Fourth quarter stop helps Boyle County hold off Lexington Christian in a thriller
For 48 minutes Boyle County and Lexington Christian traded big play for big play and momentum swing for momentum swing in front of a standing-room only crowd at Rebel Stadium.
But the hosts came up with the two most fateful moments of the game during the fourth quarter of their 47-38 Rebel Bowl win over the Eagles on Saturday night.
Clinging to a 34-31 lead with 3:09 left, Class 4A No. 1 Boyle kept LCA quarterback Cutter Boley from gaining the required 1 yard on a fourth down at the Rebels’ 25-yard line by a few lengths of chain.
Twelve seconds later, Boyle’s Montavin Quisenberry stood in the end zone after bursting through the right side of the defensive line and up the sideline for a 75-yard touchdown run to extend the Rebel’s lead back to nine at 40-31.
Each team squeezed in another touchdown over the final two minutes, but Boyle’s stop and Quisenberry’s pop provided the cushion the Rebels needed.
“We knew it was going to be tough. They’re very good on defense, good on offense,” Quisenberry said. “We just had to battle with them all 48 minutes. … We’ve got to be ready every snap, and I think we did pretty good today.”
Quisenberry, a dynamic junior with college offers including Kentucky and Michigan, rushed for 118 yards and three touchdowns, but he lost out on the Rebel Bowl’s most valuable player honors to his new teammate and fellow junior Demauriah Brown, who made his Boyle County debut in style.
Brown, a transfer from Danville, picked off Boley as LCA made its first drive down the field, which helped set up the Rebels’ first touchdown of the game, a 45-yard pass from Avery Bodner to Sage Dawson.
When LCA answered a few moments later with Brady Hensley’s game-tying, 52-yard touchdown run, Brown responded with an 86-yard kickoff return to put the Rebels back in front.
“I knew when I hit the stutter and space opened up, I was headed to the end zone,” Brown said.
Brown finished with 188 all-purpose yards and two interceptions.
“I wanted to make sure I came out and helped the team out and win,” Brown said. “It’s a dream come true.”
Like LCA’s dramatic 56-52 win over Bowling Green last Saturday, this week’s contest looked to be another offensive showcase with each team scoring two touchdowns in the first 10 minutes .
LCA seized some momentum late in the first quarter by kicking and recovering an onside kick on Boyle’s 40-yard line. But the Eagles’ offense stalled in the red zone, forcing a Will Howell 24-yard field goal to put LCA up 17-14 early in the second quarter.
Bodner’s 16-yard TD run on Boyle’s next drive was countered by a Boley TD sneak for a 24-21 LCA lead with 3:03 left until halftime.
LCA then forced the first punt of the game and mounted a 13-play drive over the final few minutes, only to have a last-second Boley pass get picked off near the end zone by Brown as time expired.
“I felt like we lost some opportunities in the first half. We dominated the first half,” LCA Coach Doug Charles said. “We had 17 first downs to three and only led by three at halftime. We fought poor field position all third quarter, but our guys never quit.”
Boyle’s defense made adjustments to limit LCA’s offense early in the third quarter, and the Rebels overcame drive-ending turnovers on their first two second half drives by keeping the potent LCA offense from earning a first down on three straight possessions.
“Defense is what’s got to be your constant,” said Boyle Coach Justin Haddix, whose team suffered a stunning Rebel Bowl loss to LCA in 2021 but later went on to win the second of its three straight Class 4A titles. “Offense is going to be up and down, but your defense has got to make plays and we made plays in the second half on defense.”
After LCA’s second punt set Boyle up on the Eagles’ own 26-yard line, Boyle took a 27-24 lead on Quisenberry’s first touchdown of the game. LCA’s third punt, with its back to its own end zone, set up another Boyle TD drive capped by Bodner’s 9-yard score for a 34-24 lead late in the third. Bodner finished with 95 yards and two TDs rushing.
LCA, ranked as the Herald-Leader’s preseason No. 3 team in Class 2A, fought back in the fourth quarter as Boley connected with Saxton Howard on a 59-yard touchdown pass to cut the lead to 34-31 with 11:48 to play.
Later, the Eagles appeared to make a decisive fourth down stop by denying Boyle a first down at the LCA 19. But LCA’s ensuing drive ended with Boyle’s big defensive stand at the 25, which set up Quisenberry’s dagger on the next play.
Boley passed for 406 yards and three touchdowns, while LCA running back Brady Hensley rushed for 153 yards and a score. Saxton Howard and Parker Chaney had 218 and 153 receiving yards, respectively, and a touchdown each. Two of Boley’s three interceptions came on desperation plays at the end of each half. Neither figured much in the outcome.
“It was two good football teams. Our hat’s off to Boyle,” Charles said. “You know, I think the fans got their money’s worth.”
This story was originally published August 27, 2023 at 9:15 AM.
