Tigers Stumble Against LSRV

In the first half of their home game against the Little Snake River Valley (LSRV) Rattlers, the Encampment Tigers managed to lead three times. No small feat against one of the top teams in both the 1A South Conference and the state.

Both teams took to the gridiron with an undefeated record with only one assurance: someone would leave with their winning streak ended. When the final game of the regular season came to an end, the Tigers found themselves on the losing side of a 42-point deficit.

“Snake River is a great football team with a great tradition,” said Head Coach Kegan Willford. “Our team played a great first half.”

In the 1st quarter, it took two-and-a-half minutes before LSRV drew first blood. The Rattler’s Bridger Cozzens scored a touchdown following a 66-yard rush. That, combined with a one-point conversion, put 7 points on the board for LSRV. With the Tigers in possession, Encampment attempted to respond with a touchdown of their own, but Cozzens intercepted to gain possession. Granit Ready received a 26-yard pass to secure another six-point conversion to lead 13-0.

Showing they weren’t going to let the Rattlers breeze through Tiger Nation, Encampment responded with scores of their own. Gunner Knotwell forced his way down the field, getting within sight of the goal line and scoring a touchdown after a 4-yard rush. The point-after-touchdown (PAT) from Knotwell was successful, and Encampment trailed 13-8.

During the kickoff return, Encampment regained possession and worked their way to the endzone. Near the goal line, Knotwell threw a 13-yard pass to Dashaal Baysinger for a six-point conversion. A one-point conversion following a 3-yard pass from Knotwell to Kannon Gilbert put Encampment up 15-13 over the Rattlers.

LSRV didn’t trail for long as Cozzens, again, evaded the Tiger’s defense to run for 49 yards to score a touchdown. With a PAT, the Rattlers retook the lead, 21-15. With the clock running down, Encampment worked towards their end zone and was within sight of the goal line when the quarter ended.

In the 2nd quarter, Knotwell used the proximity to the Tiger endzone to his advantage for a 3 yard rush which tied the game 21-21. The PAT from Knotwell was good, putting the Tigers back in the lead, 23-21. LSRV responded with a touchdown of their own as Cozzens rushed for 41 yards. With no successful PAT, the Rattlers lead by just 4 points, 23-27.

Just barely trailing LSRV, the Tigers worked their way through some tough defense and scored a touchdown with 2:46 left in the half. Korbyn Barkhurst received a 4-yard pass from Knotwell for a six-point conversion. With the PAT, Encampment regained the lead 31-27.

The Rattlers, with a 36-yard rush from Cozzens, scored another touchdown and retook the lead, 33-31. With the seconds ticking away, Cozzens scored again for LSRV to push their lead 39-31 over the Tigers. A PAT and the Rattlers led 40-31 at halftime.

As both teams returned to the gridiron, the Tigers would find themselves unable to score the entire 3rd quarter as LSRV put up a total of 33 points.

Cozzens evaded the Tigers with a 37-yard rush to put up the first touchdown of the second half to increase the lead, 46-31. During the kickoff return, Encampment struggled to gain possession of the ball with the Rattlers retaking possession. Cozzens ran the ball down for 36 yards for another touchdown, 52-31. A one-point conversion from LSRV made the score 53-31. In the second kick-off return in as many minutes, the Rattlers again retook possession. A touchdown following a 6-yard rush and a PAT increased the lead for LSRV to 67-31.

WIth the 3rd quarter nearly over, the Tigers attempted to work down the gridiron and reach the endzone. Cozzens intercepted a pass, however, and rushed for 45 yards to score the final touchdown of the quarter. The Rattlers were in the lead, 73-37.

“We let some mistakes in the 3rd quarter snowball and the game got away from us at that point,” said Willford.

The 4th quarter saw both teams score a touchdown. Encampment’s only touchdown came following a 17-yard rush from Knotwell.

The final score was 37-79.

Knotwell led in rushing for the Tigers against LSRV with 146 yards and was the passing leader as well with 77 yards. Gilbert was the receiving leader with 41 yards followed by Raden Miller with 39 yards.

With their loss to the Rattlers, the Encampment Tigers are 6-1 for the season and 4-1 for conference play. They enter the 1A Six–Man State Tournament as the No. 2 South seed and will host the No. 3 North ranked Kaycee Buckaroos (4-4, 3-3) for the quarterfinals.

“We are excited to be hosting a home playoff game this week against Kaycee and can’t wait to play in front of our home crowd,” said Willford.

The Encampment Tigers will take on the Kaycee Buckaroos at 2 p.m. on November 1 in Encampment.