Bell’s Merrick kicks game-winning field goal as time expires
By Les Dixon
The Corbin Redhounds erased a 14-point second half deficit, but still found themselves on the losing end, as Bell County place kicker Monte Merrick nailed a 23-yard field goal as time expired to give the Bobcats a 17-14 win.
Junior quarterback Clint Cashen rallied Corbin back from a 14-0 hole by completing 11-of-13 pass attempts for 152 yards and two touchdowns in the second half, but Bell County quarterback Kyle Nelson completed two consecutive passes with less than a minute left in the fourth quarter to set up the Bobcats’ All-State kicker.
“That’s our story right now,” Corbin coach Steve Jewell said. “We just lost another tough game.”
The loss dropped the Redhounds to 1-4, but in the losses, they’re only losing by an average of five points a game.
“You look at the games we have lost and you’ll see all of our losses have been close,” Jewell said. “We’ve got to be able to muster four quarters together.
“I told the kids after the game that we could be a really dangerous team if we could put together four quarters,” he added.
Bell County took advantage of the Redhounds’ inability to move the ball in the first half, as one-yard touchdown runs by T.R. Christopher and Matt Simpson gave Dudley Hilton’s team a 14-0 edge at halftime.
The Bobcats’ lead could have been larger, but Lance Freeman made an interception on Bell County’s first drive at Corbin’s seven-yard line.
“We had a lot of chances to put them away,” Hilton said. “We kept stubbing our toes and just couldn’t put anything together.”
Cashen and his teammates took advantage of Bell County’s miscue and scored a couple of minutes later on a 15-yard touchdown reception by Rob Madon with 3:25 remaining in the third quarter.
“You’ve got to give Corbin credit, though,” Hilton said. “They’ve got that Corbin pride and they didn’t quit.”
The Redhound defense continued to make important stops - including one late in the fourth quarter that allowed Corbin to take the ball over at their own four-yard line with 32 seconds remaining in the third quarter.
It didn’t take the Redhounds long to tie the game as Corbin put together a nine-play, 96-yard drive that was capped off by a Cashen to Corey Sewell 56-yard touchdown pass with 7:36 remaining in the game.
“I can’t say enough about our kids’ effort in the second half,” Jewell said. “They played great and fought hard. They were really down at halftime, but we did exactly what we needed to do.
“We came out there and played good defense and made some stops,” he added. “Once we did that, we got some rhythm on offense and began to move the ball, but we couldn’t make the stop on defense when we needed to.”
Neither team could move the ball on offense until the game’s final minute.
That’s when Bell County’s Nelson took over.
He completed a 12-yard pass on third and five and on the ensuing play, he lofted a pass to a heavily-defended Shawnta Zachery, who caught the ball and was tackled at the six-yard line with three seconds remaining in regulation.
The three seconds were just enough time for Merrick to attempt the 23-yard field goal, which split the uprights to give his team the win.
“I knew it would be a good football game and anytime you can come down here and win, it’s big,” Hilton said. “It doesn’t matter if you win by three points or not. Heck, I would take a one point win.
“Kyle was able to connect on two passes that set up our boy for the field goal,” he added. “I have all the confidence in the world in Monte. He’s the best kicker in the state.”
For Jewell and his Redhounds, they’ll get a chance to get back into the win column Friday on the road against winless Pulaski County (0-4).
“We’ve just got to start making the plays,” he said. “We had seven defensive backs in at the end of the game and couldn’t make the play.”
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