Too much Caleb Cherryholmes and too many Trojan turnovers were decisive factors in Remington?s 32-15 win over Hillsboro in the second round of district play Friday night at Joel H. Wiens Stadium.
The game turned late in the first half. Hillsboro had just taken its first lead at 8-6 with 4:23 left in the first half when Remington?s punter, Matt Jacobs, stepped on the back line of the end zone while trying to punt with the ball on the Remington 2-yard line.
On the free kick, Hillsboro fumbled away the football, giving the Broncos the ball at the Trojan 42-yard line. Eight plays later, quarterback Cherryholmes slipped three yards untouched into the end zone for the score. Luke Igo ran the 2-point conversion to give the Broncos a 14-8 advantage with 2:34 left in the half.
Then, on Hillsboro?s first play from scrimmage after the kickoff, Trojan quarterback Luke Moore threw a pass into the hands of a Remington defender to give the Broncos the ball at the Trojan 32. After consecutive 10-yard penalties on Hillsboro and Remington, Cherryholmes connected with wide receiver Jake Green for a 31-yard scoring pass down the middle of the field. The 2-point pass fell incomplete, but Remington led 20-8 going into intermission.
Playing amid come-and-go rain showers all evening, the game was halted for 30 minutes when lightning made a single strike in the nearby east. At that point, the score was still 20-8 with 1:45 left in the third quarter.
When play resumed, Remington continued its drive, but on the third play the football came loose in the backfield. Hillsboro?s Ben Gardner scooped it up around midfield and ran inside the 20. A face-mask call and a personal foul against the Broncos on the tackle gave HHS the ball at the Bronco 2-1/2 yard line. An encroachment penalty then moved the ball to the 1-yard line. Chance Reece smashed through the line for the score on the next play. Gardner kick the extra point to pull HHS to within 20-15.
Hillsboro stopped Remington on downs, thanks to a Bronco fumble on fourth-and-1 at the Trojan 20. But three plays into Hillsboro?s ensuing possession, Moore lost the handle on a shotgun snap and Remington recovered the football at the Trojan 19-yard line.
Six plays later, on fourth-and-goal at the 1-yard line, Igo broke through for the score. The 2-point pass fell incomplete, but Remington led, 26-15, with 6:10 to play.
After Hillsboro turned the ball over on downs after a five-play possession, Remington nailed down the victory when Cherryholmes hit Green with a 59-yard scoring pass with 2:44 left. The 2-point pass fell incomplete, giving the Broncos the 32-15 final margin.
Earlier in the game, Cherry?holmes threw his first touchdown pass to Alex Freking from 17 yards out with 4:27 to play in the opening quarter. Hillsboro found paydirt with 9:28 left in the second quarter when Moore connected with Gardner for a 17-yard score. Gardner missed the extra-point kick for the 6-6 tie.
With the loss, Hillsboro falls to 4-4 for the season and 1-1 in district play while Remington improved to 6-2 and 2-0. The winner of the Hillsboro-Marion game on Thursday will move on to the state playoffs as the district runner-up. The Warriors defeated Southeast of Saline on Friday to improve their district mark to 1-1.
