Buccaneers stand against West Ottawa

The Grand Haven defense takes the field in the third quarter

Down by seven points in the third quarter, West Ottawa wide receiver Matt Hulst broke free of the Grand Haven coverage down the left sideline.  Quarterback Evan Vasilauskas heaved a tight spiral, arching high over Gene Rothy Field to fall gracefully into Hulst’s outstretched hands.  Hulst was free.  He had the ball, and there was nothing but grass between him and the endzone.  And then the Grand Haven defender turned on the burners and ran Hulst down, finally catching him from behind at the one-yard line to save the touchdown.

But it was still first-and-goal from the one-yard line.  The Buccaneers were in a tough spot, all signs pointed toward a tie game.  But it wasn’t tied yet.  They had a shot.  They put their heels on the goal-line and braced themselves for the snap.  The Panthers quarterback snapped the ball and darted forward, attempting to push his linemen toward the endzone, but the line went nowhere, and he was brought to the turf for no-gain.  On second-and-goal, same result.  And again on third-and-goal.  The Buccaneer defensive line would not budge.  And so it was fourth-and-goal.  The Panthers, down by seven, needed a touchdown.  They lined up across from the Buccaneers one last time.  One yard to go, for seven points.

The Buccaneers line held one last time, and West Ottawa was turned away with nothing.  The Panthers scored in the fourth quarter, but missed the subsequent extra-point to give Grand Haven the 14-13 victory, their second consecutive one-point victory.

Grand Haven's Derrik Lattig looks for a running lane

“It was tremendous,” said Grand Haven coach Mike Farley.  “The kids have worked so hard in the weight room to get stronger, and they really just dug down deep, believed, and were able to come away with the big plays when they needed to.”

This particular big play, or rather these four particularly big plays, were instrumental in bringing the Buccaneers to 4-0 on the season.  With the loss, West Ottawa falls to 3-1.

“We were generous tonight, I thought,” lamented West Ottawa coach Jim Caserta.  “And the reason we were is they hit the snot out of us.  They earned this win by hitting us hard every time.  That goal-line stand turned out to be the difference in the game.”

Hold the line

Grand Haven’s hat is hung on their defensive front — led by defensive tackle Jordan Goetz, who had two sacks in the victory, and Jerry Westerman, who added a team-high 12-tackles.  As a matter of fact, their jacket and galoshes are hung there, too.  As Coach Caserta said, they hit the snot out of people.

Not only on the goal-line stand against West Ottawa, but throughout their entire season, the Buccaneers have enjoyed the ability to reestablish the line of scrimmage almost a yard behind where it originally set.  It’s a significant advantage, and one that so far their opponents have been unable to overcome.

“Our defense is playing incredible right now,” said Grand Haven quarterback Adam Poel after the game.  “We can’t keep relying on them, but as long as the defense is playing well, we should be alright.  We’ll score enough.”

One if by air, two if by ground

West Ottawa was unable to get much going on the ground against Grand Haven, due in most part to their inability to keep the Buccaneer defensive front out of their backfield.  The majority of their success came through the air, particularly when Vasilauskas looked for wide-receiver Steve Grant, who caught both Panther touchdowns including a 47-yard bomb that Grant tipped to himself over a Grand Haven defender.

It’s a shift for the Panthers, who have typically been more of a power running team.  But it is a shift that bodes well for West Ottawa moving forward, as it adds an element of versatility previously missing from their offense.  Even at 3-1, they have every shot of making some playoff noise.

Mainstream media coverage

• The Venerable Jane Bos covered the game from the booth for The Grand Rapids Press
• Sports Editor Alan Babbitt did a piece on the game for the Holland Sentinel
• Nate Thompson busted out the bullet-points for the Grand Haven Tribune