Orchard Lake St. Mary's vs. Grand Ledge

Grand Ledge - Another one of those circled contests when the schedules came out earlier this summer, this game didn't quite live up to its billing. Orchard Lake St. Mary's seemed if they had the ball the entire game. The Eaglet's first drive consumed almost 9 minutes filled with power football right at the heart of the Grand Ledge defense. The Comets couldn't contain it, so OLSM went to the well over and over again, wearing down the Comet front.

With 3:11 remaining in the opening quarter the Eaglets finally put a stamp on their first drive taking the early lead 7 - 0. The drive wasn't flashy but it was disciplined and it got the job done. QB Justin Siller went to the air just enough times to keep the Grand Ledge defense honest. It was the running game however, with a stable of replenish able backs to do all the dirty work.

As easy as it was for OLSM to find open spaces to roam, it was the polar opposite when GL had the ball. The Comets had some good offensive sets and a good game plan but the speed of Orchard Lake to the ball eliminated the effectiveness of the quick passes and screens from Grand Ledge. Just when you thought a Comet had a lane, it was closed immediately. It took Grand Ledge a few possessions to collect their first, first down. The Eaglet defense was in total control early on.

Orchard Lake struck again with just 4 seconds gone in the 2nd quarter on a 3 yard run from RB Blair Hollis. The score came after another punishing drive by the Eaglets that just ran the Comet defense into remission. Grand Ledge was meeting Orchard Lake at the point of attack but they had to contend with a few speedy playmakers that had the moves to stop on a dime and switch direction at the drop of a hat.

Box Score

		1Q	2Q	3Q	4Q	OT	Final

(2 - 0)	OLSM	7	21	7	0	0	35
(0 - 2)	Grand Ledge	0	0	0	7	0	7

Scoring Summary

1st Quarter

3:11	Mitchell 6 Yd TD Run Graham E.P. Good	7	0


2nd Quarter

11:56	Hollis 3 Yd TD Run Graham E.P. Good	14	0
1:03	Hollis 14 Yd TD Catch From Siller Graham E.P. Good	21	0
:07	Mitchell 3 Yd TD Run Graham E.P. Good	28	0


3rd Quarter

2:08	Melnick 3 Yd TD Run Graham E.P. Good	35	0


4th Quarter

:14	Oswill 4 Yd TD Catch From Kissane #40 E.P. Good	35	7

After another Grand Ledge punt in the second quarter, Orchard Lake put together their 1st half knockout blow. A grueling, disheartening drive that ate time off of the clock and wore down the Grand Ledge defense. As the drive went on, the lanes got a little wider. With just over a minute remaining in the 2nd, Hollis scored again. This time on a dump pass from Siller who was on the run and receiving pressure from the backside. The Comets had good pursuit but just could not get to Siller in time. The score put the Eaglets up by 3 TDs and with the way that their defense was playing, that might have been two TDs more than they needed.

Grand Ledge, with just under a minute remaining in the 2nd half started to putt ogether their best drive of the ball game. Time was of the essence but the Comets had a few timeouts remaining. Getting near the red-zone, Grand Ledge had a nice screen pass called. QB Scott Normandin dropped back and then lofted the ball in the area of the receiver. DB Chris Mitchell, unfortunately for the Comets saw it before the receiver did and made a break on the ball and took it for himself in full stride. 72 yards later, it was 1st and goal and the Eaglets were just moments away from going up 4 scores. It was a back breaker. If Grand Ledge could have scored, they would have taken some momentum into halftime, coupled with the fact that they received the ball to open the 2nd half. Instead Mitchell punched it in from 3 yards out and left just 7 ticks on the clock before the intermission. Down 28 - 0 at the break it was going to take a minor miracle to pull this one out for the Comets.

The 2nd half was more of the same but slower and even more grueling with the Eaglet Offense moving the ball small chunks at a time. The yardage for Grand Ledge was just as hard to come by. With 2:08 remaining in the third quarter RB Robert Melnick finished the scoring for OLSM. Grand Ledge saw spurts of offense and were successful on several plays but could not string together enough during one drive to put it into the end zone in the first three quarters. The final quarter saw a lot of substitutions. OLSM still have shutout on their minds. The Comets went back to the quick hitters through the air and started to find much more real estate against a defense missing a few starters. Grand Ledge itself was operating with several players not in the normal starting role. QB Nick Kissane did a great job of leading the troops in clean-up time. With 14 seconds remaining in the game, the Comets never said quit. On fourth and goal, the Sophomore backup hit WR Aaron Oswill for a nice little hook pattern in the middle of the zone, just past the goal line. They had gotten on the scoreboard, just too little too late.

Grand Ledge had nothing to be ashamed on this night, Orchard Lake St. Mary's put a team on the field that featured one of the best collections of talent if not the' best collection of talent in the state. Among the Eaglets were Florida State bound Dionte Allen, Ohio State bound Taurian Washington and Indiana bound Justin Siller just to name a few headliners. I am sure no one will be surprised to see this team playing Thanksgiving weekend. Grand Ledge on the other hand must regroup quickly. The Comets will need to win 6 out of their next 7 games to qualify for the post-season. That will be no easy chore with the Capital Area conference foes waiting in the wings. It may sound like a great mountain to climb but the Comets have the talent to do it, especially in a wide open Capital Area 1. The playoffs, the conference title are both still on the table. The meat of Grand Ledge's schedule will not come until late September. Okemos comes to town next week in the conference opener. The Chiefs will have a chip on their shoulders as well after losing their first two contests. Orchard Lake heads out of state next week to face St. Francis in Toledo.

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