West Catholic and Forest Hills Eastern, two state ranked teams, squared off with the lead in the OK White on the line. In an epic battle that surpasses any of their previous five meetings, West Catholic was able to escape with a narrow 24-23 victory.
In the early stages of this game, West Catholic had control early. Grady Augustyn used his legs for a 27-yard quarterback keeper, giving the Falcons a 7-0 advantage on their opening drive. This was the only scoring play of the first quarter.
West Catholic doubled their lead by marching 81 yards in seven plays to open the second quarter. This time, Augustyn used his arm to find David Britenfel for a 32-yard touchdown.
Forest Hills Eastern would roar back in the final ten minutes of the first half. On their ensuing drive, Brendan Thompson powered across the goal line for a 2-yard quarterback keeper. After forcing a three-and-out where West Catholic gained just one yard, FHE had great field position. They capitalized, covering 17 yards in just four plays, with Max Ferrick capping things off with a 1-yard plunge.
With the game even and just 75 seconds remaining until the half, the Hawks defense forced another three-and-out, this time moving West Catholic back four yards. The 27 seconds that remained on the clock would be enough for FHE, as Charlie Soet booted a 37-yard field goal that gave the Hawks the 17-14 advantage as the teams headed to the locker room.
Neither team would find their footing in the third quarter, although Forest Hills Eastern twice turned the football over on downs inside the West Catholic 12, leaving valuable points on the board.
As the fourth quarter began, West Catholic went on a 93-yard touchdown march. They needed just five plays, as Augustyn found Gabe Schwieters for a 35-yard touchdown toss. This put West Catholic back in front, 21-17.
Forest Hills Eastern would respond, methodically working their way down the field. The Hawks took 14 plays to cover 71 yards, chewing up nearly eight minutes of time off of the game clock. With 48 seconds to go, Max Ferrick returned to the end zone with another 1-yard carry. FHE would elect to go for two, and it failed, leaving them ahead 23-21.
West Catholic had time for a quick response, and the Falcons did just that. They covered 44 yards in nine plays, reaching the FHE 21 yard line. This allowed head coach Landon Grove to send out Landon Smith for a game-winning 38-yard field goal. The boot from Smith cleared the crossbar, propelling the Falcons to a thrilling victory.
With this win, West Catholic has secured at least a share of the OK White title. The Falcons (5-2, 4-0) would clinch it outright with a win over Hamilton next Friday. Forest Hills Eastern (5-2, 3-1) would need some help, in addition to a win over Wayland, to secure a share of the White next week.
