**EDITOR’S NOTE: This story is being published retroactively long after it was initially submitted for review due to a backup within the sports desk. This story refers to a game that took place on Oct. 18.**
GEORGETOWN, Ky.- Justus Wertzler and the Woodford County Yellow Jackets were victorious on the road Friday night, conquering the Scott County Cardinals 38-35.
Woodford County snapped Scott County’s four-game winning streak on the road in a high scoring “Friday Night Lights” game.
In the early stages of the game, both teams looked electric on the offensive side of the ball. The score after quarter one was 14-14 after Cardinal Timmy Emongo opened the game with a highlight 95-yard kickoff return and Yellow Jackets quarterback Wertzler found connections early.
In the second quarter, both teams’ offense continued to find opportunities to put up points on the board, each team scoring 14 points each. The Cardinals found the endzone first with the Yellow Jackets finding an opportunity to equalize nearly 20 seconds later with a highlight 46-yard touchdown play.
The third quarter, however, was a different story. The Scott County D-line finally brought pressure, holding the Yellow Jackets scoreless in the third. Scott County’s Kayne Garrett was the difference in the third quarter, adding his third rushing touchdown, putting the Cardinals up by seven.
The Cardinal defense continued to find its rhythm with Asher Brewer picking off Wertzler’s 4th down pass.
For the majority of the game the Cardinals were on top offensively, but the final twelve minutes of regulation is when the Yellow Jacket defense stepped up.
Kicking things off, a big stop from the Yellow Jacket defense caused the first punt of the night from the Cardinals to start the fourth quarter. Despite that, the Cardinal defense found a quarterback sack, stopped the Yellow Jackets and forcing them to punt.
With the Cardinals still leading with four minutes left of the game, a pass interference penalty on the defense allowed for Yellow Jacket Wyatt Crowe to set up a short touchdown, tying up the score at 35.
The Yellow Jacket defense then came up with a huge stop on a 4th-and-11, forcing the Cardinals into a turnover on downs as fans for both teams began truly getting loud with the game on the line.
With Wertzler and the Yellow Jackets getting the ball back with 1:15 to play, starting at their own 20-yard line, the entire game came down to the final drive.
With two seconds left in the game, Logan Ford hit a 35-yard field goal, giving his team its first lead of the night at a crucial time as the field goal was ultimately the deciding factor of the game, giving Woodford County the win.
The game was a battle of the two halves, as defense for both teams struggled in the first half with the offenses scoring on each drive. The second half of the game is when defense started to step up, bringing pressure and creating less opportunities for the offenses to score.
Despite an interception from senior quarterback Wertzler, he was a key contributor for Yellow Jackets’ offense, going 32-51 for 404 yards, which was a building block that led him to four passing touchdowns.
On the flip, the senior fullback Garrett for the Cardinals was unstoppable, running for 101 yards and adding three touchdowns for the Cardinals
Now with a record of 7-1 on the season, the Yellow Jackets will look to host Anderson County next week at 7 p.m.
For the Scott County Cardinals, they will have a chance to regroup with a bye next week. They will play next Friday, Nov. 1, against Lexington Catholic at home at 7:30 p.m.
