It was a David vs. Goliath storyline Friday night when the Westfield Hornets descended on Westside Road to battle Bulloch Academy.
Unfortunately, it didn't end the way it did in the Bible.
The massive Hornets overpowered the smaller Gators on both sides of the ball to snap Bulloch's five-game winning streak with a 35-20 victory.
The two-time defending GISA Class AAA state champions looked invincible as they took a 21-0 lead midway through the third quarter.
But Bulloch (5-1) fought back, led by many gutsy performances on offense and defense, to cut the lead to 28-20 in the fourth before the WF (4-1) nailed the coffin shut late in the game.
"Our kids could have laid down when it was 21-0 but they didn't," said BA head coach Terence Hennessy. "There were plenty of chances for them to give up. But they didn't. Our refusal to quit will play off down the road.
Senior quarterback Lanier Olliff rushed for 139 yards on 19 carries, scoring two touchdowns and throwing for another.
"I can't say enough about Lanier," said Hennessy. "He is playing with a hurt shoulder but he is still making runs, throwing the ball and taking hits. But he's just one of 10 or 11 guys who are playing hurt and beat up but refuse to quit. There were a lot of gutsy performances tonight. We've got some gutsy, gutsy kids."
Westfield came out strong on its first possession, gobbling up massive yardage and scoring on its sixth play from scrimmage. Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick blasted into the end zone from four yards out with 9:49 left. Senior fullback Josh Jenkins, who had 144 yards on 15 carries, had two runs of 18 yards in the series.
After holding the Gators to three-and-out, the Hornets marched back down the field again and were poised to score again late in the quarter. But WF's Reagan Waller fumbled at the BA 3.
Waller redeemed himself four plays later by intercepting an Olliff pass and taking it to the Gator 9. On the next play, he got the pitch from Fitzpatrick, rounded the corner and raced to the pylon for the score with 37.3 left. Griffin Elmore's kick gave the Hornets a 14-0 lead.
The Gators wouldn't go quietly as they battled the Hornets to a stalemate in the second quarter in a miscue-marked eight minute. Both teams lost fumbles and Olliff threw another interception.
"We missed some opportunities," said Hennessy. "If we could have hit those, the game could have gone the other way."
In the third, Westfield stuffed the Gators on their opening drive. Then the Hornets used an eight-play drive to take the 21-0 lead with 8:32 left.
Bulloch rallied for a 10-play scoring drive which ended on Olliff's four-yard TD with 3:16 left. A trio of 12-yard gains, passes from Olliff to Drew Bolke and Hunter Perry then a sprint by Tyler Budget, helped make the drive.
But the Gator crowd was silenced on the next play when Austin Burnette took a short kickoff and returned it 70 yards for a score and a 28-6 lead.
Still, the Gators kept coming.
Olliff engineered a 70-play drive to cut the WF lead to 28-12. He called his own number on an option keeper for a 34-yard score with 11:38 left in the fourth.
Bulloch defense then stiffened and held the Hornets on three plays.
Upon getting the ball back at the BA 19, Olliff hit receiver Davis Childs in stride over the middle and the sophomore turned on the jets for an 81-yard score with 8:57 remaining. The two-point conversion cut the WF lead to 28-20.
The Gator defense held again, forcing a Hornet punt. Bulloch worked hard to move the ball down the field, getting a 19-yard run from Olliff and a 19-yard gainer on a screen pass to Tyce Lovett. But BA couldn't convert on a fourth-and-eight with 4:15 left.
Three plays later, Jenkins broke a 43-yarder for a score with 2:57 left for a 35-20 lead.
"Westfield knew that they have just played a good team," said Hennessy, "because their guys were just as exhausted as our were."
Box Score
WS 14 0 14 7 — 35
BA 0 0 6 14 — 20
First Quarter
WS_Fitzpatrick 4 run (Elmore kick) 9:49
WS_Waller 9 run (Elmore kick) :37.3
Third Quarter
WS_Bard 31 pass from Fitzpatrick (Elmore kick) 8:32
BA_Olliff 4 run (kick blocked) 3:16
WS_Burnette 70 KO return (Elmore kick) 3:04
Fourth Quarter
BA_Olliff 34 run (pass failed) 11:38
BA_Childs 81 pass from Olliff (Olliff run) 8:57
WS_Jenkins 43 run (Elmore kick) 2:57
WS BA
First downs 19 14
Total Yards 330 345
Rushes-Yards 39-211 42-199
Passing 119 146
Comp-Att-Int 7-13-0 5-21-2
Turnovers 2 3
Penalties-Yards 4-50 7-85
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
RUSHING_WS: Jenkins 15-144; BA: Olliff 19-139
Passing_WS: Fitzpatrick 7-13-0-1, 119; BA: Olliff 5-20-2-1, 146
Receiving_WS: Amos 3-44; BA: Childs 2-99
