Rutland
Thrust into an increased roll after best friend and fellow back Trevor Worrall left with a knee injury during the first series, Tucker scored two dramatic touchdowns for the Yellowjackets — the first as time expired in the first half, the second in overtime — as Windsor rallied for a 13-7 win over rival Woodstock in the D-III final on Saturday at Rutland High School.
It completed the second straight perfect season for the Jacks (9-0), who also beat Woodstock on an overtime Tucker rush three weeks ago to secure the No. 1 seed.
In sunny but frigid conditions, the teams’ offenses combined for just 276 yards and 12 first downs. They also combined for 11 punts and turned the ball over on downs three times, and both lost a pair of fumbles.
Tucker led all players with 94 all-purpose yards, dedicating his performance to Worrall, who left with a knee injury after carrying four times for 22 yards during Windsor’s opening drive. One of Woodstock’s top backs, Patrick Potter, also left the game with a knee injury in the second quarter.
“I played the rest of the game for Worrall. I love him. It really hurt me not to have him out there with us,” said Tucker, whose three receptions for 50 yards exceeded his production on the ground. “We all were playing for him. When he went down, we all said we had to go 110 percent for him.”
Worrall had missed half of last season with a knee injury but returned to accumulate 494 rushing yards and four touchdowns for Windsor heading into Saturday. He also had 179 yards and a score receiving.
“It changed our game plan a lot when Trevor went down, because he does so many things for us and has such a high football IQ,” said Windsor coach Greg Balch. “Jake did an incredible job shouldering the load.”
The teams’ sturdy defensive lines dominated much of the first half, the lone promising drive coming on Windsor’s first possession. The Yellowjackets marched to the Woodstock 36-yard line and appeared to get inside the 10 on QB Seth Balch’s keeper, but the play was whistled for a block in the back and the drive stalled from there.
The Wasps (8-2) broke through after a short Windsor punt into the wind set them up at the Jacks’ 34-yard line 1:53 before halftime. Woodstock QB Trevor White found Reiner Brown for 22 yards for the sophomore thrower’s only completion of the day to make it first-and-goal, and two plays later burly Caden White plunged in a 1-yard score with 53.7 seconds left. Jed Astbury’s extra point made it 7-0.
It appeared the Wasps would be bringing all of the game’s momentum to the locker room, but Windsor answered heroically.
Seth Balch carried the team during an urgent last-minute drive, scrambling for 12 yards before hitting freshman Chase Christiansen with a dagger on the sideline for 19. One play later, Balch connected with Tucker for a 35-yard catch-and-run to the Woodstock 7 with 7.9 seconds left, and a 4-yard dash to the 3 by Balch and a quick timeout gave the Yellowjackets one more crack at the end zone with 0.9 seconds to play.
Tucker took it to the left side and dove in for the score, Robert Slocum hitting the PAT to make 7-7 at the break.
“It’s always tough to give up a touchdown in the last minute of the half, but we responded,” said Seth Balch, also the starting QB during last season’s perfect run. “I attribute that drive a lot to the chemistry that this team has. A lot of us have been playing football together since we were 8 years old. On that (35-yard completion) to Tucker, I knew where he was going to be, and he knew where I was going with it.”
The teams’ offenses combined for four punts and a lost fumble in the third quarter, the turnover coming on Woodstock’s first possession when the Jacks’ Wyatt Bean recovered a dropped handoff.
Windsor coughed it back to the Wasps twice in the fourth quarter, but Woodstock couldn’t take advantage despite recovering near midfield both times.
“It was a mirror of the first time we played (Oct. 21 in Windsor),” said Wasps coach Ramsey Worrell. “You knew it was going to come down to a play or two, because neither team could do much of anything with it. They had a couple fumbles late, but Potter being out was a big injury and we just couldn’t get it going.”
Windsor had the first possession in the overtime and tried to get Woodstock to jump with a hard count on first down. When it didn’t work, the backup play was a sweep to the right side for Tucker. Much like he did for last month’s OT winner on a reverse, the senior angled to the corner for the score. Slocum’s PAT sailed wide left to keep it 13-7.
“I actually thought (Woodstock) was going to jump; that was the plan,” Greg Balch said. “The (players) called that backup play. I thought it was a good play, but I didn’t think it was going to score.”
Needing a touchdown to tie, Jed Astbury and Caden White gained two yards each for the Wasps to set up third down from the 6. Trevor White rolled to the right and threw to Harrison Nunes, but Dakota Page stepped in front of the throw for an interception to seal it.
“It took a second to process what had just happened when I caught it,” Page said. “It’s just a huge win for our program and our community.”
Extra Points: It was Windsor’s first title-game win over Woodstock after Wasps’ wins in 2001 and 2011. … Windsor captured a championship for the fourth time since the VPA began awarding state titles, one year after their undefeated season in 1969. … Only one punt was returned as coaches on both sides shouted, “Poison!” to command their players stay away from bouncing balls in cold conditions, lest risking a turnover. … Including penalties, Windsor’s offense gained just 149 yards and Woodstock 127.
Jared Pendak can be reached at jpendak@vnews.com or 603-727-3225.