Bulldogs rip the Rangers as passing game ignites

The Lovell Bulldogs celebrated Senior Night Friday by clobbering the Kemmerer Rangers 48-2 in what may well be the final home game for 10 seniors.

The win secured a playoff berth for the Bulldogs, with only seeding to be determined this week.

Coach Nicc Crosby said the Bulldogs put together a solid all-around performance.

“I think one of the main things we wanted to accomplish was to clean up some of the mistakes that we’ve been making and improve our communication on both sides of the ball – and really just build some momentum going into the last stretch of the season,” Crosby said.

Better communication resulted in better execution on offense, the coach noted, which led to seven touchdowns.

The Lovell offense produced some splash plays during the game. After forcing Kemmerer three and out on the first series of the game, the Bulldogs scored in one play – a 53-yard run by senior running back Chase Crosby. Coach Crosby said the play was actually a rare instance of poor communication by the offense. The play got gummed up to the right, but Crosby fought through traffic, broke tackles and raced down the left sideline to pay dirt as Owen Walker provided a key downfield block. A two-point conversion failed, and Lovell led 6-0.

Lovell again forced Kemmerer three and out, and when the snap from center on fourth down sailed over the punter’s head, the Bulldogs had the ball deep in Ranger territory, and sophomore quarterback Kyson Crosby hit Owen Edwards with a shovel pass that the senior took around left end for an eight-yard touchdown pass. Lovell led 12-0 (run failed).

Kemmerer gained its first two first downs on the ensuing series and had to punt, but when Lovell went three and out, the Rangers drove to the Bulldog 4 before turning the ball over on downs. On Lovell’s next play, Cash Wassmer was hit in the end zone for a safety, giving Kemmerer 2 points.

Getting the ball again, Kemmerer drove to the Lovell 31, but a hit in the backfield by Joaquin Scheeler and a pass breakup by Nathan Cornia forced a Ranger punt.

Lovell put together an 80-yard drive with the key play being a 35-yard keeper by Kyson Crosby. Senior lineman scored on a five-yard run, and Matthew Newman’s PAT boosted the Lovell lead to 19-2, a score they carried at halftime.

The Bulldogs struck quickly in the third quarter. After Lovell received the opening kickoff, Crosby found a steaking Walker deep over the middle for a 73-yard touchdown pass. The PAT was good, and Lovell suddenly led 26-2 seconds into the second half.

After forcing Kemmerer three and out, the Bulldogs drove in from the 35-yard line to score again as, following a penalty, Kyson Crosby hit Scheeler for a shovel pass that went 38 yards for a touchdown. Kyle Wilson ran in the two-point conversion, and Lovell led 34-2 midway through the third.

Walker ended the next Kemmerer drive with an interception, and the Bulldogs capitalized by driving 68 yards to score again. Crosby hit Walker deep for a 39 yard pass and Scheeler for 15, and on fourth and four, Crosby found Walker in the end zone for a score, and with the PAT, Lovell led 41-2 late in the third.

The Bulldogs buried Kemmerer deep on the ensuing series and were rewarded with a short field. The Bulldogs fumbled the ball but got it back on a punt, then drove 40 yards to score. Chase Crosby burst for a 24-yard gain to the 16, Kyson Crosby ran for seven and freshman Mac Morgan zipped around left end for a nine-yard touchdown run, giving Lovell the final 48-2 win.

Coach Crosby said he was pleased to see his defense communicate and quickly adjust to Kemmerer’s shifts and motion plays, and on offense, he said, the pass protection was solid throughout the game.

“The other thing that we wanted to accomplish was that we wanted to get all of our seniors a touch, and we were able to do that,” Crosby said. “We got a few of them in the end zone, whether it was on a touchdown or a two-point conversion.”

Crosby said the big plays to Walker were presented by Kemmerer’s coverage.

“Owen is a matchup problem for anybody, and when they tried to single cover him, we wanted to take advantage of that and get him going. He worked his tail off for us last week in Pinedale, and he didn’t complain and just did a really good job. We wanted to reward him for all of the dirty work that he’d been doing. And, like I said, he had a great block on that running play by Chase. And so wanted to get him involved.”

Chase Crosby finished with 73 yards rushing on just four carries, and Kyson Crosby added 41 yards on five carries. Kyson completed 17 of 20 passes for 258 yards and five touchdowns, with no interceptions. Walker caught four passes for 124 yards and two touchdowns, Wassmer four for 24 yards. Chase Crosby snared three passes for 31 yards, while Scheeler grabbed two aerials for 53 yards, Jaxon Whittington two for 8. Morgan and Edwards each caught one pass for nine yards.

Lovell passed for 258 yards and rushed for 114 yards while Kemmerer rushed for 23 yards and passed for 29.

Jett Hessenthaler led the Bulldogs with 14 defensive points, and Travis Asay added 13 points, Scheeler and Chase Crosby 12, Wassmer 11.

The game was the final home game for seniors Chase Crosby, Newman, Whittington, Walker, Edwards, Wassmer, Halen Strom, Brody Muller, Wilson and Kalell Gruell (injured).

On the road again

The Bulldogs have clinched a playoff berth but would like to nail down the third seed and avoid traveling to Big Horn in the first round. To do so, they will have to beat Cokeville on the road Friday with both teams coming in at 4-3, 4-2 in the 2A West, having defeated and lost to the same conference foes.

“They are going to run the ball and sprinkle in a little bit of pass,” Crosby said. “They just like to control the clock and run the ball on you, and then they play an aggressive 4-4 defense, and are tough to run on between the tackles. Their quarterback has improved quite a bit running and passing.”

Top weapons are quarterback Kashton Walker (#10), running backs Flint Linford (5), Ammon Hatch (4) and Clay Teichert (25).

“Defensively, they’re always really quick, they’re disciplined, and they will go 100 miles an hour, every down, no matter the score,” Crosby said. “They do a lot of blitzing, and the linebackers are really close to the line of scrimmage, so they’re on you right away. I think they know with us they’ve got to be a little bit more careful defending the pass than some of these other teams. They tackle well and just play really hard.”

Kickoff Friday in Cokeville is set for noon.