MAYVILLE, N.D. - The Simpson Football team flew around Jerome Berg Field this afternoon as they narrowly fell to Mayville State 42-41 in a back-and-forth contest.
The Red Hawks and Comets' defense forced back-to-back fourth-down stops to begin the game before the Red Hawks drew first blood midway through the first quarter as
Ya'j Vance connected with
Talan Ramirez for a 41-yard touchdown pass on third-and-long.
The Comets responded on their next drive as they went 65 yards on 12 plays, as Darnell Green capped off the drive with a seven-yard touchdown run to tie the game.
The Red Hawks and Comets exchanged seven points in the second quarter as Vance found the end zone on a 23-yard touchdown scamper. The Comets responded on their final drive of the first half as Matt Donovan hit Jack Simmers for a 34-yard touchdown pass to tie the game at 14.
Simpson scored on its first two possessions of the second half as Vance broke through for a 42-yard touchdown run to give Simpson the seven-point lead. The Red Hawks dialed up a trick play as wideout
Erik Cabrera hit
Talan Ramirez for a 54-yard touchdown pass to extend the Red Hawks' lead to 14.
The Comets responded with a much-needed touchdown as they marched 74 yards in eight plays to cut the deficit to eight on a seven-yard touchdown run by Blaine Smith, but missed the point after.
Simpson answered as they went 67 yards on eight plays, as Vance scored his third rushing touchdown of the game on a nine-yard run.
The Comets cut the lead as they found the endzone to begin the fourth quarter. But a huge stop by the Simpson defense denied the Comets two-point conversion to keep it a two-possession game.
Simpson looked to ice the game away as they put together a masterful 12-play 72-yard drive that ate up 5:12 seconds of the clock as it ended in a 16-yard touchdown reception by
D'ante Benjamin to make it a 41-26 lead with just over six minutes left in the game.
But the Comets would not be denied as they covered 75 yards on nine plays to pull within seven as Green found the endzone and converted on the two-point conversion. The Comets' special teams made a huge play as they recovered the onside kick with just over three minutes left in the game.
The Comets' rushing attack anchored the methodical drive as they marched down to the Simpson two-yard line with five seconds left. The Comets drew up a pass play that allowed Axel Anderson to find Cameron Spaeth for a two-yard touchdown reception on a corner fade to the back of the endzone with one second on the clock.
The Comets went for the win as they converted the two-point conversion as they ran a successful pitch to the left to put them ahead 42-41 before squibbing the kickoff to seal the 42-41 victory.
Simpson's offense continued to roll as they notched 452 yards of total offense as
Ya'j Vance accounted for five touchdowns. He completed 13-21 passes through the air for 228 yards and two touchdowns, while rushing for 108 yards on the ground with three touchdowns.
Talan Ramirez had a huge game as he posted 133 yards and two touchdown receptions.
On defense,
Charlie Walden notched a team-high 13 total tackles as
Caleb Utter and
Kenyon Hawkins followed close behind, with each notching 10 tackle performances.
The Comets' heavy rushing attack proved to be the difference as they amassed 402 yards on the ground out of their 444 yards of total offense.
The Comets' rushing attack relied on committee as five different players posted at least 50 yards on the ground. Darnell Green led the attack with 88 yards and two touchdowns.
Simpson looks to bounce back as they take on Valley City State University this weekend at 1 pm at Central Valley High School.
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