By Chris Rossetti

CLARION TWP. – Coudersport scored 24 unanswered second-half points including 16 points in the fourth quarter to erase a 14-6 halftime deficit and get a 30-14 win over Clarion-Limestone in the opening round of the District 9 Class A playoffs Saturday night at C-L.

"In the second half our offensive line really controlled the game," Coudersport head coach Paul Simcoe said. "I really think that was the difference in the game. We just wore them down. Our kids stepped up and took the challenge.

"I thought the kids responded extremely well to being down at halftime. We could have panicked and packed our bags, but they didn’t. That is probably the best feeling I have out of this whole game tonight. That speaks well to how they responded. They kept their composure."

With the win the Falcons (9-1) move into the District 9 championship game for the first time since they won the title in 1994. They will play defending champion Curwensville, who defeated Smethport 7-6 Friday night, Saturday afternoon with the game most likely to be played at Brockway.

Coudersport, who last season decided to skip the District 9 playoffs so it could play a postseason game in Orlando, Florida, is very excited about getting a chance to go the championship game this season.

"That is one of the things we talked about even last year," Simcoe said. "We let the kids decide that. We felt that it brought our young players together as a group and gave them the experience to do something. All of they have thought about since that trip last year was that they wanted to be in the playoff this year. We were one game short of what we wanted. We wanted to win the AML. But now we don’t care because now we are where you keep advancing if you win. I thought the trip was big. It brought the younger kids together with the older kids."

With the loss C-L ends the season at 8-2. With the Lions losing it is the first time since Smethport beat Johnsonburg in 1996 that a Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference team won’t be in the District 9 title game.

"They are a good ball club," C-L head coach Clyde Conti said. "But when (Ben) Brooks (C-L’s fullback and outside linebacker) went down we weren’t able to do some things. But hey we had eight victories this year, and I feel really good about the kids. They played hard. They played really well. I thought they represented the school very well. The other team was a good football team, and we got smacked around. That is what happens. The kids should feel very good about this year.

C-L outplayed Coudersport on both the scoreboard and the stat sheet in the first half outgaining the Falcons 188 yards to 110 while picking up 11 first downs to Coudersport’s four. C-L’s defense limited the Falcon running attack to only 34 yards rushing in the half on 12 carries and held quarterback Ben Cary to 4-for-13 passing for 76 yards.

The Lions defense looked like it was going to continue its dominance in the second half limiting the Falcons to only 36 total yards thought the first four minutes of the second half on two possessions.

But on Coudersport’s third possession the Falcons started moving the ball ending up outgaining C-L 265 yards to 110 in the second half while racking up nine first downs to the Lions three. Coudersport rushed for 163 yards on 27 carries in the half. Most of the Falcons damage came in the fourth quarter when they ran 20 plays and gained 153 yards while holding C-L to 36 yards on 11 plays. Coudersport held the ball for 8:50 seconds in the final quarter while C-L had it for just 2:56.

"We thought our defense played well enough to keep us in the game in the first half," Simcoe said. "Once our offense got going that was the separation."

Coudersport got the game’s first score early in the second quarter when Cary hit tight end Dane Haskins with a 47-yard scoring strike with 10:21 left in the half. The Falcons tried for the two-point conversion, but Cary’s pass was incomplete leaving them with a 6-0 lead.

The Falcons drive started at their own 21-yard line with the big play being a 23-yard pass from Cary to Mike Maiuro on third-and-10 from the Coudersport 21. Up until the pass, Coudersport had gained just nine yards in the game.

But one play after the big pass, Ross Simcoe ran for nine yards to the C-L 47-yard line and two plays later Cary found Haskins over the middle, and Haskins broke a few tackles while rumbling into the end zone.

C-L had a chance in the first quarter to take an early lead but a 32-yard field goal attempt by Rocky Davis was wide right.

"I thought we were moving the ball good (in the first half)," Conti said. "But then again we had everybody on the field. That’s not an excuse, but you can’t take those kids out of our group like that."

The Lions did get on the board on their first possession following the Haskins touchdown when J.J. Ferguson hit Dan Alderton with a 42-yard scoring pass with 9:32 left in the half. Davis’ extra point gave the Lions a 7-6 lead.

"We stressed all week that they were going to move the ball against us," Simcoe said. "They have good athletes. We told the players we couldn’t give up quick scores. I was disappointed on that one because it was a quick score."

C-L had started the drive at their own 45-yard line following a 21-yard kickoff return by Hayden Johnston. Chad Conti then ran for 21 yards to the Coudersport 42 before Ferguson hit Alderton who outran the Falcons to the goal line.

The Lions defense then forced a Coudersport punt that gave the C-L the ball at their own 30-yard line with 7:30 left in the half.

On the first play after the punt Chad Conti raced 51 yards to the Coudersport 21-yard line. C-L was then able to move the ball to the 11-yard line before a 5-yard penalty pushed the Lions back to the 16.

Facing fourth-and-5 from the 14, Davis tried a 31-yard field goal that was ruled no good by the officials despite the appearance from behind the goal post that it was good.

The Lions defense, though, continued to stand tall not allowing the Falcons to move the ball.

The offense then increased the lead scoring a late touchdown thanks two costly Coudersport penalties.

The score came on a 1-yard run by Alderton with jut 40 seconds left in the opening half, and Davis’ extra point gave the Lions a 14-6 halftime edge.

The two costly Falcon penalties were a 15-yard pass interference call that put the ball at the Coudersport 24-yard line and a roughing the kicker penalty after Davis had kicked an apparent 34-yard field goal that moved the ball to the Coudersport 12-yard line after the Lions decided to take the three points off the board and take the first down.

Things looked as if they were turning around for Coudersport at the start of the second half when Maiuro took the second-half kickoff 80 yards to the C-L 11-yard line. Only a tackle by Justin McKissick prevented the score.

McKissick’s tackle turned out to be big for the Lions, as the C-L defense held the Falcons to two yards on four plays turning the ball over on downs.

"We need to get the ball in there," Simcoe said. "In a close game that is going to cost you. The games are only going to get tougher from here on."

C-L’s offense was then able to move the ball out to the 37-yard line before being forced to punt.

The defense continued to shine forcing a punt that gave the Lions the ball in decent field position at their own 43-yard line.

Three straight incompletions by Ferguson, however, forced a Lion punt that have Coudersport the ball at the Falcons 29-yard line with 7:47 left in the third quarter.

At this point the game began to turn, as Coudersport marched the ball to the C-L 13-yard line before Hayden Johnston knocked the ball lose from Zach Hershey’s hands and Kyle Brocious recovered the ball at the C-L 18-yard line.

C-L’s offense was the bale to get the ball out to the 47-yard line thanks to a 15-yard penalty on Coudersport, but a penalty of their own and a great defensive play by Coudersport on a reverse to Chad Conti found the Lions facing a fourth-and-26 from their own 26-yard line.

Even worse than that for the Lions, who were already missing linebacker Ben Brooks who was hurt in the first half, Alderton and Jordan Johnston both came up limping on the last play leaving C-L without two of their better defensive players when Coudersport took over at their own 46 following a punt.

Coudersport quickly took advantage of the shorthanded Lions, as Maiuro ran 12 yards on first down to the C-L 42-yard line. Following a 1-yard run by Maiuro, Cary found a wide open Steve Brink behind the C-L defense for a 41-yard touchdown pass with 2:14 left in the third quarter.

"The injuries hurt them," Simcoe said. "Both mentally and physically. It is tough. We are the same way. If we get a kid or two injured we are going to be the same way. It is just a credit to their kids to stay in there."

The Falcons then went for the two-point conversion and the tie and they got it on a run up the middle by Maiuro.

On C-L’s next possession the Lions got Alderton back, although Johnston won’t return until the next defensive series. Despite both players being back in the lineup, C-L’s offense couldn’t move the football, and Jarrett Levavasseur intercepted a Ferguson pass at the Coudersport 29-yard line with 1:53 left in the third quarter.

C-L’s defense was able to come up big and force a punt giving the Lions the ball at their own 43 late in the third quarter.

But once again the Coudersport defense, which was allowing on 5.8 points per game the best in District 9 coming into the game, held the Lions in check.

The Falcons offense then got the ball back at their own 36-yard line with 11:46 left in the game.

Facing third-and-10 at the 36, Cary came up with the play of the game hitting Brink for a 26-yard pass to the C-L 38.

Two plays later, Cary hooked up with Haskins taking the ball to the C-L 3-yard line, and two plays after that Maiuro finished the job scoring on a 1-yard line giving the Falcons the lead back with 9:47 left in the game. Maiuro ran in the two-point conversion giving Coudersport a 22-14 lead.

"Ben’s been big for us all year," Simcoe said. "In the first half he wasn’t getting his feet set all the time. In the second half we had him roll out a bit to get a little pressure off of him. When we did that he seemed to respond and make a couple of big throws and we had a couple of kids who made some big catches."

"I saw some of it (the big pass plays) coming Thursday," Conti said. "We didn’t play too well in spots back there. But those our the guys who got us here, so we will just go from there."

C-L’s next possession consisted of two incompletions and a negative 5-yard pass.

Hayden Johnston then shanked an 11-yard punt giving the Falcons the ball at the C-L 49-yard line with 9:13 left in the game.

Two plays netted two yards for Coudersport, but then Simcoe called the tight end reverse to Haskins who ran 47 yards for a touchdown. Maiuro then added the two-point conversion to give the Falcons a 30-14 lead with 7:50 left in the game.

C-L wasn’t about to go down without a fight, as Ferguson hit Chad Conti on a 26-yard pass to the Coudersport 38-yard line on the first play following the touchdown.

Hayden Johnston, who was playing fullback in place of the injured Brooks, then ran for 10 yards, and Ryan Smith caught a 3-yard pass that with a 5-yard face mask penalty on Coudersport added on put the ball at the Falcon 20-yard line.

"It was unfair to Hayden to have to play at fullback," Conti said. "But he played good. Brooks plays the game harder than anybody I’ve ever had. You sometimes take people for granted."

C-L was able to get the ball to the 18-yard line, but on second-and-10, Brink intercepted a Ferguson pass a the 13-yard line and returned it to the C-L 43 with 5:26 left in the game.

The Lions never got the ball back, as the Falcons ran 10 plays getting the ball down to the C-L 3-yard line when the clock expired.

Both teams went to the air quite a bit during the game with C-L throwing 19 passes and Coudersport 28. The passing attack was a little out of character for both teams, as both teams entered the game running the ball at a three rushes for every one pass clip.

"We didn’t really come in thinking we could pass the ball," Conti said. "We just had to change up some things as the game went on."

Simcoe said he didn’t come in with a game plan to pass either.

"It was the flow of the game," Simcoe said. "And we weren’t running the ball very well in the first half. I wanted to, but we were getting stuffed every time. We were just trying to loosen them up so we could run the ball. We don’t come in knowing exactly how we are going to attack. We have a plan, but depending on what the other team is doing we adjust."

After the game Conti hinted that he probably would not be back as the Lions coach next season.

"An 8-2 team is not bad for a lame-duck coach that the administration didn’t want," Conti said. "I don’t know if I am going to be back next year. I am just saying how things are. This whole season for me was because I wanted to be here for my son. It is easy to be outside the arena and be critical. They can do what ever they want right now. But I feel good about my kids and I always have."

Conti wasn’t hired back as the Lions coach until January and then late in the spring he was asked to resign, but he decided to stay on and coach this season because his son Chad was a senior.