Junction City staves off Cross County

By ROD HARRINGTON Weekend Editor JUNCTION CITY – The Dragons stopped a quarterback sneak at the goal line as time expired Friday to down Cross County 7-6 in the Class 2A State Semifi nals. Junction (11-1) will play Jessieville (14-0) next Friday at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock for the State Championship. The Thunderbirds (11-2) nearly pulled off the miracle comeback when quarterback Dylan Karnes hit Justin Selvy with a 38-yard pass, but Selvy was caught shy of the end zone by Justin Easter. Karnes then tried the quarterback sneak to his right, but was met by the entire Junction defense. Sophomore Devin Ball said it "was a team tackle" that preserved the win. Junction’s own miscues nearly cost them the win Friday, including 11 penalties for 90 yards, most of which stopped large gains. Junior Eric Major’s touchdown late in the game was called back on a penalty. The Dragons had marched from the 43 down to inside the 5-yard line, but couldn’t put it in the end zone with under two minutes left in the game. The Thunderbirds’ fi nal drive started at their own 16 with 1:25 left in the game. Senior Julio Hernandez stopped an option pitch behind the line with 1:04 left. Karnes then found Selvy on a pass shy of the fi rst down marker, but the tall senior broke several tackles and went to the Junction 39-yard line. His catch to the 1 came with just 4 seconds left in the game. "I was scared. The defense never gave up. We’ve worked our butts off as a team. Now we’re going up there," Hernandez said after the game. Head coach David Carpenter said "the weight room and sled are what got us here." "We talked about going to the Rock, going to the Rock, going to the Rock. Finally we’re going to the Rock," Carpenter said. "We literally held on out there ... Defense, you came through big time for us tonight. We weren’t very successful on offense because of things we did to ourselves." Junction City fi nished with 190 yards on the ground, but would have had a lot more if not for the penalties. The Thunderbirds fi nished with 296 yards offense and 16 fi rst downs, twice what Junction had. Cross County rushed for 116 yards and passed for 180. The Thunderbirds scored on their fi rst drive when Karnes hit Brian Hopkins on a 25-yard pass. The Dragons had two defenders on the play, but Hopkins wrestled the ball away in the end zone. The extra-point kick failed, however, and Cross County led 6-0 with 5:39 left in the fi rst. On the ensuing kickoff, junior Justin Cook picked up the ball at the 15, came to the middle and found a seam, and took the return 85 yards for the touchdown. Junior Anthony Carter’s extra-point kick was perfect, and with 5:25 left in the fi rst Junction led 7-6. The return was Cook’s second of the year. He returned the opening kickoff 90 yards against Harmony Grove, a game the Dragons lost 7-6 way back in Week 3. "I saw a hole and (Justin) Hoof picked off Number 3 for me," Cook said after the game. The Dragons had numerous chances to add to the lead in the fi rst half, but penalties and a tough defense were the difference. The Dragons drove to the Thunderbirds’ 34-yard line but punted. After forcing Cross County to punt, the Dragons again had the ball in good position. At the Cross County 26, however, on fourth down, Justin Hoof was stopped short to kill the drive. Cross County in the third quarter took the opening drive down to the Junction 35-yard line, but the drive stalled. On their next possession, the Thunderbirds drove to near midfi eld, but Ball dropped Karnes for a loss on fourth down, giving the Dragons the ball back. In the third quarter the Dragons mounted just 7 yards of offense while Cross County had 88. Junction’s most impressive drive began at the Cross County 43-yard line, following another short punt in the fourth quarter. The Dragons methodically marched down the fi eld, picking up four fi rst downs on the drive. On fourth down from the 4, Major took the ball around right end and scored, but the play was called back on a penalty. Another penalty pushed the Dragons back to the 14. Sophomore Grantel Kennedy was stopped on a reverse well short of a fi rst down, giving the Thunderbirds possession with 1:26 left in the game and two timeouts. Hernandez led the Dragons with 13 tackles, two for losses, while Ball had 8 tackles, two behind the line. Also recording tackles for losses were freshman Byran Jones and Kennedy. Senior Shay Barnette recorded 9 tackles, Jones had 7 and sophomore Alvie McIntosh 9. Easter fi nished the night with 81 yards rushing on 17 carries. Cook added 45 yards on seven carries, Kennedy had 30 on fi ve carries and Hoof had 24 on 11 carries. Easter on the season has 1,276 yards rushing. Major was 1-for-4 passing for 5 yards. Karnes fi nished 10-of-24 for 180 yards. He was 5-of-16 passing for 88 yards in the fi rst half. Junior Craig Walker ran for 66 yards on 18 carries to lead the Thunderbirds. Junction will play Jessieville at 7:30 p.m. next Friday in Little Rock. The Dragons beat the Lions in the second round last year, in Jessieville. The Lions Friday downed Bearden 28-12 in the other semifi nal. Defensive coordinator Rob Lowe told the Dragons the hard work must continue. "I’m happy to go. I’m proud of you. Monday we’ll have a new scheme and a new team to prepare for." Assistant Brad Smith gave credit to Easter for stopping Selvy at the 1-yard line. "That’s what Dragons do. They go after the ball." Assistant Mike Barrett added, "We talked about it way back in the summer about going to War Memorial. Now we’re going." Carpenter noted, "Just because we’re going to Little Rock, don’t think we aren’t gonna push the sled and lift." The Dragons are now 26-8 in the playoffs, including 25-7 under Carpenter. Junction had made the semifi nals the past six years, losing to the eventual state champion in the semifi nals every year except 2003, when Junction won its fi rst state title.