Rally 'Cats

Plymouth's defense, QB Hicks spark second-half comeback in 25-11 victory

  His team trailed cross-campus rival Salem 11-3 at halftime Friday night, but Plymouth coach Mike Sawchuk stayed calm and collected when he addressed his team in the locker room.
  "Coach told us he still believed in us and that he knew we had it in us," said Victor Hicks. "I just don't know if he knew where it was going to come from."
  It ended up coming from Hicks, the Wildcats' elusive back-up quarterback who engineered three second-half touchdown drives in Plymouth's 25-11 victory.
  Hicks entered the game late in the second quarter after starting quarterback Ryan Barrera suffered an apparent shoulder injury.
  On a night when big offensive plays were few and far between, Hicks lit a fire under the Wildcats, tossing a pair of second-half TD passes while running for a team-high 48 yards on nine carries.
  Hicks kept several plays alive with his quick feet, including a crucial 13-yard, third-and-9 scramble with 1:58 left that led to the Wildcats' icing-on-the-cake touchdown -- a 16-yard TD pass to Jake Morris.
  "At first, I wasn't going to play tonight because I got hurt in practice," Hicks said. "When Ryan got hurt and coach put me in at the end of the second quarter, I was prepared. I felt it was my time to shine."
SALEM SURGES EARLY 
  The Rocks were the ones shining in the first half when their swarming defense - spearheaded by Austin Root and Ethan Walsh - and stellar special teams staked them to an 11-3 lead - impressive considering they dropped a 47-7 decision to Plymouth one year earlier.
  "I was very proud of the kids' effort tonight," said first-year Salem head coach Kurt Britnell, who served as Plymouth's offensive coordinator last year. "I thought our defense was outstanding, but our offense couldn't bail us out.
  "I told the team after the game that we had to coach better and they had to play better, but we have a lot to build on after tonight."
  Special teams dominated the first half. Salem scored first on Ethan Walsh's 34-yard field with 7:37 left in the first quarter. The score was set up four plays earlier when Brad Trublowski picked off a Barrera pass that was deflected at the line of scrimmage.
  The Wildcats drew even with 25 seconds remaining in the first quarter when junior kicker Kyle Brindza drilled a 47-yard field goal. The kick cleared the cross bar with 10 yards to spare.
  Salem narrowly missed regaining the lead with 8:45 to play in the first half when Walsh's 38-yard field goal attempt hit the right upright.
CRUNCHING COLLISION
  The hit of the night came three plays later when on a third-and-10 play from the Plymouth 20, Jamie Emminger caught a short pass out of the backfield despite getting separated from his helmet by a Mack Truck-like collision with Salem linebacker Austin Root.
  The center-to-kicker exchange on the ensuing Plymouth punt was botched, resulting in a safety and a 5-3 Rock lead.
  Salem extended its lead to 11-3 on its next drive when it marched 66 yards in 10 plays, scoring on a three-yard dive by Trublowski on a fourth-and-goal play. The Rocks' two-point try failed. The key play in the scoring drive was a 54-yard hook-up between quarterback Jake Peterson and Drew Thompson.
   "We hurt ourselves in the first half," said Sawchuk. "We only gave up one big play, but we had three turnovers and a bad snap that led to a safety.
   "I told the guys at halftime that life is all about dealing with adversity. You can either step up or go the wrong way. I didn't scream and yell. I just told them we're going to coach you and put you in a position to win, but you have to execute."
TURNING THE TABLES
  The Wildcats heeded their coach's advice, knotting the game at 11-11 with 1:20 left in the third quarter when Tony Rhodes capped a 10-play, 59-yard drive with a 1-yard scoring plunge. Hicks lofted a perfect pass to Beyer in the corner of the end zone for the game-tying two-point conversion.
  After forcing Salem into a three-and-out, Plymouth took over at its 49 and scored seven plays later when Hicks hit a diving Beyer in the back-left corner of the end zone from 21 yards out. Brindza's extra point made it 18-11.
  Salem crafted a solid drive on its next possession, however, it stalled at midfield when Trublowski was stoned at the line of scrimmage by Daryl Cohn and Co. on a fourth-and-1 play with 4:58 left.
  Just under four minutes later, Hicks hit Morris with the clinching 16-yard scoring pass.
UNYIELDING 'D'
  Led by Beyer, Cohn, Tyler Goble, Jacob Zawaski and Austin Gosnell, the Wildcats' defense sacked Peterson six times and limited the Rocks' offense to 88 total yards.
  Paced by Hicks' 129 all-purpose yards, Plymouth amassed 187 total yards.
  Neither team's running game could get untracked. Tommy Whitlow was the 'Cats' most productive running back, picking up 34 yards on 12 carries while Trublowski gained 24 on 16 attempts.

Ed Wright can be reached at info@plymouthcantonsports.com or (734) 453-1980.