FISHERMEN SALVAGE STATE PRIDE, NOW 5-0
Disregard last week's dominating 28-0 win over Philomath. It's back to status quo for Astoria.
When evaluating the performance of the 2006 Fishermen, throw out the stat sheet and look at the scoreboard.
The Fishermen have been outgained and outpossessed by their opponents for the first five weeks of the season, but they will enter the final half of the season as the only undefeated team in the Cowapa League after defeating Yreka, California 26-24 at Autzen Stadium.
Billed as the Cal/Oregon High School Football Showdown, the game kicked off at 8:45 p.m. in Eugene following a 41-21 victory by Sutter High School of Yuba City, California over Central. It seemed like the late local T.V. news would begin before Astoria ever touched the ball. In reality, the game ended just before the T.V. news did at 11:30 p.m.
The Miners, a Division II school from California's Northern Athletic League, had the ball for 14 plays and over half of the opening quarter on their first possession, but came away with no points after a clipping penalty wiped out a third and goal touchdown pass and a 31-yard field goal fell short of the mark.
Astoria's opportunistic defense would help the Fishermen to an early two touchdown lead as Jake Banta and Joey Dursse pounced on Yreka fumbles, setting the stage for two short touchdown drives.
Starting at the Miner 37, Astoria got on the board on the final play of the first quarter as Jordan Poyer fumbled the snap from center, then took off around right end for 20 yards before pitching the ball to Andy Murray, who carried the final 19 yards to the end zone. Just the way the coaches drew it up, right?
The Fishermen got another short field for their next possession, with Dursse recovering a fumble on a busted play at the Yreka 32 yard line. Astoria converted on fourth and three, with Poyer locating his favorite receiver, Adam Koehnke, for an 8-yard pass to keep the drive alive. The sophomore slinger stuck it to Yreka again, finding Nick Alfonse over the middle on a 24-yard touchdown strike on a 4th and 17 delivery, giving Astoria a 13-0 lead when Tony Robinson's PAT attempt hit the left upright.
Yreka came into the game with one man, running back Steven Embury, getting the majority of the accolades. But, as promised, the Miners featured a balanced offensive attack that saw Embury share the carries with fullback Jeremy Turner, while junior quarterback Kyson Culp effectively mixed in passes to a variety of targets.
The Miners again mounted an impressive long drive, this time finding paydirt on the 13th play. On fourth down and seven from the Astoria 8-yard line, Culp zipped a pass to Jimmy Kutzer on a slant to the end zone for six, the potential seventh point doinking off the left upright on a failed PAT kick. Early in the drive, Kutzer had a pass go right through his hands, but Culp confidently looked his way again for an important touchdown, cutting Astoria's lead to 13-6 at the half.
While Embury was held relatively in check in the first half, Culp completed 9-of-12 passes for 69 yards and a score.
Just to prove they can, Astoria mounted a long scoring drive to open the third quarter. Anything over five plays would be a long scoring drive comparatively for the Fishermen this season, but this one actually qualified as time-consuming.
Starting on their own 36-yard line after a 23 yard kick return by Murray, the Fishermen marched 64 yards in 11 plays, converting on third down three times. The final conversion came when Poyer locked up with Koehnke on a beautifully-delivered 23-yard pass to the goal line pylon on a corner route. Another missed PAT made it 19-6 Astoria.
It looked as if Astoria would run away with it in the third period. After a Yreka punt, Poyer found Murray behind the defense for a 70-yard touchdown catch-and-run. Then the Miners fumbled away the ensuing kickoff, giving Astoria the ball at the Yreka 16-yard line, leading 26-6 with just under two minutes remaining in the quarter. But Poyer, going for the jugular, threw toward the end zone on the first play and a wobbly pass was picked off by Yreka's Ethan Garrett about two yards deep. Garrett might still be running if not for a hustle play by offensive lineman Craig Folgner, who got to the sideline to run him out of bounds at the Yreka 23.
Embury, who came in averaging over 8-yards per carry on the season, finally got loose, rambling 53 yards down the right sideline, with Joey Dursse catching up in pursuit to trip him up at the Astoria 24-yard line. Two plays later, Culp hooked up with Garrett in the end zone for an 18-yard touchdown. Culp's conversion run failed and Yreka was on the comeback trail.
The Miners took over on downs at their 42-yard line early in the fourth quarter and put together their third long drive of the night. A clipping penalty on third and seven pushed them back to the 42 yard line, but Culp calmly located Aaron Sinnott over the middle for 21 yards, carried the ball five yards on an option keeper on fourth down and two. On the next play, Garrett again beat cornerback Justin Tikkala in the end zone and Culp found him for his second touchdown catch and Culp's third TD throw of the night. Suddenly, the Miners, with 8:11 to go in the game were very much in the picture. But, signifcantly, another Culp conversion run failed to reach the end zone, leaving Yreka 8-points down.
A Sinnott interception returned the ball to Yreka with 7:13 to go in the game and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Brent Culver on the very next play put the Miners into Astoria territory. Five plays later, Culp ran two yards for a touchdown, setting up a potentially game-tying two point conversion. But a fade pass into the corner of the end zone was slightly overthrown, and the Fishermen clung to a 26-24 lead with 5:08 remaining.
The Fishermen were able to pick up a pair of first downs and had first and goal at the Miners 10-yard line, but a sack and a delay of game penalty pushed the Fishermen back to the 20. On third down and with Yreka out of time outs, Astoria rolled the dice and came up snake eyes, when Poyer tried to force a pass for Koehnke into double coverage in the end zone and was picked off by Garrett.
With 2:07 to go and a chance to win the game, Culp's first two passes were incomplete before finding Embury for an 11-yard gain. Hurrying to the line to get a play off before the restart of the clock, Culp dropped back to pass and threw to the sideline where Poyer, playing safety, jumped in front of the receiver to pick the ball off, allowing Astoria to run out the clock and preserve their fifth straight win without a loss.
While Poyer threw three picks and had a number of fumbles on snaps, he did have his most productive day as a passer, completing 9-of-17 throws for 193 yards. The Fishermen running game was practically non-existent, as the speedy Miners defense, led by their outstanding linebacking corp, held Murray to just 28 yards on 15 carries. Murray carried the ball eight times in the second half, six carries going for no gain or minus yards.
Embury had a fine evening with 120 yards rushing on 17 carries although its was more than 40-yards below his average for the season. Culp was impressive, completing 16-for-25 passes for 172 yards and three touchdowns, while Turner, the fullback, carried for 60 yards on ten attempts and was a standout on the defensive side.
Casting a pall over the win was a first half injury to starting defensive tackle Alex Whittaker, who is lost for the season with a broken ankle. The senior lineman, who also backs up at offensive tackle, joins sophomore linebacker Trevor Puckett on injured reserve with a similar injury as the Fishermen will enter league play without two defensive starters.
YREKA 0-6-6-12-24
ASTORIA 6-6-14-0-26
1stQ-AST: Murray 19 run after Poyer 20 run and lateral (Robinson kick)
2ndQ-AST: Alfonse 24 pass from Poyer (kick failed)
2ndQ-YRK: Kutzer 8 pass from Culp (kick failed)
3rdQ-AST: Koehnke 18 pass from Poyer (kick failed)
3rdQ-AST: Murray 70 pass from Poyer (Robinson kick)
3rdQ-YRK: Garrett 18 pass from Culp (run failed)
4thQ-YRK: Garrett 16 pass from Culp (run failed)
4thQ-YRK: Culp 2 run (pass failed)
RUSHING-YRK: 36-200 (Embury 17-120), AST: 36-95 (Poyer 22-63)
PASSING-YRK: Culp 16-25-1-172-3td, AST: Poyer 9-17-3-193-3td
RECEIVING-YRK: Sinnott 3-42, Turner 4-38, Kutzer 4-31-td, AST: Murray 2-104-td, Koehnke 6-65-td
TURNOVERS-YRK: 4, AST: 3
PENALTIES-YRK: 4-50, AST: 8-65
When evaluating the performance of the 2006 Fishermen, throw out the stat sheet and look at the scoreboard.
The Fishermen have been outgained and outpossessed by their opponents for the first five weeks of the season, but they will enter the final half of the season as the only undefeated team in the Cowapa League after defeating Yreka, California 26-24 at Autzen Stadium.
Billed as the Cal/Oregon High School Football Showdown, the game kicked off at 8:45 p.m. in Eugene following a 41-21 victory by Sutter High School of Yuba City, California over Central. It seemed like the late local T.V. news would begin before Astoria ever touched the ball. In reality, the game ended just before the T.V. news did at 11:30 p.m.
The Miners, a Division II school from California's Northern Athletic League, had the ball for 14 plays and over half of the opening quarter on their first possession, but came away with no points after a clipping penalty wiped out a third and goal touchdown pass and a 31-yard field goal fell short of the mark.
Astoria's opportunistic defense would help the Fishermen to an early two touchdown lead as Jake Banta and Joey Dursse pounced on Yreka fumbles, setting the stage for two short touchdown drives.
Starting at the Miner 37, Astoria got on the board on the final play of the first quarter as Jordan Poyer fumbled the snap from center, then took off around right end for 20 yards before pitching the ball to Andy Murray, who carried the final 19 yards to the end zone. Just the way the coaches drew it up, right?
The Fishermen got another short field for their next possession, with Dursse recovering a fumble on a busted play at the Yreka 32 yard line. Astoria converted on fourth and three, with Poyer locating his favorite receiver, Adam Koehnke, for an 8-yard pass to keep the drive alive. The sophomore slinger stuck it to Yreka again, finding Nick Alfonse over the middle on a 24-yard touchdown strike on a 4th and 17 delivery, giving Astoria a 13-0 lead when Tony Robinson's PAT attempt hit the left upright.
Yreka came into the game with one man, running back Steven Embury, getting the majority of the accolades. But, as promised, the Miners featured a balanced offensive attack that saw Embury share the carries with fullback Jeremy Turner, while junior quarterback Kyson Culp effectively mixed in passes to a variety of targets.
The Miners again mounted an impressive long drive, this time finding paydirt on the 13th play. On fourth down and seven from the Astoria 8-yard line, Culp zipped a pass to Jimmy Kutzer on a slant to the end zone for six, the potential seventh point doinking off the left upright on a failed PAT kick. Early in the drive, Kutzer had a pass go right through his hands, but Culp confidently looked his way again for an important touchdown, cutting Astoria's lead to 13-6 at the half.
While Embury was held relatively in check in the first half, Culp completed 9-of-12 passes for 69 yards and a score.
Just to prove they can, Astoria mounted a long scoring drive to open the third quarter. Anything over five plays would be a long scoring drive comparatively for the Fishermen this season, but this one actually qualified as time-consuming.
Starting on their own 36-yard line after a 23 yard kick return by Murray, the Fishermen marched 64 yards in 11 plays, converting on third down three times. The final conversion came when Poyer locked up with Koehnke on a beautifully-delivered 23-yard pass to the goal line pylon on a corner route. Another missed PAT made it 19-6 Astoria.
It looked as if Astoria would run away with it in the third period. After a Yreka punt, Poyer found Murray behind the defense for a 70-yard touchdown catch-and-run. Then the Miners fumbled away the ensuing kickoff, giving Astoria the ball at the Yreka 16-yard line, leading 26-6 with just under two minutes remaining in the quarter. But Poyer, going for the jugular, threw toward the end zone on the first play and a wobbly pass was picked off by Yreka's Ethan Garrett about two yards deep. Garrett might still be running if not for a hustle play by offensive lineman Craig Folgner, who got to the sideline to run him out of bounds at the Yreka 23.
Embury, who came in averaging over 8-yards per carry on the season, finally got loose, rambling 53 yards down the right sideline, with Joey Dursse catching up in pursuit to trip him up at the Astoria 24-yard line. Two plays later, Culp hooked up with Garrett in the end zone for an 18-yard touchdown. Culp's conversion run failed and Yreka was on the comeback trail.
The Miners took over on downs at their 42-yard line early in the fourth quarter and put together their third long drive of the night. A clipping penalty on third and seven pushed them back to the 42 yard line, but Culp calmly located Aaron Sinnott over the middle for 21 yards, carried the ball five yards on an option keeper on fourth down and two. On the next play, Garrett again beat cornerback Justin Tikkala in the end zone and Culp found him for his second touchdown catch and Culp's third TD throw of the night. Suddenly, the Miners, with 8:11 to go in the game were very much in the picture. But, signifcantly, another Culp conversion run failed to reach the end zone, leaving Yreka 8-points down.
A Sinnott interception returned the ball to Yreka with 7:13 to go in the game and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Brent Culver on the very next play put the Miners into Astoria territory. Five plays later, Culp ran two yards for a touchdown, setting up a potentially game-tying two point conversion. But a fade pass into the corner of the end zone was slightly overthrown, and the Fishermen clung to a 26-24 lead with 5:08 remaining.
The Fishermen were able to pick up a pair of first downs and had first and goal at the Miners 10-yard line, but a sack and a delay of game penalty pushed the Fishermen back to the 20. On third down and with Yreka out of time outs, Astoria rolled the dice and came up snake eyes, when Poyer tried to force a pass for Koehnke into double coverage in the end zone and was picked off by Garrett.
With 2:07 to go and a chance to win the game, Culp's first two passes were incomplete before finding Embury for an 11-yard gain. Hurrying to the line to get a play off before the restart of the clock, Culp dropped back to pass and threw to the sideline where Poyer, playing safety, jumped in front of the receiver to pick the ball off, allowing Astoria to run out the clock and preserve their fifth straight win without a loss.
While Poyer threw three picks and had a number of fumbles on snaps, he did have his most productive day as a passer, completing 9-of-17 throws for 193 yards. The Fishermen running game was practically non-existent, as the speedy Miners defense, led by their outstanding linebacking corp, held Murray to just 28 yards on 15 carries. Murray carried the ball eight times in the second half, six carries going for no gain or minus yards.
Embury had a fine evening with 120 yards rushing on 17 carries although its was more than 40-yards below his average for the season. Culp was impressive, completing 16-for-25 passes for 172 yards and three touchdowns, while Turner, the fullback, carried for 60 yards on ten attempts and was a standout on the defensive side.
Casting a pall over the win was a first half injury to starting defensive tackle Alex Whittaker, who is lost for the season with a broken ankle. The senior lineman, who also backs up at offensive tackle, joins sophomore linebacker Trevor Puckett on injured reserve with a similar injury as the Fishermen will enter league play without two defensive starters.
YREKA 0-6-6-12-24
ASTORIA 6-6-14-0-26
1stQ-AST: Murray 19 run after Poyer 20 run and lateral (Robinson kick)
2ndQ-AST: Alfonse 24 pass from Poyer (kick failed)
2ndQ-YRK: Kutzer 8 pass from Culp (kick failed)
3rdQ-AST: Koehnke 18 pass from Poyer (kick failed)
3rdQ-AST: Murray 70 pass from Poyer (Robinson kick)
3rdQ-YRK: Garrett 18 pass from Culp (run failed)
4thQ-YRK: Garrett 16 pass from Culp (run failed)
4thQ-YRK: Culp 2 run (pass failed)
RUSHING-YRK: 36-200 (Embury 17-120), AST: 36-95 (Poyer 22-63)
PASSING-YRK: Culp 16-25-1-172-3td, AST: Poyer 9-17-3-193-3td
RECEIVING-YRK: Sinnott 3-42, Turner 4-38, Kutzer 4-31-td, AST: Murray 2-104-td, Koehnke 6-65-td
TURNOVERS-YRK: 4, AST: 3
PENALTIES-YRK: 4-50, AST: 8-65
posted by Matt Richert at 10:04 PM
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