Liberty tops Girard, 38-23

By CHUCK HOUSTEAU
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
GIRARD -- Friday night at Arrowhead Stadium, the Liberty High football team had all the answers.
The Leopards had answers, in the form of big plays, for every challenge and threat that the Girard Indians threw at them.
Liberty's Chris Harden rushed for 132 yards and three touchdowns on runs of 46, 3 and 25 yards, while Brandon Cornwell returned a kickoff 79 yards for a score and returned an interception 69 yards that set up another score to give the Leopards a 38-23 win.
Ensures playoff berth
The win ensures Liberty (9-1) a spot in the Division IV, Region 13 playoffs for the first time since the 2000 season. The nine wins is the most for a Liberty team in the history of the school's football program.
"We're glad to be back in the playoffs," said Liberty coach Jeff Whittaker. "We thrive on big plays. Our kids play with a lot of emotion. When we make big plays it provides our team with a burst."
Liberty needed to make big plays because Girard was not about to hand the Leopards a spot in post-season play.
Girard (6-4, 3-4) also had an outside shot at grabbing one of the eight playoff spots in Region 13 with a win. Girard was in the game until Harden scored on a 25-yard run with 3 minutes left.
Indians' gamble misses
The Indians trailed just 31-23 when Girard coach Bud McSuley elected to pass on a fourth-and-15 from the Indians' 25 with 3:58 on the clock.
Quarterback Bobby Ovesny, who completed 26 of 38 passes for 319 yards and one touchdown, just missed completing his 27th pass for a first down and Liberty took over on downs and seconds later put the game away.
"We're here to win and we were trying to make the playoffs," McSuley said of his decision to pass on fourth down. "We go for those things and we expect to make those plays."
Defense shines
Liberty's defense was up to Girard's challenge throughout the second half after giving up two scores in the first half.
Led by defensive linemen John Humphrey, Tim Whitlow and Dan Mohler and linebacker Keith Forestal, Liberty put lots of pressure on Ovesny. The Leopards sacked the elusive quarterback eight times and intercepted him once.
"We've been able to put pressure on the quarterback all year," Whittaker said. "Humphrey has to be one of the best defensive ends in the area and he showed that tonight."
Girard scored on its first possession of the game by marching 75 yards in 19 plays and scoring on a 5-yard run by Brett Dutton.
Liberty answered with Cornwell's 79-yard scoring romp on the ensuing kickoff.
After Girard scored again on a Dutton 1-yard run, Liberty answered with scores by Robert Hightower on a 17-yard pass play from Brian Jones and a 32-yard field goal by Humphrey, which gave Liberty a 17-14 lead at the break.
Girard makes final run
After Liberty scored twice on Harden runs in the third quarter to push the lead to 31-14, Girard made a last run at the Leopards to get back in the game.
A safety on a bad punt snap and a 44-yard scoring play from Ovesny to Ryan Collins got the Indians to within 31-23.
Collins caught 12 passes for 180 yards.
Dutton complemented Girard's passing game by rushing for 80 yards and two scores. The junior also caught seven passes for 94 yards.