COLORADO SPRINGS – Ronin Ward wanted to throw a pass that only Gabe Sema could catch.
Sema, with the large wingspan of a 6-foot-3 tight end, gathered the pass, broke a tackle and crashed into the end zone for the go ahead touchdown as No. 9 Erie beat No. 8 Pine Creek 28-23 in a CHSAA Class 5A second round playoff game on Friday at District 20 Stadium in Colorado Springs.
“The thing with Gabe is you have to throw the ball high,” Ward said about the 16-yard touchdown pass to Sema. “Because he will go up and get it. I threw it high and figured let’s go see if he can get it. He made a phenomenal play. That’s probably my favorite guy to throw to. Just because of his stature. He’s so strong. He’s not a guy that will be tackled by one player.”
Sema’s touchdown gave Erie (10-2 overall) its first lead of the game, which they would not relinquish, with 18.4 seconds left in the third quarter. It capped a nine-play drive that was a result of a disputed Pine Creek fumble that sent the officials into a lengthy meeting.
Staked to a 17-14 lead and driving, the Eagles looked poised to put the game away. But when Caleb Petree reached for the goal line, the ball was punched out. Both teams froze momentarily but it was Erie that pounced on the loose ball.
A 15-yard penalty on the Pine Creek (8-4) sideline provided Erie with possession on the Tiger’s 42-yard line.
“It got away from us there in the middle of the third quarter,” Pine Creek coach David Hedges said. “We had a huge 14-point swing. We had a fumble when it looked like we crossed the plane. But, we can’t put the ball on the ground, that’s our fault.”
Ward hit on passes of 11, eight and 16 yards in the second half to go along with 83 rushing yards and a 39-yard rushing touchdown. Braylon Toliver had 188 rushing yards and touchdown runs of 68 and 50 yards. He also added an interception.
Cameron Cooper was 17-of-35 passing for 230 yards with a touchdown for Pine Creek. He also rushed for 119 yards on 17 carries. Emmanuel Hill had two one-yard touchdown runs for the Eagles. Elijah Roy had a 23 yard touchdown catch for Pine Creek.
Erie took a 7-0 lead with 5:30 left in the first quarter when Toliver broke free down the sideline. At the time, the Tigers hadn’t completed a pass and had 12 yards of offense.
Emmanuel’s first touchdown out of the “heavy package” tied the score at 7-7 with 3:28 left in the first.
“There’s excitement when the heavy call comes in on the field,” Hill said. “It is crazy, the whole crowd gets hype, too.”
After the Tigers went three-and out, Kyle Bogdanov drilled a 35-yard field goal to give Pine Creek a 10-7 lead. With 9:51 left in the second, Cooper capped a five play drive with a 23-yard touchdown pass to Roy and the Eagles took a 17-7 lead into halftime.
Toliver’s 50-yard touchdown run pulled the Tigers within three at 17-14 with 9:11 left in the third. Even though they trailed at halftime, Erie coach Jeff Giger had a clear message for his team.
“We really felt at halftime that we were beating ourselves,” Giger said. “The talk was we are the underdogs, but we had players in position to make plays and just weren’t making them.”
Because Toliver had two long touchdown runs, Ward knew he’d eventually pull the ball back on the read option. He did so with 7:38 left in the 4th quarter and the result was a 39-yard touchdown and a 28-17 Erie lead.
“They started crashing down on Braylon a little,” Ward said. “I knew there would be an opportunity to pull it on our option plays. I pulled it late and it was right on time.”
Another one-yard touchdown run from Hill with 1:04 left in the game made the score 28-23, but Pine Creek didn’t convert the two point attempt or ensuing onside kick.
