North Duplin beats Rosewood in overtime

By Andrew Stevens
Published in Sports on October 21, 2012 12:08 AM

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Hugh Martin did not need long to make up his mind.

With the inside track to third-place in the Carolina 1-A Conference hanging in the balance Martin put the game in the hands of his senior quarterback.

Tyler Royal scored the game-winning two-point conversion and North Duplin escaped with a 42-41 win in overtime on Friday night at Rosewood.

The Eagles went on offense first in overtime and Spencer Garrison scored on Rosewood's first play from 10 yards out. Marquail Almontser's extra point put Rosewood ahead 41-34.

"Most coaches want to win the toss going into overtime so they can defer so that you know what you've got to do," Eagles' head coach Robert Britt said. "We felt like we had a good playing into overtime and obviously it was. We felt like a triple-option team, if they scored they were going to go for two."

Royal scored from a yard out on the Rebels' second offensive play in overtime. North Duplin's coaching staff briefly discussed the decision to go for two during a timeout and Royal made the gamble pay off. Royal finished with 200 yards and three touchdowns on 27 carries.

"I've just got a lot of confidence in Tyler and his ability on the edge," Martin said. "After we scored we had a quick discussion on the head sets. We felt like if we could get him out there and get a block or two he could make something happen and that's what he did."

The Rebels' (6-3, 2-2 CC) second possession of the game spanned 75 yards with Kaleb Brock's 38-yard run accounting for most of the yardage. Blake Rhodes' 18-yard touchdown run gave the Rebels a 6-0 lead.

North Duplin recovered an onside kick on the ensuing kickoff. The Rebels needed just five plays to find the end zone on Brock's 14-yard run. Royal's two-point conversion extended the lead to 14-0.

Rosewood (2-7, 1-3) appeared to be energized after tailback Joshua Davis was ejected and Garrison's 1-yard touchdown run pulled the Eagles to within 14-7.

"In a football game tempers flare and it was both parties," Britt said. "It was probably something where there kid did something to Josh and he retaliated and the second person is going to get caught. That's a big loss for us next week but we showed tonight we've got kids who can step up."

The Eagles forced a North Duplin punt and Bronton Woodard's 17-yard touchdown run put the finishing touches on a 60-yard scoring drive that tied the game at 14-14 with more than nine minutes left in the opening half.

The Rebels orchestrated an 8-play, 65-yard drive that was aided by a personal foul penalty against Rosewood for a late hit. Royal's 7-yard touchdown run pushed North Duplin back in front 20-14.

The Eagles answered three plays later on Jacob Sasser's 48-yard touchdown pass to Jamari McGowan. The two-point conversion attempt failed as the score remained tied at 20-20.

Daron Goodman's 42-yard run led to Royal's 14-yard score as North Duplin took a 27-20 lead with two minutes remaining in the half.

Rosewood responded with a touchdown drive that took just 90 seconds and ended with Sasser's 10-yard touchdown pass to McGowan. Almontser's extra point tied the game at 27-27. Sasser threw for143 yards and three touchdowns.

The Eagles took the opening drive of the second half and drove 65 yards. Sasser's 25-yard touchdown pass to Joshua Roberson put Rosewood ahead 34-27.

The Rebels tied the game at 34-34 two plays later on Daron Goodman's 56-yard touchdown run.

Rosewood faced a critical fourth-and-goal from the North Duplin 5-yard line with fewer than 6 1/2 minutes remaining in the game. The Eagles were whistled for a false start and McGowan failed to reach the end zone on Sasser's fourth-down pass.

The Rebels were stopped on fourth-and-five at the Rosewood 5-yard line with fewer than two minutes left. The two teams combined for 887 yards of total offense.

North Duplin concludes its regular season next week at home against Spring Creek while the Eagles visit Princeton.