Sid Rich claims defensive battle against McMurtry
Wrapped up in their second defensive struggle in as many weeks, Sid Richardson College held McMurtry College scoreless in the first quarter but were unable to produce any points of their own. In the second quarter, Sid Rich senior quarterback Bianca Santos capped off a drive into the red zone, finding sophomore wide receiver Julianne Roberson on a flag pattern in the end zone to take the lead. Sid Rich converted the extra point, taking a 7-0 lead into the half.The second half was more of the same, as both defenses held their ground and kept their teams in the game. The Game of the Week became a field position battle, with both punters backing up the opposition in their own territory to keep the scoring down. Sid Rich and McMurtry exchanged possessions in the third quarter, with the Sid Rich offense on the field to begin the fourth quarter.
Sid Rich kept the ball on the ground, looking to kill some time as they moved the ball beyond midfield and into McMurtry territory. But the drive would stall at the McMurtry 30, as Sid Rich was forced to punt with under 10 minutes left. The McMurtry offense, pinned deep in their own territory, took advantage of a personal foul call, moving the ball from the shadow of their own end zone and kick-starting what would be a long and strategic drive. McMurtry resorted to the option, moving the ball beyond midfield with a pair of successful running plays before the Sid defense could adjust.
McMurtry, with the clock winding down, went to a few short passing plays but could not convert the first down until a brilliant offensive call brought them into the red zone with under four minutes left in the game. With the Sid Rich defense over-committing on running plays, McMurtry ran a wide receiver reverse to the left side, with senior Alli Scully taking the ball down the sideline and inside the Sid Rich 20-yard line. Just two plays later, the call was the same, as the reverse brought the ball inside Sid's 5-yard line for a first down. The Sid Rich defense's scoreless streak, and more importantly, the game, lay on the line, as Sid Rich's 7-0 lead looked anything but concrete with the game clock running down.
McMurtry was pushed back on first down by a high snap out of shotgun, pushing the offense behind the 5-yard line for second down. McMurtry ran an inside draw on second down to get the ball back inside the 5, but were stopped by an incompletion on third down. With the game clock now under two minutes, the fourth-and-goal play would decide the game, as Sid would have the option to kneel out the clock with a fourth-down stop. McMurtry went to the air, lobbing a pass in the end zone toward Scully on the right side of the field. Sid sophomore cornerback Leticia Comin turned in time to deflect the ball and preserve the 7-0 victory.
Note: Due to a lack of responses from coaches at other colleges, no other detailed recaps are available.
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