Cougars look to regroup after loss
BY MICHAEL LINDSAY
ENTERPRISE SPORTS WRITER
RANDLEMAN — The disappointment the High Point Christian huddle was palpable. And players, coaches and fans certainly had a right to be disappointed in the outcome, considering the sudden turn of events.
The Cougars had taken the lead with 3.2 seconds left in the game, and a win over Randleman, which is consistently strong among the area’s NCHSAA teams, was just about a
sure thing. But a string of unfortunateNmiscues and an unlikely touchdown pass with no time left gave the Tigers a 13-10 victorynon Friday night at Randleman’snCharles R. Gregory Stadium and stunned HPCA with its first loss in over a year.
“I’m still a little bit in shock myself about what I just watched,” Cougars coach Scott Bell said as fans nearby tried to figure out what just happened, while opposing fans joyfully celebrated on their half of the field following a wild homecoming win.
HPCA (4-1) trailed 7-3 with 1:35 left after the Tigers (5-1) marched 39 yards on seven plays, capped by a 2-yard touchdown run by Austin Stone. But the Cougars answered with a nine-play, 52-yard drive to regain the lead and put themselves in prime position to win a hard-fought game.
De’shaun Taylor completed four passes to move downfield and ran 15 yards to the 11-yard line for a first down with 29.9 seconds left. HPCA, managing the clock well, got to the 5 with 13.6 seconds left and completed a fourth-down pass out to the right side of the end zone to Tyeren Melton to take back the lead.
But the Cougars, who only lost in week 2 last year en route to winning the NCISAA Division III state title, were twice flagged for 15-yard penalties — on the extra point that set them back on the kickoff, which then squirted out of bounds near midfield, and on a pass interferencecall with no time left.
That penalty allowed Randleman one last untimed down and quarterback Tanner McGee one final heave to Tyson Green in the end zone to win the game for the Tigers.
So, now the challenge for HPCA — which hosts the Carolina Pride on Friday for homecoming — is what it does with that disappointment. Because, ultimately, it still has a lot to play for over the final four weeks of the regular season before heading into the NCISAA Division II playoffs.
“I think it’s a learning lesson for us,” Bell said. “We’d out scored our opponents 166-20 in our first four games. So, here hopefully it’ll be gut-check time for us. It’ll be time to regroup and kind of reset our goals.Moving forward, I like where we are, and I like our team. We just have to go back at it Monday and start preparing for Friday.
“I do have some concern about it becoming more than a mid-season, non-NCISAA loss), because I think our guys expected that we would come out victorious. We don’t want them to dwell on this game. So, I told them that Monday we have to put this game behind us and start preparing again. We still have a long season ahead of us.”
BY MICHAEL LINDSAY
ENTERPRISE SPORTS WRITER
RANDLEMAN — The disappointment the High Point Christian huddle was palpable. And players, coaches and fans certainly had a right to be disappointed in the outcome, considering the sudden turn of events.
The Cougars had taken the lead with 3.2 seconds left in the game, and a win over Randleman, which is consistently strong among the area’s NCHSAA teams, was just about a
sure thing. But a string of unfortunateNmiscues and an unlikely touchdown pass with no time left gave the Tigers a 13-10 victorynon Friday night at Randleman’snCharles R. Gregory Stadium and stunned HPCA with its first loss in over a year.
“I’m still a little bit in shock myself about what I just watched,” Cougars coach Scott Bell said as fans nearby tried to figure out what just happened, while opposing fans joyfully celebrated on their half of the field following a wild homecoming win.
HPCA (4-1) trailed 7-3 with 1:35 left after the Tigers (5-1) marched 39 yards on seven plays, capped by a 2-yard touchdown run by Austin Stone. But the Cougars answered with a nine-play, 52-yard drive to regain the lead and put themselves in prime position to win a hard-fought game.
De’shaun Taylor completed four passes to move downfield and ran 15 yards to the 11-yard line for a first down with 29.9 seconds left. HPCA, managing the clock well, got to the 5 with 13.6 seconds left and completed a fourth-down pass out to the right side of the end zone to Tyeren Melton to take back the lead.
But the Cougars, who only lost in week 2 last year en route to winning the NCISAA Division III state title, were twice flagged for 15-yard penalties — on the extra point that set them back on the kickoff, which then squirted out of bounds near midfield, and on a pass interferencecall with no time left.
That penalty allowed Randleman one last untimed down and quarterback Tanner McGee one final heave to Tyson Green in the end zone to win the game for the Tigers.
So, now the challenge for HPCA — which hosts the Carolina Pride on Friday for homecoming — is what it does with that disappointment. Because, ultimately, it still has a lot to play for over the final four weeks of the regular season before heading into the NCISAA Division II playoffs.
“I think it’s a learning lesson for us,” Bell said. “We’d out scored our opponents 166-20 in our first four games. So, here hopefully it’ll be gut-check time for us. It’ll be time to regroup and kind of reset our goals.Moving forward, I like where we are, and I like our team. We just have to go back at it Monday and start preparing for Friday.
“I do have some concern about it becoming more than a mid-season, non-NCISAA loss), because I think our guys expected that we would come out victorious. We don’t want them to dwell on this game. So, I told them that Monday we have to put this game behind us and start preparing again. We still have a long season ahead of us.”
