Touchdowns in both the first and second quarter were enough to carry Greene County to a 14-6 win over host Perry in the 87th Cowbell Game Friday.
Perry struggled mightily to move the ball on offense, converting just 1-of-11 third down plays and finishing with just 98 yards of output.
However, the Rams were guilty of a whopping 20 penalties for over 200 yards, including an unofficial seven personal foul and unsportsmanlike conduct violations, errors which often sustained a Perry drive on hampered their own offensive efforts.
Perry was hardly blameless, committing nine penalties of their own, three of which were 15-yard violations as emotions ran high on both sidelines.[wpedon id=”85410″ align=”left”]
Trailing 14-0, the Bluejays finally made headway midway through the fourth quarter, with Kaleb Olejniczak connecting on a 29-yard pass up the middle of the turf to Connor Kenyon, who was pulled down at the Ram six-yard line.
Olejniczak carried the ball to the three-yard line, from where Justin Stammer bulled over for a touchdown, running behind the blocks of Kade Killmer, Cole Snyder and Jared Narber. Perry opted to try and pass for a two-point conversion, but the ball was knocked away, leaving the Jays facing a 14-6 hole.
Greene County had possession deep in Perry territory with just over two minutes remaining and likely could have run out the clock, but opted to try several passes, eventually turning the ball over on downs with 45 seconds still to play.
The hosts moved the ball to near midfield, but time expired as they tried to spike the ball — after a procedure penalty — when the clock expired as Olejniczak immediately slammed the ball down on the snap. The quick clock caught both teams by surprise, but the result stood and a Ram celebration began.
Ram quarterback Brent Riley found receivers open repeatedly in the first half. He connected an a jump-ball style 24-yard touchdown to Lance Hughes, with the Perry defense protesting he had pushed off the defender to pull down the high pass. The PAT kick was good, creating a 7-0 lead.[wpedon id=”85410″ align=”left”]
Greene County twice converted third down plays with over 20 yards to go, the second time burning the Jays as Carter Morton pulled in a short slant, set up his blockers well, and raced 65 yards for a TD and a 14-0 halftime lead for the guests.
Riley had connected on nine of his first 13 passes, but the Perry secondary tightened as the game progressed, and the Ram tosser hit on just eight of his final 25 throws. He finished 17-of-38 for 232 yards and two scores, with Stammer coming away with two interceptions and Wilber Ramirez one.
Morton caught three passes for 82 yards and a score and Hughes four for 71 and a TD, with Trey Hinote (5-55), Tyler Teeples (2-19), Xavier Hayes (1-5) and Clint Dennhardt (2-0) also catching passes.
Dennhardt carried 16 times for 80 yards and Colby Kafer seven times for 32 yards to account for the ground yardage gained by the guests.
Olejniczak rarely had time or space in which to throw, even when rolling out, and finished 6-of-17 for 43 yards and one interception. Kenyon caught four aerials for 40 yards, Kate Dougan one ball for five yards and Xavier Craddock one pass for minus-two yards.[wpedon id=”85410″ align=”left”]
Stammer scored one and gained 28 yards on 16 carries, with Olejniczak adding 25 yards on 15 hauls. Craddock ran twice for no gain, with Corey Alamina adding two yards on one run.
Olejniczak’s 10 tackles led the Perry defense, with Mike Echeverria and Luke Holtorf both in on 5.5 stops. Craddock, Stammer and Rony Reyes had five tackles apiece, with Ramirez and Snyder each making 4.5 stops and Kenyon four.
Perry will continue non-district play with consecutive road games. Up first is a visit to ADM, who topped Bondurant-Farrar, 17-7, Friday, with a Sept. 7 contest at Nevada following. Nevada fell to North Polk, 45-39, Friday, with the Comets the opposition for Homecoming when Perry returns to Dewey Field Sept. 14.
