Worth the wait: Panthers keep Cowbell after three-hour delay, TD in closing seconds

     For the third straight year, the Cowbell Trophy battle between the Monticello and Anamosa football teams came down to the closing seconds.

     And for the third straight year, the Monticello Panthers pulled out a dramatic victory.

     This time, it was Tyler Luensman catching a game-winning touchdown pass from Jeff Carlson with just 2.5 seconds left, giving the Panthers a 50-48 victory in a wild, lengthy contest Friday, Oct. 5 in Anamosa.

     The win keeps the Panthers in the hunt from a Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) standpoint. Monticello is now 2-1 in Class 2A, District 4, and 4-3 overall. Heading into the Anamosa game, the Panthers had an RPI ranking of 22, and with Monday’s latest list the Panthers are 20^th. They would likely need to be in the top 16 to qualify for the post-season.

     “We know we have to win out, so our kids are focused,” Monticello coach Wes Wilson said.

     It was a game that featured four touchdowns in the first 1:27 of play, two for each team. There were 55 total points in the first half alone, before rain and then a series of lightning flashes led to a three-hour delay before play could resume.

     It also featured 1,179 total yards between the teams, including 996 combined passing yards.

     Monticello struck first, as Tyler Luensman ran the opening kickoff 81 yards down the left side for the game’s first touchdown.

     Anamosa answered on its third play from scrimmage, a 40-yard scoring pass from Matthew Walton to Walker Marsh. The teams were tied 7-7, and only 36 seconds of game time had elapsed.

     The next two scores came almost as quickly. Carlson hit Lake Stahlberg over the middle on a play that turned into a 41-yard gain, and on the next play, Stahlberg ran in a 15-yard score. Anamosa ran a halfback pass that went for a 53-yard touchdown, Nolan McLean to Colton Borst.

     With 10:33 still left in just the first quarter, Anamosa led 14-13.

     “These games have been pretty wild the last three years,” Wilson said. “We both have pretty good offenses that have some players that can make big plays, and those players seemed to make big plays right away.”

     The Panthers scored on their next drive as well, going 75 yards in seven plays, and Carlson connecting with Justin Recker on a 13-yard score. Stahlberg ran in a two-point conversion, giving Monticello a 21-14 lead.

     There were three more touchdowns in the second quarter. Stahlberg scored on a three-yard run to cap a 78-yard drive. Anamosa marched 97 yards in 13 plays, scoring on a four-yard run by Nathan Dietiker.

     And the Panthers had a late-half response. Tony Wallerich intercepted an Anamosa pass and returned it 18 yards to the Anamosa 37 with 33.8 seconds left in the half. Monticello moved to the Anamosa 20, and from there Carlson found Devin Kraus in the right side of the end zone for a touchdown with 10.9 seconds left in the half.

     Monticello led 33-21 at halftime. Then the rain came, followed by the lightning. During a three-hour break, frequent lightning flashes caused the clock to repeatedly reset to 30 minutes, the required time that must elapse without lightning before play can resume.

     During the delay, athletic directors and coaches from both schools talked frequently about what to do. They discussed resuming the game another day, but options were limited because of Anamosa’s Pumpkinfest  and a marching band competition for Monticello on Saturday. Monday’s weather forecast looked as foreboding as many this fall. So the decision was made to wait, and hope the lighting ceased.

     When it finally did, after three hours, Anamosa quickly turned its 12-point deficit into a 35-33 lead. A score, a Panther turnover, and another score put the Blue Raiders ahead.

     “That delay was tough,” Wilson said. “We had a lot of momentum going into the half, and sitting on a bus for an hour and a half and then not restarting the game for nearly three hours took that momentum away. Anamosa came out and made the plays they needed.”

     The teams then traded leads for a while. Monticello ran a trick play of its own, with Stahlberg taking the snap and completing a 43-yard touchdown pass to Wallerich, for a 41-35 Panther lead. Carlson kicked a 21-yard field goal late in the third quarter to put Monticello ahead 44-35. That play was set up by a 21-yard gain by Wallerich on a fake punt.

     Anamosa then had the next two scores, a one-yard run by Walton and a 73-yard pass play, Walton to McLean, to take a 48-44 lead with 6:56 to play.

     When a turnover gave the Blue Raiders the ball on the Panthers’ 41 with 2:24 to play, it appeared the Cowbell might be regained by Anamosa. But the Panthers forced a three-and-out, burning two time-outs, and a short punt gave Monticello the ball on its 38 with 2:02 to play.

     “This is just a great group of guys who play together and believe in themselves,” Wilson said. “From the last couple of years, they knew if we could get a stop defensively, we could have a chance with our offense.”

     Carlson completed passes to Wallerich for seven yards and to Tyler Luensman to move the ball to the Anamosa 35 with 59 seconds left. After moving to the Anamosa 16, Carlson ran three yards on fourth-and-one to keep the drive alive.

     A spike, an incomplete pass, and a procedure penalty left the ball at the 18 with 9.4 seconds left, third-and-15.

     Carlson lofted a pass to the left side of the end zone, in the direction of both Tyler Luensman and Recker. Luensman cut in front of both Recker and a defender and came down with the ball, putting the Panthers ahead with 2.5 seconds left.

     “Tyler just stepped in front of Justin as he fell, and made a great play,” Wilson said. “He ran a great route, got separation and was in the right place at the right time.”

     Anamosa attempted to lateral to its side of the field on the kickoff, but the ball bounced out of bounds, sealing the Panther win.

     Carlson completed 27 of 28 passes for 403 yards and three touchdowns. Stahlberg had 93 rushing yards and 96 receiving yards. Wallerich caught six passes for 124 yards.

     Defensively, Wade Picray had six tackles, including three sacks. Stahlberg had nine tackles, Tyler Luensman had eight, and Wallerich had 7.5.

Oct. 5

Monti    21  12  11   6  – 50

Ana        14    7   14 13  – 48

SCORING SUMMARY

FIRST QUARTER

     Monti – T. Luensman 81 kickoff return (Carlson kick), 11:52 remaining.

     Ana – Marsh 30 pass from Walton (Tjaden kick), 11:24.

     Monti – Stahlberg 15 run (kick blocked), 10:55.

     Ana – Borst 53 pass from McLean (Tjaden kick), 10:33.

     Monti – Recker 13 pass from Carlson (Stahlberg run), 8:18.

SECOND QUARTER

     Monti – Stahlberg 3 run (run failed), 9:10.

     Ana – Dietiker 4 run (Tjaden kick), 4:40.

     Monti – Kraus 20 pass from Carlson (run failed), 0:10.0.

THIRD QUARTER

     Ana – Walton 27 run (Tjaden kick), 11:34.

     Ana – Walton 1 run (Tjaden kick), 10:03.

     Monti – Wallerich 43 pass from Stahlberg (Wallerich pass from Stahlberg), 8:43.

     Monti – Carlson 21 field goal, 0:12.6.

FOURTH QUARTER

     Ana – Walton 1 run (Tjaden kick), 9:22.

     Ana – McLean 73 pass from Walton (run failed), 6:65.

     Monti – T. Luensman 18 pass from Carlson (kick blocked), 0:02.5.

TEAM STATISTICS

                                Monti       Ana

First downs            19             20

Rushing yards      108           175

Passing yards       467           429

Comp.-att.-int   29-50-2    20-4-1

Total yards            575           604

Penalties               8-52          4-55

Fumbles lost           1                0

MONTICELLO STATISTICS

     Rushing – Stahlberg 26-93, Wallerich 1-21, Carlson 3 (-6).

     Passing – Carlson 27-48-403-3-2, Stahlberg 1-1-43-1-0, Wallerich 1-1-21-0-0.

     Receiving – Wallerich 6-124, Stahlberg 6-96, Recker 7-89, T. Luensman 4-80, Kraus 4-50, Barnhart 1-21, Bowser 1-7.

     Tackles – Stahlberg 9, T. Luensman 8, Wallerich 7.5, K. Luensman 6.5, Picray 6, Bowser 5.5, Folken 5.5, C. Luensman 4, Weber 3.5, Avery 3, Barnhart 3, Rieniets 2, Reuter 1.5, Blattner 1.

     Sacks – Picray 3, Stahlberg 0.5, Weber 0.5.

     Tackles-for-loss – Picray 3, Stahlberg 2.5, Bowser 1, C. Luensman 1, Weber 0.5.

     Interception – Wallerich.