West Ottawa football edges Jenison, playoffs still possible
PARK TWP. - After coming into the 2022 season on a 26-game losing streak, the West Ottawa varsity football team was just looking to make some progress in a positive direction this year.
The Panthers did just that, as Allen Payne, Jr. caught an 11-yard touchdown pass from Cole Tulgestke with 5:10 remaining in the game and Damian Fernandez intercepted a tipped pass with just over a minute to play to help West Ottawa cap off a 4-5 (2-5 OK Red) regular season with a come-from-behind 13-10 win over Jenison on Friday night in their home finale.
"Man, that felt so great," Fernandez said of his game-clinching interception. "That was my first varsity interception and this was probably the greatest game of my whole entire football career. I'm just happy to be out here playing with my boys one last time. (This win) was like a weight off our shoulders. I'm proud of our guys and the way our defense played tonight. Hopefully we don't end the season with this, but if we do, at least we ended it with a 'W.' We ended on a good note and I'm just proud of all the accomplishments we've made this year."
With the win, West Ottawa gave itself a shot at sneaking into the Division 1 playoffs. The Panthers came into the game sitting at No. 35 in playoff points. The top 32 teams in each division advance to the MHSAA playoffs.
"We like to keep people on the edge of their seats," West Ottawa coach Pat Collins said. "We had a similar game against East Kentwood (two weeks ago) where I didn't think we finished some of our opportunities, but tonight we had some opportunities where I felt like in the end we did finish. We gave up opportunities and plays, but we also caused turnovers and capitalized on those turnovers when we needed to. It was a boxing match. It was just blow for blow, back and forth. Neither team was looking phenomenal, but we were both battling hard. We got the last punch in at the end and knocked them out."
West Ottawa's defense forced six turnovers on the night (four fumbles and two interceptions).
Jenison started out the scoring with a 30-yard field goal from Owen Snyder at the 7:49 mark of the first quarter. West Ottawa answered back just before halftime, as quarterback Cole Tulgestke found a falling down Evan Janetzke for a 38-yard pass on 3rd-and-20 to move the Panthers down to Jenison's 32-yard line. Four plays later, Tulgestke fired a 15-yard touchdown strike to Allen Payne, Jr. in the back of the end zone to cap off a 7-play, 60-yard drive. Theo Borgman drilled the extra point to make it 7-3 West Ottawa with 1:02 left before halftime.
The Panthers looked as if they would extend their lead on the first drive of the second half, but Tulgestke's pass on 4th-and-goal from the 4-yard line was tipped at the goal line and intercepted by Jenison's Trevor Martens. Martens returned the ball 80 yards to the West Ottawa 20. Zaiden Chirco scored on a 7-yard touchdown run five plays later to put Jenison back in front at 10-7 with 4:48 to go in the third quarter.
West Ottawa had trouble moving the ball for most of the game and they were forced to punt with under nine minutes left to play. The Panthers caught a huge break though when Jenison's Landon Mueller had Tyler Berens' punt go through his hands, with Ruben Esparza recovering the ball on the Jenison 49-yard line with 8:34 to go in the fourth quarter. Tulgestke ran for 7 and 10 yards, while Esparza had runs of 7, 8, 3, 4, and -1 to set up Tulgestke's pivotal throw across the field to Payne, Jr. in the left corner of the end zone to give the Panthers what turned out to be the game-winning touchdown.
"It felt like somebody had to step up (tonight) and I was the person to do it," Payne Jr. said. "Our line was making great blocks overall and Cole threw a great ball both (touchdowns). (On the second touchdown catch) I saw the crease in-between the defense, so I felt like I could make a move and get in-between them. I had a lot of faith in the defense to shut them down at the end and Damian is one of our best cornerbacks. We're trying to motivate all of these younger kids (watching tonight) to be like us or be even better. They gave me a whole lot of energy to help me play even harder. It's been a great season."
Collins couldn't say enough about the way his team finished the regular season.
"I was extremely proud of our guys and the way they responded (after falling behind late in the game)," Collins said. "They just held on and kept fighting. The defense was unbelievable and they have been all year for us. These guys had a goal to win game one and make the playoffs. They wanted to build the program and win for all of the players who came before them and those who will come after them. We have high expectations and we'll keep working our brains out for these kids and the community to see where this thing can go. We'd love an opportunity to get a ticket into the playoffs.
"It was great for our program to get a win for the seniors."
Tulgestke completed 17-of-28 passes for 155 yards, with two touchdowns and an interception for West Ottawa. Janetzke had four receptions for 62 yards, while Payne Jr. added seven catches for 42 yards and the two Panther touchdowns.
Esparza rushed for 38 yards, while Tulgestke chipped in 32 on the ground.
Fernandez and Juan Gomez had interceptions for West Ottawa. Jake Sonderman, Fernandez, Esparza, and Julien Chavez all recovered fumbles for West Ottawa.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: West Ottawa football edges Jenison, playoffs still possible
