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Westfield Tops Centreville 13-10 in Overtime Thriller

Bulldogs overcome 10-point deficit to remain undefeated, earn top seed in Northern Region playoffs

Before Bo Hartman stripped the football from Manny Smith’s clutches in overtime, this year’s meeting between two bitter rivals had already been labeled a classic.

After holding the lead for nearly 40 minutes, it looked as if (8-1, 3-1 Concorde District) would finally snap ’s (9-0, 4-0 Concorde District) nine-year win streak over the Wildcats. And even after Bulldog kicker Matt Delaney kicked a 24-yard fourth quarter field goal to send the game into overtime, momentum and an electric home crowd were still in the Wildcats’ corner. But as this rivalry has shown over the years, nothing is ever certain.

Hartman’s forced overtime fumbled, which was recovered by defensive back Tyrone Walker, lifted Westfield over Centreville 13-10 and gave the Bulldogs the No. 1 seed in the Northern Region playoffs next month.

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“I came up, filled the hole, I felt my hand on the ball and I just pushed it out,” exclaimed Westfield’s senior safety after Friday’s victory.

“I felt the ball slide a little, but wasn’t positive that it actually popped out all the way until I heard the crowd go nuts,” he said.

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Both teams’ fast-paced, efficient offenses averaged nearly 40 points per game heading into Friday’s contest. So it was ironic that the two combined for 20 points at the end of regulation and even more ironic the game’s key plays came on turnovers.

With the score tied at 10, Centreville won the overtime coin toss and elected to play defense. Westfield quarterback Matt Pisarcik completed a pass to wide receiver Jared Andre for seven yards in the series, but the Bulldogs settled for a 19-yard Delaney field goal after the drive stalled, which put them up 13-10.

Centreville received the ball on the ensuing possession at Westfield’s 10 yard line, per Virginia High School League overtime rules, and it took only two plays for the Bulldog defense to end the game. As Smith took the handoff from quarterback Mitch Ferrick, Hartman exploded inside, collided with Smith and stripped the ball loose. The play cemented the victory as Walker scooped up the loose ball.

“I had some concern with their offense, ten yards and three downs, and whether we could make a stop or not,” said .

“I’m not saying that I don’t have faith in our defense, but their run game is pretty strong and they were grinding it out on us throughout the game.”

The turnover was Centreville’s second of the evening and equally as damaging as the first. The Wildcats received the ball to begin the second half and Chase Walter fumbled the kickoff after being hit by Westfield linebacker Matt Craft. The ball was recovered by Westfield's Beau Donahue and returned four yards for a touchdown, which gave the Bulldogs their first score of the night. 

In efforts to get his playmaker some touches, Centreville coach Chris Haddock used Walter, who is also the Wildcats' leading receiver, in a variety of formations. Walter finished the game with 28 yards rushing and 18 yards receiving. 

“Chase Walter is a special athlete and we put the ball in his hands and in Manny Smith’s hands. Those two guys are two of our better guys so we want to have the ball in their hands and they did a heck of a job with it,” said Haddock.

The strategy worked for most of the evening as Smith rushed for 167 yards. But Westfield’s stingy defense prevented him from scoring, a feat accomplished by only one other opposing defense this year. Walter scored on a 5-yard second quarter run which gave his team a 7-0 lead and helped put them up 10-0 at the half.

Westfield’s offense struggled to find rhythm and finished the night with just five first downs. Running back Kendell Anderson, who entered the game with 1,207 rushing yards this year, was held to 25 yards on 18 carries. And wide receiver Quentin Basil, who had 29 catches for 533 yards, was held to 31 yards on three receptions.

But Westfield’s defense, which has allowed an average of just seven points per game this season, stepped up and helped carry the team to its ninth consecutive victory and the top seed in the Northern Region playoffs.

“We got hit in the mouth a little bit there in the first half and we needed to see how we were going to respond. The adversity was good for us…they pulled together as a team and were up to the challenge,” said Simmons.

Up Next: Centreville travels to Oakton (11/4); Westfield hosts Herndon (11/4)        

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