News from Dec. 14, 1992:

Strasburg finds heartache again in state final

Appalachia bolts to 20-0 lead, then holds on for 26-20 lead

By Jeff Gilbert
(Daily Sports Reporter)

BIG STONE GAP -- Strasburg never ran out of heart Sunday, it only ran out of time.

In the quest for its first Group A Division1 state championship, the Rams made a gutsy second-half comeback only to come up a touchdown short in losing to Appalachia 26-20.

After the Rams dug themselves an early 20-0 hole, they got within what turned out to be the final score with 1:39 left. But Appalachia covered the Rams' onside kick and ran out the clock to celebrate their second state title in four years.

"I thought we were in it all along," Strasburg quarterback Chad Senseney said. "We played with a lot of heart to be down and still play like we were winning. I still can't believe it (that we lost)."

"I just don't think there's any quit in those kids and that needs to be said," Rams coach Glenn Proctor said. "I don't know how you can make any higher statement about them than that. A lot of teams would've folded but our kids didn't. Our kids played hard and sold out. They have nothing to be ashamed of."

Reaching the state final was not what Proctor and his staff considered a realistic goal when the season began.

"We started out with only five returning started so to get to a game like this is a monumental achievement," he said. "But we'd still like to have won."

Trailing 20-6 at halftime, the Rams went to work midway through the third quarter behind the running of Brian Rutz and Senseney's passing.

Rutz's 19-yard gain on a screen pass from Senseney put the Rams at the Bulldogs' 36. Then Rutz's running took the Rams to the 1. Mike Roman took it the final yard. The two-point conversion run failed and the Rams trailed 20-12 with 2:41 left in the third quarter.

Strasburg's defense was able to get the ball back for the offense with no change in the score, barely.

The Bulldogs had a 58-yard touchdown run by Sean Poole called back by a holding penalty on a fourth-and-inches play.

Having dodged that bullet, the Rams couldn't manage a first down and punted giving the ball to the Bulldogs at the Strasburg 44.

Again the Bulldogs took advantage of the good field position. Kris Clark capped a quick five-play drive with a 16-yard scamper around the right end for a 26-12 lead with 8:31 left in the game.

But the Rams weren't finished. Six rushes by Rutz and two Senseney completions took the Rams from their 33 to Appalachia's 8. On fourth-and-six, a pass to Marcus Ordonez came up three yards short of a first down with 4:26 left in the game.

Strasburg's defense forced a punt after three plays and the Rams began from the Bulldogs' 49 with 2:5 left.

Completions of 14 and 6 yards to Ordonez and a 10-yarder to Rutz took the Rams to the 16. After an incompletion, Senseney hit Ordonez at the 5 and Ordonez turned toward the middle of the field and slipped past two Bulldogs for the 16-yard score. Ordonez then caught the two-point conversion to pull the Rams within six with 1:39 left.

But the Bulldogs fell on the onside kick to hand the Rams their third loss in the state championship game since 1987.

"It's our third time to the well and we came up dry again," Proctor said. "We've certainly had our share of heartaches.

"I just told the kids that I've got to feel that somewhere down the road some good will come out of this. Right now seems like one of their bleakest hours but the qualities and virtues gained by overcoming adversity, reaching this level, overachieving and getting behind and fighting back scratching and clawing will make them better adults."

The Rams out gained the Bulldogs 313 to 274 and had seven more first downs, 17-10.

Once again Senseney and Ordonez put up impressive numbers as did Rutz. Senseney completed 15 of 30 (9 of 14 in the second half) for 233 yards. Ordonez had nine receptions for 143 yards and two touchdowns. Ordonez's nine catches tied the Group A state playoff record set by Madison County's Tim Taylor in 1983. Rutz rushed for 94 yards (64 in the second half) on 16 carries and caught two passes for 29 yards.

Appalachia's big gun was Clark, who almost single handedly built Appalachia's 20-0 lead.

After a short Strasburg punt in the first quarter, the bulldogs took over at the Rams' 32 and scored six plays later on quarterback Ken Sizemore's one-yard sneak. Clark put the Bulldogs in scoring position with his shifty moves. His 20-yard carry put them at the 10 and a 7-yarder took the ball inside the 1.

The Bulldogs got good field position again later in the quarter at the 50 when quarterback Doug Blair intercepted Senseney.

On the next lay, Clark took a short swing pass from Sizemore and outraced the Rams down the left sideline for the 50-yard score and 14-0 lead.

The Bulldogs began a 67-yard, 13-play drive early in the second quarter that fullback Sean Poole capped with a one-yard dive for a 20-0 lead with 5:34 left in the half.

Clark gained 35 yards on the drive and finished the half with 94 on 10 carries to go with his 50 receiving yards. He finished the game with 136 yards on 15 carries.

"(Clark) did a nice job with his hips," Proctor said. "He has good, quick lateral hip movement. He was certainly a big difference, not the difference, but a big difference."

The primary deterrent to Strasburg's offense in the first half was Appalachia's pass rush. Senseney was sacked four times for losses totaling 34 yards. The last sack was the only one the Rams overcame. On the next play, Senseney hit Ordonez over the middle and the receiver fought his way into the end zone from the 5 for a 20-yard touchdown with 1:33 left in the half.

The Rams then forced Sizemore to fumble at his own 42 and they recovered with 17 seconds left. But three long passes fell incomplete and the half ended with the Rams trailing 20-6.

Still, the first half became too much to overcome and Proctor accepted much of the blame.

"In my psychological preparation I may have oversold the Appalachia team a little bit," he said. "I think that our kids in awe of them early and if there's probably anything I regret it is that maybe I had our guys thinking Appalachia was better than what they were. I expected them to be good and they were, but I overdid it.

"We were ready to play but when you think the other team is superior in the back of your mind it could create some doubt. As the game wore on the kids began to realize that we could play with them."