Broken Arrow advances to 6A final
BY KELLY HINES World Sports Writer
Saturday, November 26, 2011
11/26/11 at 4:56 AM
MUSKOGEE - After Broken Arrow defeated Owasso 30-17 to advance to the Class 6A final, coach Steve Spavital cared about one other score - and it wasn't from the in-progress Jenks-Union game.
"I just saw West Virginia won, so all three of the Spavs won," Spavital said. "I'm fired up."
Spavital's son Zac is an assistant at Houston, which beat Tulsa 48-16 earlier Friday, and son Jake is an assistant at West Virginia, which edged Pittsburgh 21-20.
The Tigers' win at the Indian Bowl propelled them to the 6A title game for the first time since 2002 and set up a rematch with Union on Thursday night at Boone Pickens Stadium.
"This was just kind of unfamiliar territory to begin with," Spavital said. "To do what we did and hold a great offensive football team to 17 points was really amazing."
Sporting new gold jerseys, Broken Arrow (12-1) shut out the Rams in the second half while rolling on offense behind a dominant rushing performance from Devon Thomas.
With Cameron Wrenn still battling a foot injury, Thomas, a sophomore, got most of the carries and finished with 243 yards and two touchdowns.
"Our linemen did their job and I give huge credit to our line," he said. "They helped us get that win."
Owasso ended its season with a 9-4 record, including two victories over No. 1 teams.
"It's tough to end your season this time of year because you have hopes of going farther, but we're proud of our football team and proud of our kids and how they competed," coach Bill Patterson said.
The Rams were in sync on their first drive, going the length of the field and scoring on an 8-yard pass from Kason Key to tight end Matt Gallagher, who simply snatched the ball from the defender for the 7-0 lead.
The pair combined for another touchdown late in the half, with Gallagher snagging a 5-yard pass.
The Tigers led 21-17 at the break after three first-half touchdowns from Thomas and Wrenn.
In the second half, the Broken Arrow defense seemed to flip a switch, not allowing the Rams to pick up a first down in the third quarter and keeping them out of the end zone for the final 24 minutes.
"I think we came in underestimating them because of Week 1 (a 48-20 win for BA) and that was our downfall in the beginning," defensive back Levi Copelin said. "We came in at halftime and told ourselves we need to get hooked up or else we'll lose this game."
Now, the Tigers look to their next opponent as they try to win their first state championship. When they met in Week 3, the Redskins won 21-17.
"I really don't care (who it is)," Spavital said. "We've just got to have another game like this."
Broken Arrow 30, Owasso 17
Broken Arrow 14 7 9 0 — 30
Owasso 10 7 0 0 — 17
O: Gallagher 8 pass from Key (Sailing kick)
BA: Thomas 3 run (Moore kick)
O: Sailing 20 field goal
BA: Thomas 7 run (Moore kick)
BA: Wrenn 15 run (Moore kick)
O: Gallagher 5 pass from Key (Sailing)
BA: Moore 31 field goal
BA: Mills 5 run (Sailing)
| BA | Owasso |
|
First Downs | 21 | 20 |
|
Rushes-Yards | 52-344 | 28-124 |
|
Passing Yards | 47 | 295 |
|
Comp-Att-Int | 5-7-1 | 20-37-2 |
|
Punts-Avg | 0 | 3-42.33 |
|
Fumbles-Lost | 1-0 | 0-0 |
|
Penalties-Yards | 2-21 | 8-50 |
Kelly Hines 918-581-8452
kelly.hines@tulsaworld.com
Associated Images:
Broken Arrow's Cameron Wrenn runs during the Tigers' 30-17 win over Owasso in the 6A state semifinals Friday in Muskogee. JAMES GIBBARD/Tulsa World
Broken Arrow's Chris Ladd (center) tackles Owasso's Scottie Prealow during Friday's game. JAMES GIBBARD/Tulsa World
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