After a hard-hitting defensive first half, Laurel's seniors tried to inspire their teammates at halftime to win their last home game against an imposing DuVal Tigers squad.
Although the Spartans were in Tigers territory several times in the second half, Laurel just could not string together enough plays to score late in the game, losing 19-0 in their homecoming game to drop to 2-7 on the season.
The game had been rescheduled to Monday, Oct. 31 after a snow-and-rain storm drove through Laurel on Saturday.
The Spartans stalled to a slow start in the first half and were not able to stop the Tigers on a late first-half drive. While both defenses played well in the first half, DuVal was able to convert on a fourth down inside the Spartans 20-yard line with less than 30 seconds remaining. Two plays later, the Tigers scored on a wide-receiver reverse on the final play of the half to take a 13-0 lead at halftime.
"In the first half, we didn't come out as strong as we usually do," said senior wide-receiver Tyler Harmon. "In the second half — we had a talk at halftime in the locker room — and we all came out with the heart we needed."
The Spartans seemed to get things rolling in the second half when quarterback Jarvis McClam started a fourth-quarter drive from Laurel's own 40-yard line. After a 23-yard pass to Markus Byrd, the Spartans offense finally seemed to be clicking inside DuVal territory. However, two plays later, McClam threw an interception at the goal line.
The Spartans defense held the Tigers to a three-and-out on their next drive, and when the Spartans got the ball back deep in their own territory, the offense seemed desperate for points and a win. McClam hit Joel Roberson for 20 yards on a screen pass, and on the next play, McClam completed a 10-yard pass to John Ketum.
In the next play, the longest of the game for the Spartans, McClam hit a wide-open Harmon for 30 yards. Harmon was then tripped up just barely inside the DuVal 20-yard line. In the next play, however, McClam threw his second interception of the half at the goal line.
"It's always that one little thing with teams that are trying to come back up to the winning side of the game," said first-year Spartans head coach Todd Sommerville. "We always have one play or one mistake that keeps us down."
After forcing the Tigers to another three-and-out, Laurel was able to drive to the DuVal 35-yard line. But the Spartans again came up short, as they could not penetrate the Tigers defense for a score.
DuVal sealed the Spartans' fate on their next drive with a crushing 55-yard touchdown run to extend their lead to 19-0. Despite another drive deep into DuVal territory, the Spartans could not get the ball in the end zone.
"I think the second half was a totally different ball game," said Sommerville. "The kids found their hearts, we played hard, with emotion; and we played to win the game in the second half against a team that is fighting for a playoff spot."
In addition to the rescheduled game, Laurel's homecoming week included Blue and Gold Day on Friday along with a pep rally, where the students celebrated the Spartan football team.
"Our main focus this week was no mental mistakes, and come out hard and play with heart," Harmon said. "We wanted to come out today as a team and play with heart for the last time at home. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get it done today."
The Spartans finish out their season at Flowers Saturday, Nov. 5, at 2 p.m.