STORY BY: JORDAN MESEROLE
MONTGOMERY — For three quarters, it appeared as if the Rudder Rangers would end their 2012 season on a high note and upend the second place team in the District 18-4A.
And then the Montgomery Bears opened up on costly Rudder mistakes, pulling away in the fourth quarter to seal a 28-14 victory on Friday night.
Sophomore running back Paul Allen racked up 100 rushing yards in the second half alone to help Montgomery (6-3, 6-1 District 18-4A) pull away from Rudder (3-7, 3-5) in the final minutes of the fourth quarter, just mere moments after Rudder had tied the game at 14.
The Bears went up early and first in the game in exciting fashion, as sophomore quarterback Josh Bolfing connected on a 49-yard touchdown pass to sophomore wide receiver Kendre Howard to go up 7-0 with just 4:07 left in the first quarter.
Bolfing would increase the lead to 14-0 with 0:14 left in the first quarter, connecting on a 20-yard pass to senior wide receiver Bodhi Bell. Bolfing finished the night with 193 passing yards on 12-21 passing and the two scores.
The Rudder defense would step up in the second quarter however, forcing two consecutive three-and-outs against the Bears, giving the Rudder offense the time it needed to start clicking.
With 1:55 left before halftime, Rudder senior running back Tre Guyton scrambled in practically untouched from 13-yards out to cut the score to 14-7. Guyton finished the night with 110 rushing yards, the ninth game this season that he eclipsed the 100-yard rushing mark, and pushed his overall season total past 1,500 yards.
The Rudder defense continued to hold strong in the third quarter, forcing three more punts and creating a fumble situation, often pinning the Bears way back in their own territory.
The excitement picked up with 8:34 left in the game, when Rudder senior quarterback Llelwyn Boswell connected on a 50-yard touchdown pass with senior wide receiver Isiah Johnson, tying the score at 14-14 in the fourth quarter.
And that’s as close as Rudder would get.
Two plays later for the Bears, Bolfing completed a 70-yard touchdown pass to Bell to push the lead back to one touchdown at 21-14.
After getting the ball back from Rudder, which went three-and-out on their next drive, Montgomery pushed the lead further on a 54-yard touchdown run by Allen, who dashed up the middle of the field practically untouched into the end zone after the Bears had run nearly three minutes off the clock during the drive.
The game was the final matchup for Rudder on the season, while the playoff bound Bears round out their season next week against Magnolia.