Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, November 13, 1993 TAG: 9311130212
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RALPH BERRIER JR. STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Chris Almond's interception in the end zone with three seconds to play preserved William Byrd's 19-15 non-district football victory over Christiansburg on Friday night, a loss that snatched away any hope the Blue Demons had of making the playoffs.
Christiansburg finished 3-7 for the second year in a row, a record good enough to make the playoffs last year but not this year.
Despite ending the season on a winning note, Byrd (5-5) was left wondering what might have been possible had it capitalized on its Oct. 8 upset of Salem. The Terriers lost their next four games.
"It'll hit all of us a month from now or a week from now," said Almond. "I can't explain what happened [during the losing streak]. I'll wonder about that the rest of my life."
For now, Almond can savor the biggest play of the night. After Matt Bryant's 2-yard touchdown run put Byrd ahead 19-15 with 1:24 to play, Christiansburg flew 74 yards behind the passing of junior quarterback Mischa Alexander, who was trying to duplicate a last-minute drive that resulted in a 21-20 victory over Richlands last month.
Beginning at the Demons' 14-yard line, Alexander completed three passes for 54 yards to get Christiansburg to the Byrd 32. A reverse by Kareem Koonce gained 9 yards, then a pass-interference call against Byrd put the Demons on the 12 with nine seconds left.
Alexander went to the end zone for Koonce, the wingback who had gone in motion left to right, but the high-arcing pass was nabbed by Almond.
"He threw it up for grabs and I came down with it," Almond said. "It was a basic defensive play. I just tried to jump a little higher than the other guy."
The Terriers took over on the 20-yard line and ran out the final three seconds.
Byrd took a 6-0 lead on Bryant's 9-yard touchdown pass to Cory Heck with 7 minutes, 9 seconds left in the first quarter. Bryant completed 11 of 15 passes for 119 yards, with Mitch Kotz catching seven for 77 yards.
Christiansburg went ahead 7-6 on a 20-yard Koonce touchdown run. Later in the second quarter, Shannon Gray's 7-yard run capped a 15 play, 85-yard drive that put the Terriers up 12-7.
Tailback Andra Beasley ran for 82 of his game-high 96 yards in the first half, but Christiansburg fumbled three times in the opening two quarters, twice in Byrd territory.
"We made some mistakes in the first half that wound up hurting us," Christiansburg coach Mike Cole said. "We haven't put the ball on the ground that much all year."
With 8:04 left in the fourth quarter, Koonce took a reverse handoff from Beasley and went 21 yards for a touchdown. Alexander hit David Epperly with a conversion pass to make it 15-12.
After an exchange of punts, the Terriers embarked on the game-winning drive behind the running of fullback Michael Poindexter, who gained 42 of his 77 yards on the 57-yard march. His back-to-back runs of 22 and 8 yards were followed by a Bryant pass to Kotz that put the Terriers on the Blue Demon 2. Bryant scored the go-head touchdown on the next play.
"I thought we could come back," Byrd coach Jeff Highfill said. "We battled and battled all year. We were at an all-time high after [beating] Salem, but things started to go against us. I guess I may never know why that happened."
by CNB