Rockford hands Grand Haven third straight loss
By Steve Vedder / The Grand Rapids Press
ROCKFORD -- It might
not have been Rockford's best game of the season, but the timing
could not have been better.
The Rams kept their destiny in their own hands with Friday's
35-14 win over Grand Haven at Ted Carlson Stadium.
The combination of the Rams' win and Muskegon beating Hudsonville
sets up an Oct. 19 meeting between Rockford and the top-ranked
Big Reds that could leave the O-K Red in a three-way tie. Meanwhile,
the win also qualifies the Rams (6-1, 4-1) for the state playoffs.
Grand Haven lost its third game
in a row after opening the season with four wins.
While the public address system at Rockford kept fans abreast
of Muskegon's win, Rams coach Ralph Munger said the game didn't
concern his team, even though it keeps Rockford's title hopes
alive.
"To be honest, I didn't even hear," he said. "I
was focused on what we had going tonight and taking care of business."
After a shaky second quarter, the Rams did exactly that. They
let a 14-0 lead slip away, but wound up getting a 1-yard run
by Brian Twiest that snapped a 14-14 tie with 2:08 left in the
first half.
"It still wasn't our best game, but I was pleased with
our consistency," Munger said. "We had less breakdowns."
The Rams took a 14-0 lead by the 2:36 mark of the second quarter
on a 45-yard run by Ryan Cochran and a 69-yard pass from Robert
Banaszak to Aaron Kwekel.
But Grand Haven tied the game on a 1-yard pass from Kurt Viening
to Ben Prouty and a 4-yard run by Logan Cuddington with six minutes
left in the half.
Twiest's score snapped the tie and a 2-yard run by Cochran and
a 25-yard touchdown from Alex Caurdy with 4:13 left clinched
the win.
Grand Haven coach Mike Farley, whose team had scored 37 points
in its last two games, said the Bucs couldn't seem to capitalize
on chances.
"We had some missed opportunities," he said. "Rockford
is a great program, but we felt we were even with them. Missed
opportunities really hurt us. We've got to make opportunities
happen. We did that in the first four games, but they've gone
against us in the last three."
Munger said the Rams were as solid as they have been all season
in scoring the last three touchdowns.
"We talked about that extensively at the half," he
said. "We came out focused and played hard the second half
and did a wonderful job."
