WEST PORTSMOUTH — While they're not very fashionable, Coach Todd Knipp and the Chesapeake Panthers might need to invest in steel-toed boots.
Despite taking an early two-score lead, the Panthers fell victim to missed scoring chances and too many mistakes, allowing the Portsmouth West Senators to rally back to a 42-24 win in the opening round of the Division 6 playoffs on Friday night.
Chesapeake finishes the season with a 5-6 record. The Senators move to 8-3 on the year and will host St. Bernard-Elmwood Place in the regional quarterfinals next Friday.
"We hurt ourselves by not capitalizing in the red zone two or three times," said Knipp. "But our kids played hard, played with great effort, and I'm extremely proud of what they've done this season. I look forward to seeing what they do in the future."
The Panthers were their own worst enemy, missing out on several scoring opportunities — including on their opening drive where the Panthers marched down the field to the Senators 12 before turning the ball over on downs.
But Chesapeake's defense forced a three-and-out, allowing the offense another crack at putting the games' first points on the board.
Freshman Andrew Issacs took a pitch on a sweep and ripped off a 40-yard gain on the first play from scrimmage. Then Drew Plantz negotiated the final 8-yards himself to give the Panthers a 6-0 lead with 7:18 remaining in the opening stanza.
Plantz was held in check for the most part, finishing with just 63 rushing yards and 11 receiving yards. But the senior back still crossed the goal line three times. Issacs finished with 67 yards and one catch for 41 yards.
The Senators drove down the field on their opening possession to the Chesapeake 11. However a fourth down pass by Brody Hall was intercepted when Topher Ball stepped in front of the receiver, ending the scoring threat and giving the Panthers the ball back at their own 1.
Despite starting in the shadow of their own goalpost, the Panthers marched 99-yards in 11 plays to stretch their lead.
A key play in the drive came early on third-and-6 from the Panthers' own 4, when Harris dropped back to pass and hit Ethan Kerns for a 29-yard gain to give Chesapeake some breathing room. Then Harris and Kerns connected later on another third down conversion.
Harris finished off the drive by nosing his way across the goal line for a 1-yard score to give Chesapeake a 12-0 after one quarter.
On the night, Harris finished the game 13-of-28 for 218 yards through the air. He also ran for 71 on the ground. Kerns was the top target, as he led all receivers with 10 catches for 154 yards.
"We came out and our kids were well prepared. We were executing real well throwing, running, kinda clipping away at what we do, " said Knipp. "Just in that second quarter, we had a lull there and they got momentum and we were never really able to capitalize after that."
The Senators dipped into their bag of tricks to open the second quarter, running a reverse with Anthony Bishop on a third-and-11 play for a 57-yard burst from the sophomore back to put West on the board. Drew Dettwiller booted the extra point to make it 12-7.
The Panthers stalled out on two consecutive drives and the Senators seized on the opportunities.
Mason Parker bolted 31-yards to give West a 13-12 lead. Then West took advantage of a short field to extend their lead to 21-12 after Brody Hall scored and Parker ran in the two-point conversion.
The Panthers committed another mistake on their next offensive play and West was there to take advantage.
A first down pass from Harris went over the head of Issacs and went backwards, allowing Nichol Rapp to scoop up the loose pigskin and return it to the Chesapeake 10.
Bishop rumbled his way into the end zone on the following play and Dettwiller added the extra point to make it 28-12 with 1:42 remaining in the half.
Chesapeake finally stopped the bleeding on their next possession. First, getting a 4th down conversion on a 4-yard run by Plantz. Then Harris hit Issacs in stride on the following play to get the Panthers to the 1.
Plantz would walk in from one yard out with 20 seconds remaining in the half to cut the deficit to 28-18.
West went to the air on their first possession of the second half, as Hall hit a play-action pass to Logan Wolfenbarker for a 45-yard score to give the Senators a 35-18 early in the third.
The Panthers moved down the field in 12-plays to the West 14, but stalled out. A fourth-down pass from Harris sailed just a little too-high for Kerns and the Panthers came up empty-handed.
Bishop scored the final points of the night for West, returning an interception 85-yards to give the Senators a 42-18 lead.
Chesapeake finished the game off with an 16-play drive that spanned 93 yards. The final play came on an 18-yard run on a sweep by Plantz for his third score of the night.
The Senators were led by Bishop with 138 yards on 10 carries. Parker finished with 15 rushes for 73 yards.
Chesapeake 12 6 0 6 = 24
Ports. West 0 28 7 7 = 42
First Quarter
Ch — Drew Plantz 8 run (kick no good), 7:18.
Ch — Jacob Harris run (pass failed), 0:39.
Second Quarter
PW — Anthony Bishop 57 run (Drew Dettwiller kick), 11:06.
PW — Mason Parker 31 run (kick no good), 5:00.
PW — Brody Hall 1 run (Mason Parker run), 2:03.
PW — Anthony Bishop 10 run (Drew Dettwiller kick), 1:42.
Ch — Drew Plantz 1 run (pass failed), 0:20.
Third Quarter
PW — Logan Wolfenbarker 45 pass from Brody Hall (Drew Dettwiller kick), 9:20.
Fourth Quarter
PW — Anthony Bishop 85 interception return (Drew Dettwiller kick), 11:43.
Ch — Drew Plantz 18 run (run failed), 1:09.
———
Ch PW
First downs 24 14
Rushes-yards 46-230 36-264
Passing yards 218 55
Total yards 448 319
Cmp-Att-Int 13-28-2 3-10-1
Fumbles-lost 1-1 0-0
Penalties-yards 7-26 2-15
Punts-average 2-32.0 2-30.0
———
Individual Leaders
RUSHING–Chesapeake: Jacob Harris 10-71 TD, Drew Plantz 15-63 3TD, Andrew Issacs 9-67, Andrew Daniels 11-37, Team 1-minus 8; Portsmouth West: Mason Parker 15-73 TD, Braden Adkins 1-11, Brody Hall 3-8 TD, Bo Wroten 5-40, Anthony Bishop 10-138 2TD, Team 2-minus 6.
PASSING–Chesapeake: Drew Plantz 13-28-2 218; Portsmouth West: Brody Hall 3-10-1 55 TD.
RECEIVING–Chesapeake: Ethan Kerns 10-154, Drew Plantz 1-11, Andrew Issacs 1-41, Jackson Spitler 1-12; Portsmouth West: Logan Wolfenbarker 2-50 TD, Braden Adkins 1-5.
MISSED FIELD GOALS–None.
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