TOMPKINSVILLE — Warren East just couldn’t pull it out.
On Friday night at Darrell Carter Stadium, the Raiders held a 14-9 lead with just 4:35 remaining in the game, but collapsed late and suffered a 15-14 heartbreaking loss to host Monroe County.
The Falcons, who are off to their first 5-1 start since 2012, scored first after forcing a Warren East safety in the first quarter and then followed up with a one-yard TD run by quarterback Ty Mink to lead 9-0 at halftime. The Raiders responded with 14 unanswered points, but let their late lead slip away in the final minutes.
“Talk about a rollercoaster,” Monroe County coach Billy Murphy said. “We got up in the first half and I thought we set the tempo. Then in the second half they set the tempo. They went up on us and I was afraid we were gonna get down, but our guys answered and drove the ball downfield and made the play.”
TOUCHDOWN Monroe County. A 16-yd TD pass from Ty Mink to Braden Murphy now makes Warren East trail 15-14 with 1:01 remaining. pic.twitter.com/pWhrRAeuh8
— The Sporting Times (@sportingtimes) September 23, 2017
That said play was a 16-yard touchdown pass from Mink to wide receiver Braden Murphy. The beautiful pass — and reception — put the Falcons up 15-14 with just 1:01 left.
But just prior to taking the late lead, it seemed that Monroe, who trailed 14-9 with just minutes left, was going to come out on the opposite end.
“The last two years I’ve always preached ‘forget the last play,'” said Billy Murphy. “Whether it’s good or bad — forget it. And I think that they’re buying into it. They forgot what happened before and they moved on.”
Mink threw for 103 yards and two TDs while compiling 90 yards and a score on the ground. Braden Murphy caught two passes for 26 yards and that TD while rushing for 45 yards.
“You know, when we came into the game we knew that it would be tough,” Mink said. “We told ourselves before the game that if we limited turnovers and be successful on defense then we’d come out victorious.”
Monroe County’s defense was mighty stout, as it forced three Raiders turnovers. Warren East freshman quarterback Nolan Ford — who started in place of injured senior Dwayne Cook, who has a broken jaw — threw two interceptions in his debut and senior running back Trevor Naftel fumbled once.
Although Ford’s debut didn’t go as well as it could’ve, the underclassmen still managed to connect with wide receiver Thomas Maxey for a 49-yard touchdown and also rushed for 33 yards on four carries. Naftel ran for 40 yards on nine carries.
Monroe County travels to Metcalfe County next Friday for a 7 p.m. matchup and Warren East plays at crosstown rival Warren Central on Thursday. That game is also slated for a 7 p.m. kickoff.
“This is the most important time of the year other than the playoffs, so we’ve gotta be playing our best football next week,” Murphy said. “We’ve gotta forget what happened this week and move on. We’re gonna play a tough Metcalfe County team. We have to prepare well because they’re a solid football team.”
Follow Tyler Mansfield on Twitter at @_TylerMansfield
