Tigers narrowly dehorn Dubois

After tearing through two other conference rivals, the Encampment Tigers nearly saw their undefeated streak ended as they hosted the Dubois Rams on October 11.

On paper, it looked as if the Rams would have been an easy match for Encampment as they had dealt a 59-6 loss to the Farson-Eden Pronghorns and an 82-33 loss to Casper Christian over the past two weeks. Leading up to the match, the Rams were ranked No. 3 in the 1A South Conference with a season record of 2-2 and a conference record of 1-1.

Dubois, however, wouldn’t go down without a fight which led to midfield defensive battles between both teams.

“Hats off to Dubois,” said Head Coach Kegan Willford. “They really came out and played hard the entire game. I thought it was a good thing to have to overcome some adversity. You can learn a lot from games like that.”

In the 1st quarter, Encampment drew first blood with a touchdown by Tyrel Brown after receiving the kickoff. A preview of the game to come, it was a slow march towards the goal line and an off-sides penalty by Dubois helped the Tigers get close enough to drive the ball through. Following the touchdown, the Rams defense forced Gunner Knotwell to salvage an attempted point-after-touchdown (PAT) and pass for a conversion to Brown.

Dubois attempted to answer back with a touchdown, however a penalty against the Rams put both teams back near center field. After a fumbled pass from Dubois’ Payson Pluhar to Siler Hess, the Tigers gained possession. Kannon Gilbert forced his way down the field and got Encampment within distance of their goal line but the tight defense from the Rams prevented another touchdown. With possession of the ball, Dubois’ Cooper Kinztler ran for 73 yards to score a touchdown. Combined with a successful PAT, put Dubois in the lead of the Tigers 7-8 with 2:30 left in the quarter. While Dashaal Baysinger ran down some yards for Encampment, a holding call ultimately erased some of their progress with just a minute left. A fake out from Dubois threatened to give the Rams another touchdown, but the Tigers’ defense came to the rescue.

Going into the 2nd quarter, Dubois worked to increase their lead with a touchdown and a conversion within the first five seconds. With the Tigers now in possession of the ball, Knotwell ran 20 yards for a touchdown after being unable to find an opening. This, combined with a successful PAT, tied the score at 15-15 with only 30 seconds elapsed in the 2nd quarter.

During the kickoff return, Dubois’ Kinztler ran 46 yards to throw 6 more points on the scoreboard. As the Rams did a kickoff return, Encampment fumbled which led to Dubois regaining possession. Baysinger, however, intercepted to put the Tigers back in possession. Fighting down the gridiron, Knotwell eventually found an opening for a 15 yard rush to score a touchdown and tie the score, yet again, at 21-21.

Encampment and the Rams continued to slug it out through some midfield defensive battles before Gilbert was able to receive a 47 yard pass from Knotwell for a six-point conversion to finally break the tie with three minutes left in the first half. After two tie breakers, the Tigers appeared to find some momentum as they regained possession with two minutes left in the 2nd quarter. Knotwell rushed for 15 yards to score a touchdown and secured a PAT to put Encampment up 35-21 over the Rams.

With less than a minute left, a reverse saw Dubois’ Kinztler rush for 42 yards to score a touchdown. That, combined with a one-point conversion, gave the Rams 28 points to Encampment’s 35 points at halftime.

As both teams returned to the gridiron, Gilbert secured a touchdown for the Tigers within the first minute to lead 41-28 over Dubois. Brian Smith intercepted a Rams pass to put Encampment in possession again and Gilbert secured another touchdown. That, combined with a conversion following a 3 yard pass from Knotwell to Gilbert, put the Tigers up 48-28 over Dubois. The remainder of the 3rd quarter saw another defensive battle which gridlocked both teams. Eventually, Pluhar broke through to rush for 26 yards for a touchdown. That, along with a PAT, put the score at 48-36 as the game entered the final quarter.

In the 4th quarter, the Rams used their proximity to their goal line to secure a 6 point conversion following a 15 yard pass. Now in possession of the ball, the Tigers forced their way down the field before Gilbert rushed for 24 yards to score a touchdown. Dubois, however, answered back with a touchdown by Pluhar. That and a PAT brought the Rams within 4 points of Encampment, 54-50, foreshadowing the final score.

With two minutes left in the game, a pass from Knotwell to Gilbert fumbled leading to the Rams gaining possession. Dubois’ Pluhar evaded the Tigers’ defense, rushing for 65 yards to score a touchdown and put themselves back in the lead. With the time running down, Baysinger helped Encampment get down the gridiron and close to their goal line.

With 35 seconds left, it looked as if the Tigers would see their undefeated streak come to an end. A penalty from the Rams put Encampment within walking distance and Gilbert rushed for 4 yards to score a touchdown to put the Tigers ahead 60-56. The remaining seconds resumed the defensive battle as Encampment fought to keep Dubois from scoring.

A final pass by Dubois was intercepted by Encampment to end the game. The final score was 60-56.

“I’m proud of the team for making a last minute scoring drive to retake the lead in the 4th quarter and I'm proud of the team for getting a stop on defense to end the game,” said Willford. “Hopefully it will better prepare us for games later on in the season.”

Gilbert led the Tigers in rushing with 114 yards and was followed by Knotwell, who rushed for 101 yards. Knotwell was also the passing leader, passing for 82 yards.

Following their win over Dubois, the Encampment Tigers have held onto their top spot in the 1A South Conference with a season record of 5-0 and a conference record of 3-0.

The rest of the regular season will be conference play for Encampment as they are hosted by the No. 4 Hanna, Elk Mountain, Medicine Bow (HEM) Miners at 2 p.m. on October 18.

On October 26, Encampment will host the Little Snake River Valley (LSRV) Rattlers at 2 p.m. for their final home game and regular season game before the first round of playoffs on November 1.