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Summit’s Cody Knighten is challenged by the Cougar defense Friday night. Knighten ran for 71 yards and the game-winning touchdown against Mountain View.
Rob Kerr / The Bulletin
Storm shuts out Cougs
By Beau Eastes / The Bulletin
Published: October 04. 2008 4:00AM PSTIn one fell swoop Friday night, the Summit Storm completely shook up the football pecking order in the city of Bend, in the Intermountain Conference and in Oregon’s Class 5A.
Behind a suffocating defense that allowed just 65 yards of offense, the host Storm upset reigning IMC champion Mountain View 7-0 to improve to 2-0 in league, ending the Cougars’ 13-game IMC winning streak.
Starting at its own 28-yard line with 4 minutes and 50 seconds left in the game, Summit drove 72 yards in eight plays to score the game’s only touchdown.
Senior running back Cody nighten took a dive play 13 yards up the middle to give the Storm a 6-0 lead with 1:09 left to play. Matson Hardie’s point-after kick was good, and Summit stopped the Cougars on downs on the ensuing drive to pull off the IMC victory.
“This is a turnaround point for this program,” said Storm quarterback Harlan Porterfield, who ended the night with 70 yards of total offense passing, running and receiving. “It’s been a while since we’ve had a win like this.”
With a combined record of 10-18 over the past three seasons, the Storm is now 3-3 overall this season and riding a three-game winning streak. Summit’s defense came up huge against the Cougars, who had not lost a regular-season game since 2006 and had not lost to Summit since 2004.
Mountain View was limited to five first downs and was forced to punt nine times after averaging 34 points a game in its first four contests this season.
“That was easily one of the best defensive performances I’ve been a part of as a coach,” said Storm coach Keith Wilkins. “We simplified things and ran two basic fronts. The kids didn’t overthink and played aggressive.”
The teams traded punts for much of the game, as neither offense was able to put together a sustained drive until Summit’s game-winning march. The Storm ended the night with 196 yards of offense, 71 yards coming on the ground from Knighten.
“Our kids are pretty even keeled,” said Wilkins, whose team has already matched its win total from last year just six games into the 2008 season. “Sometimes it drives you crazy in practice, but they never get too high or too low.”
The Cougars (2-1 IMC, 4-1 overall) never got past Summit’s 41-yard line and converted just three of 15 third-down attempts. Tailback Scott McCreery led the Mountain View offense with 50 yards rushing on 15 carries, but Cougar quarterbacks Scott Plants and Matt Robertson went a combined seven of 23 for just 40 yards passing.
“We just didn’t perform,” said Mountain View assistant coach Mike Huff. “We seemed off on everything.”
Despite turning the ball over four times, Summit’s offense came together in the fourth quarter for the game-winning drive. Knighten carried the ball five times for 24 yards and Porterfield completed two of three passes for 38 yards.
On third and 10 at Mountain View’s 46-yard line, Porterfield made the pass of the night, hitting running back Matt Meagher out of the backfield for a 27-yard gain. Knighten picked up 11 yards on his next two carries, and the Storm had first and goal on the Mountain View 8-yard line.
After a delay-of-game penalty pushed Summit back five yards, Knighten charged in from 13 yards out for what turned out to be the difference in the game.
Beau Eastes can be reached at 541-383-0305 or at beastes@bendbulletin.com.
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