Griffin's kick caps St. Paul comeback

TIFFIN — Chants of "block that kick" rang into the cool night. The sound of fans banging on the bleachers as a distraction could be heard. But St. Paul junior Nate Griffin heard silence. After two extra points were no good, Griffin was tasked with kicking a 27-yard field goal with eight seconds left and the Flyers trailing 20-19 at Tiffin Calvert. "I get out there and block out all the noise," Griffin said. "The bands, the fans — it doesn't matter. When I get out there, it's just me and that football. I trust what I work on and do what I can do." After feeling like he played a role in a loss, Griffin never looked better with the game on the line. He boomed the field goal through with three seconds left to help secure the 22-20 win at Heidelberg University's Hoernemann Stadium. St. Paul (1-2) trailed by a 20-6 margin with under 10 minutes left in the game before mounting a stunning comeback. Despite the early misses on extra points, Griffin's confidence didn't waver when his foot connected with the ball on the field goal. "Oh yeah, I didn't even watch it go through," he said. "It's a wave of emotions, but it feels great. The past few years we haven't started like we wanted to. This year we felt close, and this time we were able to get over the hump. "I'm just glad to be able to help my team get the win." Calvert had taken the 20-6 lead on a 50-yard touchdown pass from Charlie Palm to Logan DeMoss on the first play of the fourth quarter. But from there, the Senecas were unable to stop the Flyers' momentum. But St. Paul senior Nick Pocos returned the ensuing kickoff 50 yards to the Calvert 46-yard line, and the Flyers were right back in business. Quarterback Grant Kuhnle connected with Levi Rospert for 10 yards and Landon Fries for 13 yards. Faced with third-and-4 at the Calvert 13, the junior found Connor Lindenberger for a low catch in the right corner of the end zone for the touchdown with 9:02 left in the game. Griffin's extra point made it 20-13. The Flyer defense then forced a three-and-out, and the Senecas were flagged for running into the punt returner to set up St. Paul at the Calvert 43 with 6:58 remaining. But inside the Calvert 15, Kuhnle was intercepted at the 10 with four minutes left in the game. However, Rospert came through just three snaps later. A miscommunication between Palm and a Calvert receiver allowed Rospert to intercept the ball to give the Flyers the ball back at the Sencas' 15. Pocos ran for nine yards on the first play, then Landon Fries followed his blockers up the right side and into the end zone for the TD with 2:09 left in the game. However, Griffin's kick was low and was easily blocked by the Senecas to instantly stall the momentum and leave Calvert in front, 20-19. "I was beating myself up for it," Griffin said. "But Coach (Chris) Doughty talked to me and told me to get my mind right. He actually told me everything that would happen. He said we'd get the ball back, drive down the field, and win the game. "In that moment, I had to collect myself and trust my team." After the Senecas recovered the onside kick, the Flyers forced a three-and-out. But Calvert opted for a surprise fake punt to try and get the first down on a fourth-and-12 from their own 44. St. Paul freshman Casey Fries closed in and leveled punter Lukas Stultz at midfield. The hit left both players slow to get up. With the ball back at midfield and 1:41 left in the game, the Flyers went to work. Kuhnle found Lindenberger twice in a row for 15 yards, but then St. Paul had a fourth-and-10 at the Calvert 37 and just 42 seconds remaining. Kuhnle was flushed out of the pocket to his right but had enough time to lob the ball over three defenders, where Landon Fries came down with it at the Calvert 22 to extend the drive. After spiking the football with no timeouts, Kuhnle then found Landon Fries again at the 21, and the senior turned upfield and was shoved out of bounds at the Calvert 10 with under 30 seconds left. However, three straight incomplete passes led to Doughty calling on Griffin. "With the amount of time left, we knew we'd have an opportunity if we got a stop," Doughty said. "Nate is not a kid who just kicks during football season. He puts in the time all year round. "We told him to get your mind right, and when your number is called, you have to be ready to go. Nate does what he does. He does that all the time. We see it every day." Neither team got untracked in the first quarter, but after another 15-yard penalty on the Senecas, St. Paul took over at the Calvert 26-yard line. On the first play, Casey Fries was met by a host of blockers and defenders at the 23, but broke free and was up the left sideline for the 26-yard TD run with 5:17 left in the first quarter. The extra point was no good. "I just had to flush it there," Griffin said. "It was first quarter, so I wasn't really too worried that I wouldn't get another chance. "I just put it behind me. We have a next-play mentality, and I had to move on." St. Paul appeared to be marching toward a double-digit lead when the Senecas forced a fumble at their own 5 with 4:41 left in the first half. The Senecas (1-2) then put together an impressive 13-play, 95-yard scoring drive that took 4:11 off the clock. Palm was 5-of-7 passing for 67 yards on the drive, the biggest coming when he found DeMoss for 39 yards to the St. Paul 4. Nolan Lee scored from the 2, and Cameron Lucius made the PAT for a 7-6 lead with 30 seconds left in the half. Both teams then traded possessions to start the second half, and then Palm capped a 50-yard drive with a 4-yard run with four minutes left in the third. Lucius extended the lead to 14-6. After forcing the Flyers to punt, the Senecas then got the long TD from Palm to DeMoss for the 20-6 lead. Kuhnle finished 17-of-33 passing for 157 yards with one TD and one interception. Landon Fries caught six passes for 74 yards and ran 10 times for 29 yards and a TD. Lindenberger caught six passes for 65 yards and a TD, while Casey Fries ran six times for 56 yards and a score. "I think a lot of it has to do with our resiliency," Doughty said of the late comeback. "I say that a lot, but they really don't give up or quit. Even when it feels like everything is stacked against them, they continue to fight. When you do that, everyone likes to talk about luck, but you make your own luck. "You make that happen by doing your job and being in the position you're supposed to be in. That's when turnovers and big plays happen." The second-year head coach believes his team, which hosts Plymouth (0-3) in the Firelands Conference opener next week, found something in a fourth-quarter rally against Port Clinton on Aug. 22. The Flyers trailed 37-9 in the fourth quarter before losing 37-30 with a chance to tie the game in the final seconds. "It's a testament to the kids we have that their work ethic and time they put into it," he said. "They battle to the end. I don't think anyone thought we were out of this game, just like two weeks ago. "If there is time on the clock, there is enough time. We just have to keep battling and put ourselves in that position to come back."