Westfield captures Virginia 6A football state title with triple-overtime victory
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Version 0 of 1. CHARLOTTESVILLE — If Westfield’s football team had a choice, the script for the championship season it so desperately sought would have been far less convoluted. Rather than cycle through a laundry list of running backs and offensive formations for 12 weeks, the Bulldogs would have long ago settled on the scrappy senior and revamped system that racked up a season high in points Saturday against Oscar Smith’s vaunted defense. The Bulldogs most certainly would not have gone through the troubles that left six of their starters suspended for a month or the tragic turn of events that saw them lose one of their former teammates last month. This group, however, was built to buck the odds, riding the talents of an active roster with zero Division I football offers to a status that only two other teams had reached before them — state champions. Pushed to their limits and backed up to their 2-yard line, the Bulldogs’ defense made its final goal-line stand in a season of many to cap a 49-42, triple-overtime win against Oscar Smith at Scott Stadium. True to form, the decisive play saw Westfield (14-1) yet again divert from its initial plan. After his teammates flushed Tigers quarterback Shon Mitchell out of the pocket, Bulldogs linebacker Kevin Petrillo left his spot in coverage and went in pursuit. The extra dose of pressure resulted in a hurried throw and an incompletion that sent Westfield’s sideline pouring onto the field in jubilation. “I probably should have stayed back, but when I saw the opportunity, I had to go for it,” said Petrillo, who intercepted two passes. “Our job as a defense is to shut it down, and in a situation like that, that’s all you’re thinking about.” Whether Westfield could both shut down Oscar Smith’s aerial attack and muster the offensive firepower to keep up were questions that dogged the Bulldogs throughout the contest. Initially, they did. Petrillo’s first interception halted the Tigers’ opening drive and set up touchdown runs by Tim Beard (234 rushing yards) and Rehman Johnson (110 yards) as Westfield went up 14-0. But a missed field goal and a roughing the punter penalty by the Bulldogs gave Oscar Smith new life, and the Tigers (13-1) tied the score. Tyler Scanlon soared for a 30-yard touchdown catch at the front left pylon just before halftime to send Westfield into the locker room with a 21-14 edge, but the sequence that followed threatened to unravel the Bulldogs once again. Four second-half fumbles escaped Westfield’s grasp, placing the momentum and lead up for grabs before the clock mercifully sent the 6A final to overtime for the second straight year. “I’ve never been a part of anything like that,” Scanlon said. “But this team has been through a lot, so we had the maturity and knew how to weather any type of storm — even something like that.” The Bulldogs did so by relying on Beard, a senior once buried on the depth chart before he emerged for moments like Saturday, when he twice scored in overtime — including the game-winner. And they did it by leaning on their defense, which stuffed the Tigers on three fourth downs, the last bringing the wild contest to a memorable end for the Bulldogs. “I feel a lot of relief,” Bulldogs Coach Kyle Simmons said. “My staff and these players have been through a lot and worked hard, so I wanted to win it for them more than anything.” |