ZEELAND – The biggest play of the game wasn’t a touchdown or a great catch.
It was a huge goal-line stand.
With Zeeland West leading by six points with 6:31 to go in the game, the defensive line stuffed South Christian on a 4th-and-1 situation at the goal line.
“It’s just something you train for,” Zeeland West senior lineman Lachlan Thoreson said. “Fourth-and-one at the goal line … you just have to be disciplined.”
The Dux held on in another nail-biter, beating South Christian 12-6 on Friday night.
“I’m hoping it’s not our thing now,” first-year coach Jeff Bolhouse said with a smile. “It was a grind-it-out game, there’s no doubt about it. Give those guys (South Christian) credit. They had a good game plan and defended us very well.”
The Dux (3-1) won on a Hail Mary pass in Week 2 to beat West Ottawa, then they lost in Week 3 on an attempted Hail Mary that fell short against Whitehall.
Running back Brandon Holman scored on an 8-yard run with just 23 seconds left in the showdown for the game winner. The pass attempt on the two-point conversion fell short.
“It feels great,” Holman said. “I love this team. We dealt with so much adversity already this season. Last week against Whitehall, we did not play our game. So playing well tonight really got us going.”
Zeeland West senior Jonah Leslie scored on a 2-yard run with 2:31 to go in the second quarter. The two-point run attempt failed. The Dux led 6-0 at halftime.
South Christian (1-3) got an electric play from receiver Easton Raak, who caught a pass from Austin Burgess and sprinted 55-yards for a touchdown with 1:58 to go in the third quarter. But the snap on the point-after was mishandled making it a 6-6 game.
“Both teams just kept the ball moving,” Thoreson said. “It’s more exciting when it’s a close game. It’s nerve-wracking when you are down a score, but once you score, it’s pretty exciting.”
South Christian did have two good shots at the end zone in the final seconds. With five seconds on the clock, Burgess threw a pass from the 44-yard line that fell short. But in a case of dejavu, the referee called the Dux for roughing the passer, giving the Sailors one untimed down. But Burgess had another pass that was incomplete ending the game. The exact same thing happened last week when the Dux got a second chance with an untimed down, but that also fell short, too.
Zeeland West had 46 carries for 255 yards on the ground. Holman led the team with 18 carries for 137 yards and a touchdown. Niko Moungkhoun had 13 carries for 81 yards. South Christian QB Austin Burgess was 17-of-22 passing for 157 yards. Raak had four catches for 72 yards.
Backup quarterback steps up
Zeeland West quarterback Drew Albrecht was in full uniform, but he spent the entire game on the sideline.
The senior was dealing with a shoulder injury and did not play.
“We had a little bit of adversity this week,” Bolhouse said. “Drew had a little bit of a shoulder issue and couldn’t play tonight. And Austin (Ulberg) came in and did a tremendous job for us tonight. He made a few big passes in the end there. Being a senior… it was his job to step up and he did a tremendous job.”
Ulberg, the backup QB, engineered a big drive in the fourth quarter that led to Holman’s touchdown. He was 2-of-2 passing on the drive.
“Drew practiced Monday,” Bolhouse said. “Tuesday was a little light and then on Wednesday we figured ‘he’s not going to be able to go.’ That’s when Austin embraced the opportunity. We told him ‘this is your chance to shine and just go have fun with it.’ It was great seeing his smile at the end of the game.”
Defensive line was huge
In a tight game, defense becomes more important. And the Dux D-Line played a big role, holding South Christian to just one score.
“They did a tremendous job,” Bolhouse said of his linemen. “They struggled a little last week against Whitehall. This week we had four good days of practice. I thought our defensive line played with a lot of energy tonight.”
Holman, while playing defensive back, knocked down a would-be-touchdown while defending South Christian receiver Owen Burgess in the first half.
“Our defensive backs don’t have much experience,” Holman said. “But we have good practices and we’re all improving.”
Holman led the team with 10 tackles, Mason Busscher had eight and six each for Weston Headley, Jace Henry and Mason Myers.
Brouwer sidelined with injury
Zeeland West sophomore Cam Brouwer was wheeling around on a scooter with his leg in a cast on the sidelines.
He injured his foot in Week 2 against West Ottawa.
“I hurt my leg during the West Ottawa game off a tackle,” Brouwer said.
He said he’s not sure when he will return.
“I’ll be out for the foreseeable future,” he said.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Goal-line stand, backup QB lead Zeeland West football past South Christian
Reporting by Lenny Padilla / The Holland Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
