Bulldogs struggle in semifinal loss at Mountain View

Like a Pacific Ocean tsunami too powerful to stop, the Mountain View Buffalos overwhelmed an outmanned Lovell Bulldogs squad in a Class 2A semifinal game Friday in Mountain View, powering to a 52-14 win on a windy afternoon.

Mountain View entered the game undefeated, having outscored their nine opponents by an average of 32 points per game, and while Lovell was riding a four-game winning streak, injuries had produced some holes they were unable to fill. The result was a nearly unstoppable offensive performance by the home team and their dynamic senior quarterback, Justus Platts.

Lovell head coach Nicc Crosby said Platts was coming off an injury when the Buffalos edged the Bulldogs 21-12 back on September 12, and he left the game in the second half following a pair of Lovell sacks. But Platts was healthy and explosive on Friday, rushing for 216 yards on just 12 carries, an average of 18 yards per carry.

“Since then (the first game), he’s gotten back to full strength, and we went the other way in terms of our team health,” Crosby said. “It’s just not a great combination. He’s quite possibly the most explosive player I’ve coached against at any level, 3A or 2A, so you sure want to have all of your starters healthy to try to contain him.”

At least five starters were out or playing with injuries Friday. Senior linebacker/cornerback/running back Chase Crosby suffered a deep thigh bruise at Newcastle the previous week, and when the swelling wouldn’t go down, he was unable to play and would have been a key player in attempts to corral Platts with his instincts and speed, Crosby said.

Junior cornerback Wilson Hendershot missed virtually the entire season after suffering a knee injury on the first defensive play of the season at Big Horn on September 5, and similarly, senior lineman Kalell Gruell broke his leg during the first Mountain View game on September 12 and missed the rest of the season.

Senior linebacker and running back Cash Wassmer played but was hampered by an injured ankle.

“He was well below full strength, and that’s not a good position to be in when you’re trying to corral one of the better athletes in the state,” Crosby noted.

And senior lineman Halen Strom has battled a knee injury for the better part of two seasons and was hurting again on Friday, though he remained effective, if limited.

“It’s the time of year where people are banged up,” Crosby said. “We were just compromised against the team that has the schematics and the athletes to really make you pay. My thing all along was, if we made them have to drive the ball, we would give ourselves a chance, but we just gave up yards and huge chunks. We didn’t provide much resistance.

“We didn’t move the ball consistently enough on offense and turned it over too many times to really keep ourselves in the game.”

First-half whirlwind

Lovell took the opening kickoff and started to move the ball. On the first play from the line of scrimmage, quarterback Kyson Crosby rolled right and hit senior Owen Walker along the right sideline for a 13-yard gain. However, after two runs netted five yards, a third-down pass was dropped, and Lovell punted to the Mountain View 11.

Mountain View had 89 yards to go for a touchdown, but the explosive Buffalos only took two plays to do so. Platts gained 33 yards on a quarterback keeper, then broke free around right end for a 56-yard touchdown run: two plays, 89 yards. With the PAT, Mountain View led 7-0.

Lovell quickly moved into Mountain View territory on the ensuing series as Matthew Newman ran for six on fourth and one, followed by a 15-yard strike from Kyson Crosby to Walker. On the very next play, however, Newman ran to the right for a gain but was popped, and the ball came loose. Platts scooped and scored, returning the fumble 67 yards for a touchdown. The PAT was blocked, but Mountain View led 13-0 halfway through the first quarter.

Getting the football again, the Bulldogs moved into Buffalo territory, but a fake punt attempt was hit for a loss. Mountain View drove 51 yards in two plays, a 39-yard run by Platts and a six-yard touchdown run by Ashton Colangelo. A shell-shocked Bulldog team trailed 19-0 late in the first quarter still.

Lovell went three and out, and Mountain View drove to the Lovell 17, where the Bulldogs held, forcing the Buffs to give the ball up on downs. Two plays later, Newman was intercepted on a halfback pass by – who else? – Platts, and Mountain View drove 30 yards in three plays, with Platts scoring on a 10-yard keeper. Mountain View led 26-0 midway through the second quarter.

The Bulldogs finally put together a long drive, moving 65 yards to score as Crosby completed three passes on the series, including a leaping grab by Newman, who pulled down the aerial and dashed 40 yards to pay dirt. The PAT failed, but Lovell was on the scoreboard trailing 26-6.

Not to be outdone, Mountain View marched 66 yards to score again on a one-yard sneak by Platts. The Buffalos led 33-6 with 40 seconds left in the first half. Lovell ran a hurry-up offense and reached the Mountain View 29 before time expired in the half.

Second-half blues

If there was any doubt about who would win, Mountain View dispelled them on the first series of the second half. After the Bulldogs attempted an on-side kick, Mountain View drove 56 yards to score on a 24-yard run by Jackson Sawyer. Mountain View led 40-6.

Crosby said he attempted to instill some hope at halftime.

“We just encouraged the guys to play for pride and see what happens -- see if you can get a couple big plays and get in the end zone and get a couple of stops and get yourself back in the game,” he said. “We figured we’d try an onside kick starting out, but we weren’t as sneaky as we were hoping to be with that.

“It would have been a Herculean effort (to come back) at full strength, and we were far from that.”

Lovell went three and out, and Colangelo returned the ensuing punt 59 yards to the Lovell 1-yard line. Colangelo was rewarded with a carry and scored on a one-yard run. Mountain View led 46-6.

Platts added one more touchdown – his fifth -- on a one-yard run, and Lovell completed the scoring with a 12-yard touchdown pass from Crosby to Nate Cornia, followed by a two-point conversion by Wassmer, making the final score 52-14.

Mountain View outgained Lovell on the ground 330-73, and Newman led the Bulldogs with 45 yards rushing on eight carries. Crosby had a strong game passing, completing 17 of 22 passes for 165 yards. Newman caught five passes for 63 yards, Walker five for 54 yards, Cornia five for 28 and Owen Edwards and Mac Morgan one for 10 each.

Platts completed five of eight passes for 101 yards.

“Kyson put the ball in good spots for our guys to be able to make some plays,” Crosby said. “Our pass protection all year has been solid, and Kyson was well protected for the most part. Nate was solid. He caught everything he got his hands on. It was kind of nice for next year a little bit. Those guys will have opportunities to throw the ball to each other.

“It’s sad that Chase didn’t get a chance to play. He’d really been coming on, taking advantage of his opportunities running the ball. And I think he would have helped us out a lot on defense with Platts.

“There were good lessons to learn and take moving forward, but certainly there’s a lot to be proud of, making it to the semifinals. And honestly, with the caliber of football team Mountain View was this year, they’ve proved throughout the year they deserve to be where they are. We would have not just had to have been healthy, we would have had to play really well to beat those guys. That was an awfully good squad we went up against.”

Mountain View will now play Big Horn Friday at noon in Laramie for the state championship.

Friday’s game was the final contest for Lovell seniors Chase Crosby, Matthew Newman, Jaxon Whittington, Owen Walker, Owen Edwards, Cash Wassmer, Halen Strom, Brody Muller, Kyle Wilson and Kalell Gruell.