Peterson, Smith big plays spark Bulldogs upset, 42-21 over Pirates at Merrillville for Sectional Championship

A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith

11-05-2011

Friday, Nov. 4, 2011,  44 degrees, Class 5A Sectional 1 Championship at Demaree Stadium in MERRILLVILLE, IN

1st Qtr: MERRILLVILLE (7-0) Jake Raspopovich, 1-yard run. 15-yard drive, 7 plays following William Isabell's interception of a Jake Jatis pass. 1:46 min. time of possession (TOP). Matt Warren kick. 4:14 left.
2nd Qtr: MERRILLVILLE (14-0) Dylon Collins 4-yard run. 60-yard drive, 8 plays. 2:07 min. TOP. Matt Warren kick. 11:10 left.
CROWN POINT (7-14) Tristan Peterson, 1-yard run. 77 yard drive, 10 plays. 4:27 min. TOP. Brett Bayer kick. 6:37 left.
CROWN POINT (14-14) Tyler Smith, 60-yard interception & return of Jake Raspopovich's pass. Brett Bayer kick. 1:00 left.
3rd Qtr: CROWN POINT (21-14) Tristan Peterson 3-yard run. 72-yard run, 12 plays. 5:09 min. TOP. Brett Bayer kick. 6:41 left.
CROWN POINT (28-14) Tristan Peterson 5-yard run. 23-yard drive, 3 plays following Brendyn McKinnon's interception of a Raspopovich pass. Bayer kick. 5:35 left.

4th Qtr: CROWN POINT (35-14) Pete Parks, 6-yard run. 1st play following Jordan Krajci's interception of a Raspopovich pass and return 35 yards. Bayer kick. 7:51 left.
CROWN POINT (42-14) Tristan Peterson 1-yard run. 2nd play following Conner Andras' interception of a Raspopovich pass and 35-yard return to the 15 yard line. Bayer kick. 5:22 left.

MERRILLVILLE (21-42) Dylon Collins, 1-yard run. 73-yard drive, 10 plays. 2:59 min. TOP. Matt Warren kick. 2:16 left.
 

RUSHING:
 

CROWN POINT (29 carries, 242 yards, 5 TDs): Tristan Peterson (HB) 37 carries, 195 yards, 3 TDs, Pete Parks (FB) 8-36 yards, TD, Jake Jatis (QB) 2-7 yards; Tyler Wells (WR) 2-4 yards; MERRILLVILLE (31 carries, 203 yards, 3 TDs): Dylon Collins (HB) 11 carries, 113 yards, 2 TDs; Darryl Peppers (HB) 10-71 yards, Jake Raspopovich (QB) 10-19 yards, TD.

PASSING:
CROWN POINT: Jake Jatis (QB) 2-12, 47 yards, 2 interceptions;
MERRILLVILLE: Jake Raspopovich (QB) 13-26, 85 yards, 4 interceptions.

RECEIVING:
CROWN POINT: Zach Plesac (WR) 2-47 yards;
MERRILLVILLE: Aaron Dye (WR) 3-25 yards, Cortez Sims (WR) 3-29 yards, Dylon Collins (WR) 3-7 yards:
Danny Jankulowski (TE) 2-14 yards, Cleveland Lomax (WR) 1-7 yards; Greg Brousseau (WR) 1-3 yards.

TOTAL YARDS:
CROWN POINT: 288 yards, 10 first downs, 2 turnovers;
MERRILLVILLE: 288 yards, 6 first downs, 4 turnovers.

CLASS 5A Regionals
CROWN POINT (9-3) @ Penn (12-0)
HSE (11-1) @ (FW) Snider (8-4)
Carmel (11-1) @ Ben Davis (10-2)
Center Grove (8-4) at Bedford-North Lawrence (9-3)

CLASS 5A Title Games
Sectional 1: CROWN POINT 42, MERRILLVILLE 21
Sectional 2: Penn 31, (Fort Wayne) Carroll 8
Sectional 3: (FW) Snider 52, Kokomo 28
Sectional 4: Hamilton Southeastern 35, Fishers 10
Sectional 5: Carmel 34, Warren Central 30
Sectional 6: Ben Davis 64, Avon 41
Sectional 7: Center Grove 38, Columbus North 24
Sectional 8: Bedford North Lawrence 25 Castle 21
 

MERRILLVILLE (11-04-2011) Maybe there's been signs about this Crown Point football season that we've missed all year. When they were 2-2 on the season after four games, they scored six touchdowns in a row and defeated Portage 42-0. When they were 3-3 and effectively out of the Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC) race, they scored six consecutive TDs and defeated LaPorte 42-0.

And last Friday, when the season seemed over. When they had given away two touchdowns and trailed 14-0 in the Class 5A Sectional 1 championship game, they seemed done. When CP had four sophomores starting in a game where they trailed their arch rival by 14 points in the second quarter of a do-or-die game. Crown Point again scored six touchdowns in a row.

It's not Herman Cain's 9-9-9 plan, but it's working.

In a rally that was almost shocking, CP played the way they always wanted to in a game where they most needed to, taking their fourth sectional championship in school history with a come-from-behind 42-21 victory at Merrillville.

The Bulldogs travel to the undiscovered country this Friday, qualifying for a 5A Regional championship game with Northern Indiana Conference (NIC) champion Penn (12-0), the first ever meeting between the two schools at 6:30 p.m. Lake County time Friday night.

CP's defense intercepted Merrillville QB Jake Raspopovich four times and turned back the hands of time in front of a very surprised group of about 3,000 neighborhood fans in 44 degree weather behind Merrillville high school.

The clock seemingly had run out on the Bulldogs season when Merrillville junior Dylon Collins scored on a 5-yard-run on the third play of the second quarter to put the purple-clad Pirates (8-4) ahead by 14 points. But CP drove 77 yards (including a 47-yard run by sophomore halfback Tristan Peterson) for one TD, had junior cornerback Tyler Smith intercept a pass and run it back for a second score, tying the game. And all at once, CP traveled back in time to the late 80s and early 90s. Or the mid-part of the last decade when Crown Point was one of the top teams in this part of the state.

"That equipment room has been calling our name the last three weeks," said CP coach Chip Pettit. "And we've been putting it off. But when you're playing good defense, anything is possible. I thought from about the middle of the second quarter on, our defense dominated the game."

"Tristan popped that big run in the first quarter to get us going and then when Smith intercepted that ball, it was like 'whoa' here we are. 14 all. Those two were huge plays."

I don't know if a win at Penn (12-0) is possible, but the CP sideline was a quiet place when the home team led 14-0 last Friday. I'm not sure if anyone had any evidence that CP could do to Merrillville what they did. When CP scored four touchdowns in the first 20 minutes of the second half the Bulldogs became Northwest Indiana's version of the last big school standing in the 2011 football season, a year when they were, until now, somewhat undistinguished.

"You've just got to keep your head up high," said senior linebacker Jordan Krajci of that 14-0 moment. "You've got to keep thinking that if you can get a couple of big plays, you're right back in it. We had that one amazing run (by Peterson) and then we got the pick for a touchdown and we were back in the game."
 

Crown Point's two sophomore linebackers, Brendyn McKinnon (6-2, 200) and Connor Andras (6-1, 190) both intercepted second half passes and with sophomore Jake Jatis and Tristan Peterson in the backfield, no one could be blamed for thinking that CP's win was somewhat of a surprise.

"Brendyn and Tristan and Connor have been starting for awhile," said Pettit. "And they've been coming on. As good as Jake Jatis was last week (against Valpo), he obviously struggled early in the ball game. He made some nice throws early in the game. With three young kids, the more they play the better they'll get. No question that Brendyn and Tristan had good games tonight."

Merrillville's two interceptions of Jatis were bad throws and athletic grabs by Tyrie Fuller and William Isabell. CP's interceptions were largely defensive backs gambling against Merrillville's spread option passing attack that had rolled over them for 450 yards in an earlier 21-20 Merrillville win at Crown Point in September.
 

The game was effectively over when linebacker Jordan Krajci, CP's leading tackler, guessed right on a pass he gabbed at the Pirate 30 and raced down to the 6-yard-line, setting up a scoring run by Pete Parks for a 35-14 lead with 7:55 left in the fourth quarter.

"They ran a curl," he said later. "And I'd seen it, so I thought I'd get under it, jump it (jump in front of the receiver as the ball was thrown). It was great. I was so happy. I ran as hard as I could, but somebody got me."
 

McKinnon's interception set up the 28-14 touchdown and Andras' interception set up the 42-14 score. CP's big offensive line led by co-captain Stephen Hutchison (6-1, 285), clearly wore on the smaller Merrillville front as the night went on and the combination of the fast and shifty Peterson (5-11, 160) and the big senior Parks (6-2, 250) made the night miserable for the home team.
 

The best aspect of CP's post-game celebration on the cold Merrillville turf was that it was 100% real. The Bulldogs knew they were not 'supposed to' win this game with a back-up QB after falling behind 14-0 and they didn't pretend they knew they'd win.

"It is unlikely that we've been able to make this run," said Pettit. "Considering that we're without our quarterback."
 

"I thought we were a step slow in the first quarter. I didn't like our body language. As a group, I really didn't like our body language in the first quarter. But Tristan made that run and we turned it around. He's a talented player. I'm glad he's in red and white."
 

"And I think we've been getting better defensively as the season has gone on. From week six on I think we really started to get it."

"After the Valpo game, we just came around," Krajci agreed. "There wasn't one thing. We just started picking it up and went on a streak. I can't believe we're here."

DOG NOTES: Tristan Peterson, who didn't start until the fifth game, can go over 1,000 yards for the season with 100 yards against Penn.
 

Merrillville junior Dylon Collins (5-10, 188) gained 113 yards on 11 carries and 1,000-yard rusher Darryl Peppers had a 50-yard run in his final game. Jake Raspopovich had just seven interceptions all season until Crown Point grabbed four of his passes last Friday.
 

Collins unofficially gained 494 yards on 48 carries (10.3 yards per carry) in four games after becoming eligible.
 

The victory for CP was their sixth in a row and the first Bulldogs win over Merrillville since 2008. This coming regional game will be the first-ever football game between Crown Point and Penn, the giant school of over 3,500 students in Harris Township at the east end of Mishawaka.
 

Crown Point will host the 5A Northern Semistate game on Nov. 18 or 19 if the Bulldogs win at Penn. There is no scenario under which CP would play the semistate game on the road.
 

CP will be at a significant disadvantage playing 90 miles away from home at 6:30 p.m. (Lake County time) on a school day, but the starting time was solidified immediately after the Crown Point-Merrillville game.
 

Penn high in the Mishawaka area is on Eastern Standard time and the game will begin at 7:30 p.m. for them.

The crowd at the Crown Point-Merrillville game was not as large as was expected, maybe 3,500 fans in the 7,200-seat Demaree Stadium. CP had significantly more fans at the game than they lured to the Valparaiso-CP semifinal game seven days earlier, but there was not the following that you would expect at a big school sectional title game.
 

Penn drew a home crowd which the South Bend Tribune estimated at 8,000 for the September game against arch-rival Mishawaka.

Copyright © 2011 USA-365.com and Meyer Multimedia Services, a division of Meyer Broadcasting Corp.  All rights reserved.
Revised: November 06, 2011 .