Northeast rallies to beat Itawamba 20-14
Sep. 21—BOONEVILLE — Despite two costly turnovers in the first half, Justin Kowalak and the Northeast Mississippi Community College Tigers were able to find a way.
The Tigers erased a 14-point deficit and beat the Itawamba Community College Indians 20-14 on Thursday night at Tiger Stadium.
"I've got to give all glory to God," Kowalak said. "None of this would be possible without him."
Northeast (3-0, 1-0) rallied after going down two scores, but still trailed by two early in the fourth quarter.
Facing 2nd and 8 at the ICC 47-yard-line with under nine minutes left, Kowalak found Wesley Corbitt on a deep route down the right side.
Despite tight man coverage on the play, Kowalak was able to put the pass in just the right spot for his receiver. Corbitt then broke loose and put the Tigers ahead for the first time all night.
"We were talking about it on the sideline," he said. "Talking about that exact play and, luckily, we were able to hit on it."
The Indians were able to get the ball back at their own 35 with 1:53 left in the game. Six plays into the drive, Indians quarterback Ty Davis threw a deep ball that was picked off by Mykel Randall, allowing the Tigers to run out the clock and remain undefeated.
Though Itawamba put up 14 points, Northeast kept its offense from scoring. It also forced four turnovers of its own.
Tigers coach Greg Davis felt that the defense, which has allowed just 10 points all season, was most responsible for turning the tide.
"We were able to shut them down in the second half once we figured out what they were doing and made adjustments at halftime," he said. "Great job by the defensive staff."
In the first half, Kowalak had a ball stripped away and returned for a touchdown. Two drives later, he threw an interception that was taken to the house, putting the Tigers behind 14-0 early in the second quarter.
Kowalak bounced back before halftime, finding Kylen Vaughn for a touchdown. Though the PAT missed, it was now 14-6 at the break.
With 4:48 left in the third quarter, Jayden Robinson made it a two-point game with a touchdown run. Itawamba (0-3, 0-1) stifled the Tigers on the two-point conversion to keep them from tying the game.
Itawamba hosts Northwest Mississippi next Thursday while Northeast hosts Mississippi Delta.
