After starting the season winless in four attempts, Apollo righted the ship and found themselves on the smiling side of the scoreboard Friday night at New Eagle Stadium. The Eagles (1-4) knocked off Meade County (2-3) by an eye-popping final score of 55-54. The win came in front of a packed crowd, as Apollo High School students celebrated Homecoming in style.
It was a tale of two halves for both teams, as Meade County took a commanding 28-13 lead into the locker room following the first two quarters. Green Wave quarterback Andrew Millay threw for three touchdowns in the half, while Jacob Lacefield converted a goal-line rushing attempt for a fourth touchdown. On the Apollo sideline, early success came by way of the air-raid, as quarterback Christian Combs connected with Noah Rhinerson on the third play from scrimmage for a 60-yard touchdown pass. Combs also managed a rushing touchdown with :21 left on the clock before halftime to keep the Eagles within striking distance.
The third quarter signaled a momentum shift for the home team, as an immediate Meade touchdown out of the break proved to be the high water mark in the game for the visitors. The tide began to turn quickly in favor of Apollo, as three straight touchdowns knotted the game at 34-34 entering the fourth quarter. The third quarter scores were tallied by Combs, Eli Masterson and Niles Board, respectively.
Meade County made a concerted effort to keep the ball on the ground in the last 12 minutes of the game, eating as much of the play clock as they were able before each snap. The strategy nearly worked to perfection as the visitors converted both offensive drives into touchdowns, with just one Apollo score in between them. The second Green Wave touchdown made the score 48-40 with :58 left to play, as Apollo failed to convert their extra-point attempt earlier in the quarter. That failure didn’t stop the Eagles from tying the game and forcing overtime, though, as Christian Combs somehow connected with Noah Rhinerson on an electric 17-yard scoring play scrambling to his left as time expired. The throw set up a Niles Board two-point conversion as the crowd went wild.
Apollo began overtime with the ball, which was spotted at the 10-yard line in high school overtime action. Both teams are guaranteed a chance to possess the ball in each overtime period, playing until there is no longer a tie. For the Eagles, it took just two plays to get in the end zone, as Christian Combs ran in an 8-yard score, which was quickly followed up by Emmit Brock’s successful kick to tack on another point. Brock bounced back from the miss in regulation to give his team a chance to win.
Meade County, however, converted a touchdown on just their third play from scrimmage to answer. It was again Andrew Millay who successfully punched in the score, setting the stage for the most dramatic moments of the night.
While the game was clearly headlined by high-octane offense for both teams, it was in fact the defense that Eagles fans have to thank for the victory. To the delight of nearly the entire crowd, Meade County head coach Larry Morefield valiantly elected to attempt a two-point conversion in lieu of the more traditional extra-point kick attempt, which could have served to tie the game and force a second overtime if successful. The decision came after both teams called their only timeout of the overtime period as both head coaches tried to correctly guess what the other was planning.
Unfortunately for Meade fans, a courageous rushing attempt was swallowed up by a convocation of Eagles at the goal line, ensuring victory for Apollo and holding the Green Wave at bay in the contest.
After the game Apollo head coach John Edge was left to praise the goal-line stand, as well as his star quarterback.
“Christian is awesome and played an amazing game tonight,” Edge said. “Our kids fought hard, led by some huge stops in the third quarter on the defensive side of the ball. All that being said, Christian had to make plays tonight and he did a great job of making good decisions both on the ground and in the air to get us back in the game.”
Combs chimed in with his thoughts about the effort made by his offensive brethren.
“We had our mind on the end goal and made our mind up we were going to win this game,” Combs said. “I felt like we ran the ball hard all second half, and our offensive line was dominant in the third quarter. Once we got the ball moving on the ground it opened up the passing game, which led to success for us.”
Up next for Apollo will be a trip to McCracken County on September 23, while Meade County will host Bullitt East at home on the same night. Both games are set for a 7 PM kickoff.
