MONUMENT – A year ago, Montrose had momentum in its game against Palmer Ridge, but like it was a busy campground, the Bears just saw what they wanted and snatched it right back.
Montrose learned a lesson and although the Bears once again sniffed around, momentum was locked away and out of reach in the second half.
Two scoring drives and two forced turnovers were the difference, giving Class 4A No. 4 Montrose all the momentum to get a 28-21 over Palmer Ridge at Don Breese Stadium.
“We talked about trying to not give them as much momentum,” Montrose coach Brett Mertens said. “To be honest, we gave them that momentum in the second quarter. We just wanted to take that back in the second half and fortunately we were able to put together a couple of long scoring drives.”
Drives long enough that Palmer Ridge quarterback Derek Hester only attempted three passes in the second half. One was incomplete, one was caught by TJ Mabe and one was intercepted by Hunter Duke.
Duke’s interception all but sealed the win for Montrose (6-0 overall, 1-0 4A Southern 1) but it was an interception he had earlier that set the tone. On the third play of the game, he picked off Hester and got the ball down to the Palmer Ridge one, where Austin Griffin scored the first of his two rushing touchdowns.
Hester put together a solid drive afterwards and found Ethan Twesme for a 25-yard touchdown pass to tie the game.
“Momentum is everything in a game like this,” Twesme said. “They just came out with more of it at the end. We tried our best and fought when we could.”
Fight is something the Bears (5-1, 0-1) haven’t needed a whole lot of this season. They edged out Mesa Ridge 30-27 back on Sept. 2, but have handled every other opponent to date.
But after falling behind 7-0, they fought. With Montrose having 1st and goal and the Palmer Ridge one, Griffin fumbled the ball and Twesme pounced on it to keep Montrose out of the end zone.
Through the course of the second quarter, Hester threw touchdown passes to Anthony Costanzo and Ayden Snow to put the Bears up 21-14.
“Our goal is just to focus on the play at hand,” Palmer Ridge coach Mike Armentrout said. “For our guys, it’s important that we don’t dwell too much on things we can’t control.”
That’s the mentality that got them the lead. The lack of chances, and one costly mistake in the second half, is why they couldn’t lock up the win.
An untimely fumble by Connor Cook out the ball back into Montrose’s hands and the mission was simple: pound the rock.
Griffin finished his night with 82 rushing yards while Ethan Hartman added 76 and quarterback Gage Wareham added 64. Griffin and Hartman each scored two touchdowns, Griffin getting the game-winner on a one-yard run on 4th and goal.
“I’m proud of the kids for believing in themselves and believing in the team,” Mertens said. “We were down at half, and they never gave up. We never went away from the game plan.”
There is now a chance that Montrose jumps to No. 1 in the 4A coaches poll on Monday and gets a target on its back for the rest of the season.
The Bears feel they have been given a gift. A chance to fix mistakes and put themselves in a position to go hunting rather than be hunted.
And they plan on taking advantage of situation.
“This is absolutely fuel,” Twesme said. “A gift. A blessing in disguise. We’re going to come to work hungry.”
And a hungry Bear should never be trifled with.