St. Paul can't keep up with JFK in loss

GIRARD — An up-and-down season played out that way in the end. Trailing 20-14 in the third quarter against host Warren John F. Kennedy, the St. Paul football team was driving inside the JFK 20. But the Flyers were unable to finish and turned the football over on downs on a fourth-and-5 from the JFK 13 with 8:57 left in the quarter of Friday's Division VII first-round playoff game at Girard High School's Arrowhead Stadium. The Eagles needed just seven plays to go 87 yards the other way for a touchdown and a two-score lead (28-14). The huge momentum swing from nearly taking the lead to trailing by two touchdowns proved the difference in the season-ending 42-27 loss. "That was obviously a big turning point for us," St. Paul head coach Chris Doughty said. "JFK is playing really well right now and has a great team with a lot of athletes, and their line play was really good tonight. "But I was proud of the fight and resiliency our kids showed throughout the game. We just got behind early against a very good team and couldn't climb out, and that's a credit to JFK." JFK (5-5) used 3:54 off the clock to open the game with a 9-play, 74-yard scoring drive. Standout quarterback LaMarcus Provitt did most of the damage, carrying five times for 45 yards. The last came on a 13-yard touchdown run, and the PAT was blocked for a 6-0 lead at the 6:32 mark of the first. After the Flyers went three-and-out for a second straight possession, the Eagles moved 54 yards over eight plays and 3:59. Steven Thomas scored on a 2-yard run after he and Provitt did most of the damage. Thomas ran in the 2-point conversion for a 14-0 lead with 14 seconds left in the opening quarter. But St. Paul finally got its footing. The Flyers covered 55 yards in 10 plays, with Grant Kuhnle finding Landon Fries for a 13-yard pass on a fourth-and-10 from the JFK 16-yard line. The next play, freshman Casey Fries went in from the right side for a 3-yard TD run. Nate Griffin's PAT made it a 14-7 deficit with 9:13 left in the second quarter. However, JFK didn't waste any time. Two plays into the next drive, Thomas went right up the middle and outran the Flyer defense for a 57-yard TD run. The run for two failed, but JFK led 20-7 with 8:15 left in the half. After a St. Paul drive ended with an interception on a deflected pass near the JFK 1, the Eagles gave it right back when Provitt had the ball knocked loose. St. Paul recovered at the JFK 28 with just 40 seconds left in the half. That was more than enough time for Kuhnle and Landon Fries. The QB was flushed to his left, kept the play alive, and found the senior up the left sideline. He made the jumping catch near the 6, then juked his way past a defender and into the end zone for a 28-yard TD catch with 28 seconds left in the half. Griffin cut the deficit to 20-14 with his PAT. The Flyers (5-6) then recovered a squib kick to start the second half at the JFK 36. They picked up 23 yards before the drive stalled. Provitt and Thomas quickly picked up 43 yards in four plays going the other way. The big play came when Provitt scrambled and eluded three St. Paul defenders deep behind the line of scrimmage, keeping the play alive long enough for tight end Anthony Georgalas to get open for a 44-yard gain to the St. Paul 1. Thomas punched it in the next play, and the Eagles added the conversion for a 28-14 lead with 5:39 left in the third. St. Paul followed up with another turnover on downs at the JFK 20. A 32-yard run by Provitt set up Thomas for a 42-yard TD run with 1:30 left in the third to make it 36-14 after Provitt ran in the two points. The Flyers got back on the road with a 72-yard drive that was capped by Kuhnle again finding Landon Fries in the right corner of the end zone on a 19-yard pass to make it 36-21 with 10:04 left in the game. But as JFK did early in the game, the Flyers were unable to get off the field on defense. The Eagles used 8:15 of the fourth quarter clock by converting two fourth-down plays. The Eagles scored on a 1-yard run by Thomas with 1:49 left in the game. "Provitt is a heck of an athlete who is able to use his athleticism to make four or five guys miss," Doughty said. "That's a special talent and tough to defend. He showed up and played well tonight." St. Paul closed out the scoring with a 69-yard drive as Kuhnle and Landon Fries again hooked up on a 13-yard TD pass with 13 seconds left in the game. "I thought we did a great job overall creating some holes on offense and running and passing the ball," Doughty said. "We had some success on offense; we just weren't able to put the ball in the end zone enough to make the score more manageable. "But overall, I can't say enough about the effort of our team tonight, including our seniors. They've competed very well and did a lot of nice things for us during their careers." Kuhle was 16-of-30 passing for 192 yards and 3 TDs for St. Paul. Landon Fries caught eight passes for 123 yards and all three scores, while Pocos ran 15 times for 107 yards. Levi Rospert caught five passes for 35 yards.