on the season, and the three district losses eliminated them from contention for an automatic berth to the postseason, as Oskaloosa clinched their playoff spot with the win.

Washington could still earn a wild-card berth into the postseason, but the odds appear slim for the Demons, as they need multiple teams in other districts to drop their final game of the year.

The game

On the opening possession of the game, Washington gambled with a fourth-and-inches inside their own territory, and a fumbled snap gave Oskaloosa good field position.

Three plays later, the Indians found the end zone on a 26-yard pass, putting Washington in an early hole.

After a Washington drive into Osky territory ended in a punt, John Dillon notched his third interception of the season, setting Washington up inside the Indians? 10-yard line.

Willis notched his first rushing touchdown of the day to cap off the short field, but a missed two-point conversion left them in a 7-6 deficit.

Oskaloosa responded with a big pass play on their ensuing drive, picking up 66 yards on a touchdown pass, making it 14-6.

The Demons were forced to punt on their next possession, but the defense continued to pick up key turnovers when they needed them.

Washington senior Karlton Skubal came up big with a strip-sack, forcing an Oskaloosa turnover inside the Indian 30-yard line.

Jaivonn Willis opened the second quarter by capping off that drive with a 6-yard touchdown run, and a two-point run by Jack Redlinger tied the game up at 14.

On the next possession, Oskaloosa fumbled a handoff, giving Washington great field position again, but their field goal attempt was inches short, connecting with the crossbar, but the Demons wasted no time getting the ball back.

Another sack and fumble, this time recovered by senior Bryce Sinn, gave Washington the ball at the 27-yard line.

The Demons drove into the red zone, but a fumble on a handoff gave the Indians the ball back. Oskaloosa was forced to punt on the possession, and the Demons took the possession and drove down the field, eventually punching in a 1-yard touchdown run with Redlinger.

That touchdown wasn?t without a somber moment, as the Demons lost senior captain, offensive lineman and defensive tackle Seth Townsend to an ankle injury on the play.

The score put Washington up 21-14 with 2:40 left in the half, but Oskaloosa had one more big play left in them before halftime, connecting on a 53-yard pass to tie the game up before the break.

After trading punts in the second half, Oskaloosa found the district?s top receiver, Bennet Spry, for a 35-yard touchdown as the Indians took a 28-21 lead.

After a punt gave Osky the ball back to start the fourth quarter, the Indians drove deep into Washington territory, but the Demon defense came up big, forcing a fumble at the 6-yard line.

The Demons drove down the field, but fumbled the ball at the Indian 11-yard line, and lost Redlinger to an injury on the play with 5:38 left.

The Demon defense took the field with their backs against the wall, knowing they needed a stop.

After being forced to use a few timeouts for clock control, Matt Reighard made the play off the game, earning a key interception for Washington with 2:30 to play in the game.

?I can?t compliment our kids enough about how they continued to make big plays with our backs against the wall,? Carter said. ?It?s unfortunate because two teams deserved to win that football game, and unfortunately only one could. Oskaloosa came out on the right side of it.?

The Demons capitalized and Willis notched his touchdown, but the fateful miss on the two-point conversion effectively ended the game.

Defensive dominance

Despite taking the loss, the Washington defensive front played one of its best games of the season against Oskaloosa.

The largely senior-laden crew accounted for six turnovers, including four forced fumbles, and six sacks in the contest.

Karlton Skubal was credited with three of the sacks in the game, while Bryce Sinn led the team with 10 tackles, notching four tackles for a loss and two sacks.

?The defensive front seven has been huge for us all year,? Carter said. ?So many kids made huge plays, I?m sure I will forget to mention some. I thought John Dillon?s interception in first quarter was the spark we needed to get rolling. Matt Reighard and Aaron Vittetoe both forced huge turnovers in the fourth quarter.

?I thought Karlton Skubal and Bryce Sinn both played arguably their best games of the season on the defensive line. I can?t say enough good things about the effort and energy this group brought.?

Offensive output

The Demon offense put out a strong output on Friday night, accounting for 409 yards of total offense, highlighted by Redlinger?s strong 136 yards on the ground (6.8 yards per carry).

That production was complemented by Willis in the quarterback role, who had 115 passing yards and 118 yard on the ground (5.9 yards per carry).

Dalton Myers had a career game on the receiving end, picking up 69 yards on seven catches.

Moving forward

Washington will prepare for a regular season-ending contest against Fort Madison (0-8 on the year), as they look to earn a final win.

Despite the chances of the postseason being minimal, Carter said he expects the athletes to come ready to play, and make sure they do everything possible to build momentum heading into the offseason.

?You should expect the best performance we can put on the field,? Carter said. ?This game is about three things. This game is about the senior class, recognizing the years they?ve put into this program, and for the younger guys they can end the year on a positive note, going into the offseason with morale high. We get the opportunity to end the year with a victory.

?We have to re-establish our dominance back in the conference. We had our ups and downs this season, but I think Demon football is still the class of southeast Iowa and we have a chance to go into the offseason proving that point on Friday.?

With no freshman game scheduled, the contest against the Bloodhounds is set for a 7 p.m. start at Case Field on Friday.