Gatlinburg Pitttman got 229 rushing yards and two touchdowns from Matthew Pittser and Corey Jenkins scored one TD receiving and one on the ground to lead the Highlanders to a 26-14 vicotry.
The Panthers were able to move the ball using short a short passing game in the first half. But Gatlinburg stopped the run and the wet conditions made throwing deep a futile proposition.
“They made sure that we weren’t going to be able to run the football,” said Panther coach Neal Pucciarelli. “We had to complete passes and when it’s wet it’s hard to throw the football and they did a good job of defending us.”
Two big plays turned the tide in the Highlanders’ favor. First Jenkins came free out of the backfield on a play-action pass and took a wheel rout down the sideline for a 67-yard touchdown pass from Tye Marshall.
Marshall was starting for Taylor Ogle, who broke his hand in last week’s game.
Pittser’s extra point put the Highlanders up 7-0.
A holding penalty helped to put and end to a long Panther drive that stretched into the second quarter.
Pittnser tood a hand-off, broke a tackle and went 80-yards down the sideline for a touchdown on Gatlinburg’s first play of the next drive.
An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on the Panther sideline led to another Gatlinburg score. The penalty gave them a first down at the Panther 33. Pittser ran 29-yards on the very next play and then Jenkins plunged in from the four as the Highlander took a 20-0 lead into the half.
Pucciarelli had called a time out to speak to the officials about holding and chop-blocking that he felt weren’t being called on the Gatlinburg offense. An assitant coach said something to an offical at the end of the timeout to draw the unsportsmanlike conduct call.
“We said something that we shouldn’t have and we deserved the unsportsmanlike penalty,” Pucciarelli said. “I was trying to get our kids a break — We needed a few breaks to stay in the game. I was really more concerned about the safety of our kids versus getting a call.”
Cumberland Gap got back into the game in the second half.
After the teams traded possessions, Jeremy Jones took a screen pass over the middle 36 yards to the Gatlinburg 25. One play later Ryan Shipley lofted a 25-yard touchdown pass to Whitt Willis on a post pattern. Gustavo Barros’ extra point cut the lead to 20-7.
A long Highlander drive took up the rest of the quarter and Gatlinburg had a 1st & goal at the ten. But the defense held as Willis blitzed from the edge and cut Pittser down behind the line of scrimmage on second down.
Shipley anticipated the snap count on 4th & goal and knocked Marshall for a six-yard loss just after he took the snap and the Panthers took over at their own 17.
CGHS was driving and looking to make it a one-score game.
Shipley, who completed 27-of-60 passes for 292 yards, conected with Byron Johnson for a pair of first downs as the Panthers moved in to Gatlinburg territory.
He tried to go deep for Willis, but the ball sailed high and was intercepted by Pierce McCarter who returned it 38 yards to the Panther 45.
Pittser again broke free and went 45 yards for a score to put Gatlinburg up 26-7.
“Pittser’s a great player and he always brings his A-game,” Pucciarelli said. “He deserves all the publicicy he gets. He kicks, he runs, he blocks, he tackles. He’s probably the most complete player in our region.”
The Panthers answered as Shipley hooked up with Willis on a 43-yard pass play to cut the lead to 26-14.
Willis had an outstanding all-around game in his own right as the caught five passes for 82 yards and the two TDs and had five tackles on the defensive end consistently bringing pressure from the outside.
“We kept fighting the whole game, we kept fighting and scratching, but we just weren’t consistent enought on offense to put everything together,” Pucciarelli said. “Whitt played great. I think (Friday) was probably his best night as all-around football player.”
Hunter Hassler led the Panthers with 10 tackles and Ryan Shipley and Jon Shipley were in on nine stops each.
Cumberland Gap got the ball back late in the game, but McCarter came away with another interception to seal the win for Gatlinburg.
CGHS (6-3, 3-2 region) will wrap up their regular season Thursday at West Greene.
Gatlinburg (9-1, 5-1) has a bye this week and will be the #2 seed for the playoffs.
The loss knock Cumberland Gap from possibly taking first place in the region all the way down to fourth place. They’ll need to win at West Greene to ensure themselves of a playoff spot.
“From where we were first of the season, a lot of people didn’t give us a shot at a winning record — now we’re a game away from hopefully being 7-3,” Pucciarelli said. “I think when the season’s over these kids will be real proud of what they’ve accomplished. I know I’m real proud of them.”
Stats
Gatlinburg 26, Cumberland Gap 14
Gatlinburg Pittman 7 13 0 6 — 26
Cumberland Gap 0 0 7 7 — 14
GP — Corey Jenkins 67 pass from Tye Marshall (Matthew Pittser kick)
GP — Pittser 80 run (kick fail)
GP — Jenkins 4 run (Pittser kick)
CG — Whitt Willis 25 pass from Ryan Shipley (Gustavo Barros kick)
GP — Pittser 45 run (kick fail)
CG — Willis 43 pass from Shipley (Barros kick)
GP CG
First Downs 9 16
Total Yards 332 322
Rushes-Yards 37-248 16-30
Passing Yards 84 292
Comp-Att-Int 3-8-0 27-60-2
Punts-Avg 6-32.6 5-33
Fumbles-Lost 1-0 3-1
Penalties-Yards 5-55 6-50
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
PASSING — Cumberland Gap: Ryan Shipley 27-60-2-292; Gatlinburg: Tye Marshall 3-7-0-84, Matthew Pittser 0-1-0-0
RUSHING — Cumberland Gap: Shipley 11-22, Whitt Willis 1-5, Jeremy Jones 3-3, Sean Frost 1-0; Gatlinburg: Pittser 21-229, Corey Jenkins 7-18.
RECEIVING — Cumberland Gap: Ryan Warren 7-61, Jones 6-86, Willis 5-82, Byron Johnson 4-37, Seth Sharp 2-13, Adam Smith 1-8, Brandon Stoudt 1-7, Frost 1-(-2); Gatlinburg: Jenkins 2-75.
CG receiver Byron Johnson hauls in a catch over the middle during Friday’s game with Gatlinburg Pittman. The Highlanders got touchdown runs of 80 and 45 yards from Matt Pittser as they defeated the Panthers 26-14. Panther quarterback Ryan Shipley completed 27-of-60 passes for 292 yards and touchdowns of 25 and 43 yards to Whitt Willis.
(JAY COMPTON/Middlesboro Daily News)
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