The Firebirds (9-3) ran it 11 times with Logan Doty finishing the drive with a 3-yard run over right tackle with 2:06 left in the first quarter.
Doty had 45 yards on the drive as eight men in the box proved not to be enough for the Wayne defense to stop Fairmont’s triple-option attack.
No. 8 seed Wayne (7-5) responded with an 80-yard march that featured a pair of fourth down conversions, including one at the Warriors 27 early in the drive. They converted that with a 4-yard swing pass from Lewis to Isaiah Thompson, then Lewis finished the drive with a 34-yard run on a fourth-and-2. He faked a jet sweep to the right, kept the ball and found a wide open lane to his left.
“I’ve seen the lane as soon as I snapped the ball and cut up, and I knew I had it,” Lewis said. “I knew nobody was catching me.”
That tied the game at 7 with 9:32 left in the second quarter, and Wayne took the lead early in the third after stopping Fairmont on downs at the Firebirds 19-yard line, an early gamble that did not pay off for Fairmont coach Dave Miller.
The Warriors stuffed Doty on back-to-back runs up the middle in the triple I then needed four plays to put the ball in the end zone and take their first lead of the night.
Credit: Bill Lackey
Credit: Bill Lackey
Lewis found Teaunn Hunter in the end zone on a fourth-and-4 from the Fairmont 14. That put the Warriors on top 13-7, but the lead stayed there when Jamier Averette-Brown’s pass went over the head of his intended receiver in the end zone on the PAT.
“I actually called that play,” Lewis said of the touchdown. “We ran a play last year, and I knew they would be ready for it. It’s kind of like a flat-and-up, a double move to make them bite on it. We put everyone over to the other said and he came across and I threw it to him. It was drawn up perfectly. It was the perfect play.”
He finished with 133 yards passing and 88 yards rushing.
The Firebirds went on another long drive on the ensuing possession, but a personal foul on a chop block put them behind the chains after they got into the red zone. That ultimately led to the hosts settling for a 33-yard field goal by senior Max Gehring with 8:17 left.
They nearly got the ball back two plays later in Warriors territory, but a potential interception went through a defender’s hands. Wayne still faced third-and-14 on the next play, but Lewis came up with a big conversion when he found Gauge Miesse open in the seam for 29 yards.
One play later, Thompson delivered a bigger dagger with a 55-yard touchdown scamper, tight-roping the sideline and dodging tacklers to find his way across the goal line with 6:34 to go.
“The coaches have been talking to him about just not being denied, giving it your all in those situations,” Wayne coach Roosevelt Mukes said. “Zay has done a great job all year.”
That put the Firebirds, who did not throw a pass while defeating the Warriors 43-22 in Week 5, behind the eight-ball.
They drove across midfield, but the drive was snuffed out when Wayne’s Amare Gordon made a leaping interception at the Wayne 7-yard line with under five minutes on the clock.
The Warriors were not able to run out the clock before punting the ball back to Fairmont, but Gordon tipped a ball into the arms of Marvin Williams for another interception to put the game away.
Credit: Bill Lackey
Credit: Bill Lackey
That brought an end to one of the most successful seasons in Fairmont history.
“It’s one of those things that the dust is going to need to settle,” Miller said. “We did a lot of good things. I mean, I’m very proud of our kids, start to finish. Definitely a tough loss, but I think we look back on it, and there’s a lot to be proud of this year. They kind of set the tone for hopefully the guys who come after ‘em.”
Fairmont, playing again without senior quarterback Brock Baker because of a knee injury, had 273 total yards, including 135 from Doty, a sophomore.
Baker’s understudy, junior JJ Hill, completed 3 of 8 passes for 31 yards and ran for 37 yards.
Both coaches agreed they felt the need to go for it frequently on fourth down because of the stakes of the game — and the fact the Firebirds like to play keep away if they can.
“You got to go get them when you can, but we’ll learn from it,” Miller said. “I just feel bad for our seniors. That’s a great senior class, and super proud of what they’ve done. And I think we’ve got some really good young guys that watched everything they did. And I think in the future, we’ll be better for it.”
Wayne moves on to play No. 5 seed Hilliard Davidson at a neutral site next Friday night. The Wildcats beat crosstown rival Hilliard Bradley 34-12.
“First of all, to God be the glory,” Mukes said. “Our players and our coaches have done a great job, and I think at this time of year, man, it’s about trusting your guys and trusting your coaches. And there is no tomorrow, you know what? So you never want to have, coulda, woulda, shoulda.”
Credit: Bill Lackey
Credit: Bill Lackey
About the Author
