Late Field Goal Wins Battle of Bull Run

Battlefield Comes Alive in Second Half: Battlefield 24, Stonewall Jackson 21

Battlefield kicker Ben Burden stood on the 15-yard line with nine seconds remaining in a tie game with rival Stonewall Jackson, preparing to kick a field goal that could give his team a monumental win.

He couldn't help but think that one year ago the Bobcats lost to Stonewall because they missed a field goal with less than 30 seconds to play. Burden wasn't on the team last season, and his decision in August to join all came into perspective.

Burden converted the 25-yard kick for a 24-21 win and capped a remarkable comeback for the visiting Bobcats.

"I just knew I was going to make it," Burden said. "I knew that wasn't going to be a problem. I just came in confident."

Down 21-7 at halftime, the Bobcats (3-1, 1-0 AAA Cedar Run) strung together 17 second-half points and shut down a potent offense for their first win in the Battle of Bull Run. Stonewall (3-1, 0-1) had won each of the past two matchups -- 20-13 in 2005 and 40-38 in 2006. The winners get to house a trophy at their school, and players each receive a $20 gift certificate to Glory Days restaurant.

Stonewall "played a hard game," said running back Adrian Ingram to chants of "A-Train" and "Choo-choo" from teammates and fans. "If they want to come out to eat with me, I will take them."

Stonewall had three chances with less than three minutes remaining in the game to take the lead. Facing fourth down and seven yards to go on the Battlefield 14-yard line, quarterback Breon Shelton (7 of 11, 121 yards and a touchdown) had two passes called back because of penalties -- one of the passes would have been a touchdown, and the other would have put the Raiders on the 1-yard line.

The Raiders racked up 10 yards in penalties and were pushed back to the 24-yard line. On his third attempt, Shelton was rushed by defensive linemen Austin Tuell and Robert Darling and threw incomplete, giving the Bobcats the ball back at their 24-yard line.

With 1 minute 15 seconds to go, the Raiders were again penalized. Battlefield quarterback Corey Thacker (9 of 14, 125 yards, one touchdown and one interception) completed a 19-yard pass to Erik Patterson to put the Bobcats on the 49-yard line, and a 15-yard facemask penalty on Stonewall moved Battlefield to the Raiders 40-yard line.

Battlefield kept moving. Ingram ripped off a 10-yard run, and Thacker hit Cooper Bull for a 20-yard pass to get to the 10-yard line -- close enough for Burden to win the game for the Bobcats.

"This year's team has so much heart," Thacker said. "The sky is the limit."

Stonewall was without star running back Ryan Williams for most of the game. Williams is considered one of the top 100 players in the nation, according to Rivals.com, but went down with 8:46 remaining in the game and was taken to the hospital. School officials said he might have broken his ankle. Williams had been nursing a sore ankle the past two weeks.

Junior Damien Thigpen -- also considered one of the top 100 recruits in the Class of 2009 by Rivals.com -- rushed for 149 yards on 15 carries and scored two touchdowns, but he was injured on the last drive and did not return.

Despite the Raiders' star power, it was the Bobcats' Ingram who had the biggest game. The junior is earning a reputation as one of the top backs in the county. He ran for 187 yards on 35 carries and scored on runs of one and five yards. His second tied the game at 21.

"It's a team effort," Ingram said. "The defense does their job, the offense does their job -- one heartbeat."