Big play sinks Shawnee in regional finals

Wyoming advances after scoring in the 4th quarter on 1st play from scrimmage after Braves’ only TD.

Shawnee High School’s Steven Sarven (8) is tackled by Cincinnati Wyoming’s Jibreel Black during the Division III, Region 12 championship football game Friday, Nov. 20, at Welcome Stadium. Wyoming won the game 14-7. Staff photo by Barbara J. Perenic

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By Brian Plasters, Staff Writer Updated 12:53 AM Saturday, November 21, 2009

DAYTON — One play between two evenly matched teams often decides the outcome at the regional-final level.

And it was the Wyoming High School football team that made that play on Friday, Nov. 20, ending Shawnee’s season with a 14-7 loss in the Division III, Region 12 final at Welcome Stadium.

Shawnee finally found a seam in the Wyoming defense when Evan Storts tossed a 41-yard pass to Xavier Jordan, who was tackled on the Wyoming 1.

It was an easy touchdown run for Eric DeWitt from there, and the score was tied 7-7 with 8:24 to go in the game.

After taking the kickoff to the Wyoming 36, Cowboys quarterback Kyle Seyfried found Spencer Herbst down the sideline, and he sprinted 64 yards for the touchdown.

Twenty seconds after the score was tied, Wyoming led 14-7. A Shawnee punt on the next drive was its last good chance to score.

The Cowboys ground down the clock into the final minute, and Shawnee’s desperation pass was intercepted to end the game.

“One big play got us,” Shawnee head coach Rick Meeks said. “You need to give (the Cowboys) credit. They’re good. They had athletes on both sides of the football.”

The Braves kept it close with their defense and two turnovers: a fumble recovery by DeWitt and an interception by Steven Sarven. The Cowboys had 337 yards of offense, most of that coming from 246 yards passing from Seyfried.

Still, the Cowboys could never find a rhythm and were held in check most of the night.

“The defense was outstanding; it was ‘bend but don’t break’ other than that one big play,” Meeks said.

But as good as Shawnee’s defense played, the Cowboys played better. They limited Shawnee to 191 yards of offense (51 in the first half). The Cowboys’ defensive line, led by Cincinnati recruit Jibreel Black, was especially dominant.

“Our five guys weren’t picking up their three,” Meeks said.

And after both turnovers, Shawnee’s offense followed up with a three-and-out series.

Shawnee had two good chances to score in the third quarter, but one drive stalled at the Cowboys’ 31, and another at the 11.

“I thought our defense was quicker than they were,” Wyoming head coach Bernie Barre said.

Shawnee, the region’s No. 8 seed, finished its season 9-4 after advancing to a regional final for the second time in five years. The Braves lost to Clyde 7-0 in the 2005 regional final.

Wyoming (13-0, the No. 2 seed and ranked No. 3 in the state) will play at a neutral site next week. It has been to the playoffs 17 times, and was last to the state semifinals in 1998.

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