George leads Warren Central comeback in regional win over Pike
By CRAIG DRAGASH
ISL Correspondent
INDIANAPOLIS — Max Hernandez’s field goal in the final seconds lifted Warren Central to a 24-21 win at Pike on Friday night.
On Warren’s final drive, Jeff George found Darius Lee for a 24-yard completion to the Pike 20, and a roughing the passer penalty moved the ball to the 10. Three straight run plays put the ball at the 8-yard line, and Hernandez got his shot with 7 seconds left. After Pike called a timeout in an attempt to ice the kicker, Hernandez split the uprights. The clock ran out on the kickoff, giving the Warriors the win.
“I knew guys would make plays, and I gave them opportunities to make those plays,” said George. “We weren’t ready for our season to be over.”
Warren Central advanced to host Center Grove in next week’s semistate. The Trojans defeated the Warriors 21-10 in Jayson West’s debut as Warren’s head coach.
“It’s not easy, but it’s part of the deal”, said West. “But here we go again.”
George completed 15 of 30 passes for 195 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.
“They put some shots on (George)”, said West. “He stood in and threw the ball well. He’s gotten so much better at that all year.”
West was pleased that Warren’s defense slowed Pike. Brent Lyles completed 12 for 21 passes for 184 yards with one touchdown and one interception in his final game of a very successful career at Pike.
“That offense is nightmarish,” West said. “For our defense to hold them to 21 points, that’s all we can ask.”
You wouldn’t expect the first half of a 6A regional championship contest to go like this:
- Eight penalties
- Three fumbles
- A low-scoring, 7-6 Pike halftime lead over Warren Central
It was a half that had Pike fans frustrated with several miscues on special teams, and a Warren Central defense that harassed Red Devils quarterback Brent Lyles. Pike’s lone score came after starting from the Warriors’ 45-yard line, where four straight runs split between the duo of Derrick Wilkerson and Taylor Sanders set up a 4-yard touchdown pass from Lyles to Devin Pearson.
On the next drive, Warren went three-and-out and punted to Pike, but the punt was muffed and recovered by the Warriors at the Pike 21-yard line. Warren moved the ball to the 10, where Pike incurred two straight encroachment penalties, giving the Warriors a first-and-goal from the 2. On second-and-goal from the 1, Pike linebacker Donovan Phillips penetrated into the backfield to meet Tirone Young right at the handoff exchange for a 3-yard loss, and another incomplete pass led to Max Hernandez’s 21-yard field goal.
Hernandez added a second field goal on the next possession to cut the Pike lead to 7-6.
With just over four minutes left in the half, Pike started a drive from its 3. The Red Devils drove all the way to the Warren Central 26, and Lyles found Dominique Booth, who had returned for Pike from an elbow injury, streaking down the middle for a touchdown, but the play was called back due to a holding penalty. Pike went for it on fourth-and-20 from the Warren 41, but Lyles was sacked by Darion Howard, and the Warriors took over at their 48 with 25 seconds left in the half. But after a holding penalty on second down, George took a knee, and the Warriors went to the locker room trailing by one.
The Warriors punted on their first possession of the second half, and Pike had great field position in Warren Central territory at its 48. After consecutive negative plays, Lyles hit Pearson on 3rd-and-16 for a 20-yard completion to convert the first down. But Lyles was sacked on third down, and the Red Devils were forced to punt. Punter Chase Watkins fumbled the low snap, and as he approached the loose ball, he kicked it off of the ground resulting in an illegal touch penalty, and Warren Central started its next possession from the Pike 48.
George found tight end Zach Gegner for a 14-yard touchdown pass, and defensive back Mykelti Williams took the shotgun snap and ran it into the end zone for the two-point conversion, giving the Warriors their first lead, 14-7.
Pike responded with a 95-yard drive that resulted in a 1-yard sneak by Lyles, and the game was tied at 14. On the Red Devils’ next possession, a 6-yard run by Wilkerson early in the fourth quarter gave the lead and momentum back to Pike.
After trading possessions, Warren tied things up as George found Darius Lee for an 11 yard strike with 3:55 left. A key play on the drive was George hitting Gegner for a 30-yard completion on third-and-six to the Pike 17.
Starting from their 31, Pike moved the ball to the 50 on a 16 yard completion to Pearson. But two plays later Lyles scrambled and threw an ill-advised lob pass toward his sideline that was picked off by Rashad Medaris, and the Warriors were in business at their 45 for the game-winning drive.
Now, Center Grove awaits.
“Redemption”, George said. “We beat Pike, that’s one team we lost to, and now Center Grove, they’re next on the list.”
Follow Craig Dragash on Twitter: www.twitter.com/cdragash_isl.
