Rosewood escapes The Swamp

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on October 28, 2008 1:46 PM

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SEVEN SPRINGS -- Rosewood sealed the deal.

Clinging to a three-point lead, James Harris' touchdown run capped a game-ending 51/2-minute drive as the Eagles out-gunned Spring Creek 46-35 on the Class 1-A Carolina Conference football scene Monday evening.

Rosewood (2-7, 1-2 Carolina) recorded its highest offensive output of the season and snapped a six-game losing streak.

"If you can put a six-minute drive together, you deserve to win," said Spring Creek head coach and alum Aaron Sanders. "If I was (Rosewood) coach (Robert) Britt right now, I'd be tickled to death with that six-minute drive. They iced it."

"You'd hate not to come away with the win, but I'm tickled to death (too.)"

Two offenses which had staggered through 10 weeks of regular-season play staged an exciting shootout in rainy, breezy and cold conditions at "The Swamp." The Eagles posted their highest-scoring game since a 50-point effort against the Gators in 2006.

The Gators doubled their offensive production for this season and tallied 30-plus points in a game for the first time since an opening-round playoff loss at Louisburg in 2005.

That wasn't all.

Rosewood's backfield tandem of James Harris (3 touchdowns) and Eric Martel rushed for season highs of 119 and 115 yards, respectively. The Gators' DeVonte Harris recorded a game-high and career-best 123 yards on 17 totes. Spring Creek quarterback Nick Hatem completed 10 passes for 99 yards and a TD, and rushed for three more touchdowns.

"Spring Creek had a lot of confidence tonight on offense and did a lot of things well," said Britt. "We gave them a lot of opportunities to move the ball. They took advantage of it and made it a close game."

But two big first-half plays eventually spoiled the Gators' homecoming.

Joshua Holmes' 85-yard kickoff return after Hatem's touchdown pass to Will Janning and Ahkeem Simms' 80-plus yard interception return, which led to a touchdown, proved critical. The two scores allowed Rosewood to keep a working margin.

"We gave up the big play and our young guys don't understand the concept that a big play here and there can hurt you," said Sanders. "At the same time you have to credit Rosewood. They capitalized on big the plays. I wish it had been the other way around."

Spring Creek (0-9, 0-3) dominated the third quarter. The Gators recovered three fumbles, including two on punt returns. One miscue led to Hatem's 1-yard plunge, which trimmed the deficit to 30-20.

Harris answered with a 58-yard touchdown gallop two plays later.

Rosewood ran just three offensive plays in the third quarter and had the ball less than 90 seconds.

"We put the ball on the ground too many times," said Britt. "Offensively, this is a game we can build on ... long drives and explosive plays where we scored quick. You have to give Spring Creek credit, too, because they kept the ball away from us and scored, too."

The Gators, who owned a nine-minute edge in time of possession, closed the gap to 38-35 in the fourth quarter. Antonio Deans scored from 3 yards out and Hatem broke loose for a 20-yard touchdown run.

But Rosewood orchestrated a time-consuming, 9-play drive that ended on Harris' 14-yard touchdown run. The 70-yard march secured the Eagles' seventh victory over the Gators in eight meetings since 2001.