Celebrating 40 years serving the greater Springfield community.

The Springfield Connection                           October 8 - 14, 1998

Single wing flies through Lee
by Brian Trutt, The Connection
     As Lee quarterback Sean Dunn came to his feet after being sacked with no time left on the clock, he epitomized the whole Lancer football team --- which has just been knocked out by a full does of the Park View single-wing offense.
     In the battle of undeated teams in the Liberty district, the Patriots' offense wore down the Lancers and won the game, 19 - 12, even after Lee had most of the game played in Springfield.
     Early in the first quarter, it seemed as if the Lancers had finally found the answer to the question of the single-wing offense. Park View (2-0 Liberty District, 5-0 overall) had a long, first drive to the Lee 9-yard line, but it couldn't score on that drive or the next, as Patriot running back Nelson Stickley gained 26-yards, but lost 13 on just one play.
     Meanwhile, Lee (2-1, 4-1)had its offense going. After a 24-yard field goal by Rob Collier with 10-minutes left in the second quarter gave Lee a 3-0 lead, omar Philmore returned a punt 85 yards for a touchdown at the 5:48 mark. Even with the missed extra point, the Lancers were up 9-0.
     Then the Patriots reached in and pulled some of their trickly plays out of their majic bag. Nick Smith gained 15-yards, Dustin Dudinski scampered for 21-yards, and Nelson Stickley capped off the successful drive by running up the middle for a 40-yard touchdown, cutting the lead to 9-6 with a little over three minutes left in the half.
     After being sacked twice, Dunn drove his offense with the help of running back Austin Ragans and Philmore on the last drive before halftime, ending with a 45-yard field goal with no time left. Ragans gained 94-yards in the first half as Lee led, 12-6.
     "The offensive line dida great job," said Ragans. "They're going to create the holes, and I'm going to get the yards.
     After halftime, ParkView came out pounding the ball. On the second play of the second half, Stickley went around the right for 44-yards. After runs by Smith and a pass to Joe Larson, Stickley powered up the middle for a 2-yard touchdown. After the extra point by lucas Cook, the Patriots led, 13-12 with 7:01 left in the thirdquarter.
     Park View's physical play seemed to wear down Lee. On the Patriots' first drive of the fourth quarter, Stickley rushed seven straight times, and gained 37-yards on the drive which ended with a 4-yard run around the right side by Smith for a touchdown.
     Lee had a chance at the end when Ragans recovered a Smith fumble, but Dudinski caught an interception thrown right to him by Dunn. lee had one more try with just seconds to go, but by then, the Lancer offensive line had run out of juice and the Patriot linemen were still thirsty.
     With no time left, Lanson mauled Dunn for the second time, but this time Dunn stayed down as the Patriots celebrated the victory.
     "We had a lot more players going both ways then they did and it wore us down," said Ragans.
     "I don't think anybody's really stopping us," said Park View coach Mickey Thomp[son. "We made mistakes. In this offense, when you get in a hole, it gets a little tough. I told [the team] the difference for this one would be defense."
     Lee coachJoe Muskett felt his team played well against one of this season's most surprising teams.
     "I think they realized tonight they are a good football team," said Muskett. "This is trulythe first hard-nosed, good, balanced football team [we're played] because they can throw as well as they can run. We'll be better for it in the long run.

| about Lee |  Studies | Bragging | Calendar | Daily Bulletin | Directories |
 | Events | Lance | Resource Centers | Registration | Activities | Sports |

"Helping build student leaders today. Community leaders for tomorrow."

brought to you by the Lancer Athletic Boosters

 If you would like to collect and prepare information on activities your child is involved in at Lee please let us know, we have a lot to brag about!  If you have any comments, suggestion, or questions about the "unofficial" Robert E. Lee High School Web site, please send them to:  lee_lancers@hotmail.com