Rockford Rams 28. East Kentwood 21

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Rockford gets small scare
By Gary BondThe Grand Rapids Press

KENTWOOD -- Unbeaten and two-time defending state champ Rockford earned another win and should not lose its lofty No. 1 ranking in the Associated Press' state poll. But the Rams did receive a scare Friday night against East Kentwood.
It was a little scare, but a scare all the same.

With 2.9 seconds left in the O-K Red Conference game at East Kentwood High School, the Falcons got within a touchdown after quarterback Jovanti Hood plunged into the end zone from a yard out, but an on-side kick recovery by Rockford sealed a 28-21 victory.
" It was a hard-fought game on both sides," Rockford coach Ralph Munger said. "The game plan was to take away their big plays, but they had the ball quite a bit -- running 66 offensive plays to Rockford's 46 --which means they had 20 more opportunities.
" Our defense can play better, but we will learn from this game. This is the kind of competition that makes you better."
Special teams were huge for the Rams early when Michael Mudgett blocked a Kentwood punt late in the first quarter that was recovered on the Falcons' 14-yard line.
Two plays later, Zach Breen, who finished with 107 rushing yards on 17 carries, scored the first of his three touchdowns.
Kentwood, behind the running of junior tailback Ezekiel Crossley and the arm of Hood, answered with a touchdown on the ensuing possession that ended with receiver Aric Geerling spliting two Rockford defenders on a slant pattern that covered 40-yards for a score.
But the Rams answered back with a Breen 4-yard touchdown run on the next drive. Then late in the first half, Derek Beemer's interception helped set up Breen's next score from 35-yards out, giving the Rams a 21-7 lead at halftime.
" We made some critical mistakes at key times, and you can't get behind a team like Rockford the way we did and expect to win,' Kentwood coach Eddie Ostipow said. "I'm proud of the way our kids played tonight, and I thought we played a good game, but Rockford made the big plays when they needed them."
The Rams increased their lead to 28-7 when Kyle Lienesch hauled in a 13-yard pass from quarterback Tom Fusee late in the third quarter.
Crossley, who carried the football 26 times for 146 yards, scored on a 40-yard split in the fourth quarter with 9:12 left in the game. The Rams' ball control offense took five minutes off the clock before failing on a fourth-down situation at the Kentwood 30-yard line.
The Falcons moved the football and finally scored, but time wasn't on their side.
Hood, who rushed for 47 yards on 16 carries, completed 13-of-24 passes for 148 yards. Fusee connected on 6-of-13 passes for 101 yards.

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