Pendulum swings Gaffney’s way

Prochak’s late fumble enables Indians

LEDGER PHOTO BY LARRY B. LITTLEJOHN Gaffney’s Quinton Hemphill (9) punished the Spartanburg defense for 206 rushing yards Friday night. Hemphill also scored the game winner on a 6-yard run with :40.6 left in the game. to escape with thrilling 29-27 victory;

Dorman next in upper state title tilt

He’s been coaching for about 20 years. He’s won three state championships and more than 200 games.

And still, Gaffney coach Phil Strickland had never experienced such a gut-wrenching game as Friday’s heart-pounding 29-27 victory over visiting Spartanburg in the second round of the Big 16 upper state playoffs.

“There was a swing of emotion,” Strickland said. “We thought we had the game won, then things looked grim. I have never been in a game like this. It swung back and forth.”

The Indians (10-3) entered the game with a 29-game home playoff win streak. But they would need help from the football gods to secure No. 30.

Leading 27-22 with less than a minute to play, all the Vikings needed to do to earn a trip to the upper state final was to run a play, punt on fourth down and knock down a Hail Mary pass.

But the football gods intervened as Spartanburg quarterback Nick Prochak inexplicably coughed up the ball without the help of a jarring hit with 50 seconds left in the game. Gaffney’s Daniel Moss recovered Prochak’s fumble at the Vikings’ 6.

On the next play, the Indian coaching staff appropriately put the ball in the hands of Quinton Hemphill. The senior tailback, who gained a seasonhigh 206 yards, outraced the stunned Viking defenders before launching his body into the air and landing with a touchdown that gave the Indians an improbable 28-27 lead. Justin Harris’ meaningless point after made it 29-27 with :40.6 remaining.

Hemphill, who started the season at defensive back, capped his remarkable performance with an interception that finished off the Vikings, sending the Gaffney crowd and players home happy and the Vikings home with a miserable memory.

So, the football gods smiled on the Indians and frowned on the Vikings to set up the upper state final everybody wanted to see the Dorman Cavaliers and Gaffney High transfer Nick Melton against the Indians.

But a teary-eyed Brett Irvin was only thinking about the unbelievable finish.

“When at the end we only had one timeout, I didn’t give up but I was starting to feel that way,” he said. “We couldn’t have done this without God. All (Spartanburg) had to do was to hold on to the ball.”

Cameron Tate, who had an 80-yard kickoff return to atone for his celebration penalty after his 76-yard TD reception put the Indians up 6-0, said: “This game is one I’ll always remember.”

Malcolm Long, who passed for 199 yards and two touchdowns, added: “This is the best game I’ve played in.”

But Strickland might have put it best. “It was crazy.”

The craziness began with seven minutes left when Long hit tight end Richard Good with a 7-yard scoring pass to put the Indians on top 22-21 after Harris’ extra point.

The Vikings bounced back, going 80 yards on 11 plays to regain the lead at 27-22 on Prochak’s 3-yard TD pass to Joseph Grommer with 2:56 left to play. On the drive, Markus Robinson’s halfback option pass to Scott Harward and a 15-yard personal foul penalty moved the Vikings to the Indians’ 15.

Tate’s kickoff return gave the Indians possession at the Vikings’ 15. Good dropped a touchdown pass on first down and two short runs by Hemphill set up a fourth-and-2 at the 7. Long rolled out and fired a pass that was intercepted by Spartanburg’s Boyce Bivings with under two minutes to play.

The interception prompted many bone-chilled Gaffney fans to start for the exits and to miss the fantastic finish.

Leading 14-12 at the half, the Vikings extended their advantage to 21-12 on their opening drive of the third quarter on Prochak’s 23-yard pass to Cameron Anderson.

The Indians answered with a Justin Harris 22-yard field goal that sliced the deficit to 21-15 with 3:46 left in the third quarter.

The Vikings then moved into field goal range but normally reliable Derrick Cupstid missed a 23-yarder.

Dechard Byrd staked the Vikings to a 7-6 on a 15-yard run in the first quarter. The Vikings went up 14-6 on Anderson’s 27-yard TD reception midway through the second quarter.

Hemphill closed out the first-half scoring with a 5-yard run to pull the Indians within 14-12. Both offenses had their way. Gaffney gained 235 yards on the ground and 199 through the air. The Vikings had 273 passing yards and 78 rushing.

Smoke signals ... Friday’s game brought back memories of last year’s bitter playoff loss at Rock Hill. Although the game didn’t have as many twists, the Indians seemed to have the game wrapped up until a late fumble changed the Indians’ fortunes.