VERSAILLES – Versailles and Anna entered Friday’s game with postseason aspirations. The Tigers controlled their own destiny: win, and you’re in. Anna needed help even with a win. The teams went back and forth all night, with Anna securing a 29-22 victory.
“We knew it was going to be tough.” Coach Scott Broerman said, “We said it last week; that’s the beauty of week ten. We just didn’t come out on the right side.”
With the win, Anna was still locked out of the playoffs.
The Tigers came out and moved the ball all the way to the Anna three-yard line. Faced with a fourth-and-goal, the Tigers were stopped, and Anna took over. The Tiger defense held Anna and took over on their own 46-yard line. The Tigers would move to the Anna 20. Blake Monnin found Alex Westgerdes on a 20-yard touchdown pass.
Anna took the ensuing kickoff to the Tiger 24-yard line. With 10:24 left in the second quarter, the Rockets tied the game with a two-yard quarterback keeper by Logan Ziegenbusch. The Rockets intercepted a Tigers pass, and Ziegenbusch ran for a seven-yard touchdown to make it 14-7 Rockets. The Tigers answered with a 70-yard drive capped by a 14-yard run from Blake Monnin. The half ended with the teams tied 14-14.
The Rockets received the second-half kickoff and faced a fourth-down decision. The Tigers appeared to stop the Rockets, but a late hit out of bounds gave the Rockets a first down. Ziegenbusch went 29 yards to give the Rockets the lead again.
The Tiger sideline was charged with an unsportsmanlike penalty, and the Rockets went for a two-point conversion. The try was successful, and the Rockets had an eight-point lead, 22-14
Versailles answered with a 76-yard drive. Landyn Knapke scored from two yards out. Facing a two-point deficit, the Tigers went for two to tie the game. Knapke was successful, and with 5:32 left in the third quarter, the game was tied again.
Anna answered by converting on fourth down twice on a 69-yard drive. Ziegenbusch would use his arm for the go-ahead score. A three-yard pass to Tyson Vaubel put the Rockets up 29- 22 with 10:41 left in the fourth quarter.
The Tiger moved the ball to the Anna 17-yard line. Faced with fourth and five, the Rockets intercepted Monnins pass and returned it to the Tiger 47-yard line. With 4:33 left in the game, the Rockets were able to run out the clock.
With the win, Anna was still on the outside looking in. The Tigers needed a lot of help and by the end of Friday night the projections had eliminated them. But early Saturday morning the Tigers fortunes changed. MVCA was projected ahead of the Tigers, but a team they played had to forfeit a game and cost them second level points. The Tigers moved into the twelfth and final spot. As of Sunday morning, the Tigers are unofficially projected the 12th seed and will travel to Portsmouth to take on the Portsmouth West Senators. The Senators finished the regular season with an 8-2 record. The two losses were to Williamsburg and Wheelersburg.
