courtesy of Shawana Coxcourtesy of Shawana Cox

Big Win for the Bears

No doubt about it. The Willow Springs Bears and the Pleasant Hope Pirates each had something to prove when they faced off Friday night.  The Bears were looking for their first win in two years, the Pleasant Hope program returning to varsity play after spending four years playing exclusively JV.
 
The Pirates struck immediately, returning the opening kickoff for a touchdown, and then after getting the ball back on an interception, making a return trip to the endzone. The Bears and their fans looked a little shell-shocked, suddenly down 14-0 in the first few minutes of play.
 
Halfway through the first quarter, the Bears began to interject newly eligible senior, Jace Rodgers, into the mix, alternating him in the quarterback position with Caden Lee.  The combination seemed to work, and the Bears began to gain ground, aided by strong defensive plays by Elijah Roberts, Logan Bryan, Gavin Glenn, and John Baugh.  The score went from an early deficit to a 20-20 tie at halftime.
 
The third quarter Bears kept it rolling with Rodgers picking up chunk yardage and Kayden Woolsey taking it to the house.  An interception by Baugh, his second of the night, set up a touchdown by Caden Lee.  The Pirates answered back, one of many conversions by the Altic brothers of Pleasant Hope, and the Bears responded with an impressive 55-yd touchdown run by Woolsey, making the score 41-26, WS.  A Rodgers’ pass to Tucker Bryan tacked on 6 more points.  The Pirates and the Bears traded another set of scores, Willow’s coming on a long yardage run by Rodgers. 53-32, WS. 
 
The offense had its motor running, while the defense held their own with interceptions (two by Baugh, one by Everett Smith and one by Glenn), pass deflections or knock-downs by Isaac Murphy, Roberts, and Baugh, and opportune tackles by Aiden Messex, Dane Flynn, E. Smith, Murphy, Roberts, and others.
 
There was no stopping the attack, and the Bears added touchdowns by Woolsey and Lee, bringing the score to 66-32.
 
In the fourth quarter, some freshmen got to showcase their abilities.  A touchdown run by Braden Scarbrough set up the PAT booted by Noah Wake.  Wake also showed some leg power on the ensuing kickoff.  Scarbrough followed up with a fumble scoop-and-score making the final 79-32.
 
The monkey off their back. The long drought over.  However you want to say it, the Bears are in the win column again.  After the game, Coach Logan Schwalm commented, “This is the first step in the right direction.  I’m proud of them for fighting through everything.”
 
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