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Football Celebration vs Carroll on Senior Day
34
Carroll CC 4-6 , 4-6
41
Winner Eastern Oregon EOU 4-6 , 4-6
Carroll CC
4-6 , 4-6
34
Final
41
Eastern Oregon EOU
4-6 , 4-6
Winner
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th OT F
CC Carroll 7 7 7 13 0 34
EOU Eastern Oregon 0 7 17 10 7 41

Game Recap: Football | | Iain Dexter, EOU Sports Information Director

Mounties Win 41-34 Overtime Thriller on Senior Day

LA GRANDE, Ore. – In one of the most exciting games of the season, the Eastern Oregon football team ended the season with a thrilling 41-34 overtime victory over Carroll College, sending the seniors off with a memorable win on Senior Day at Community Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
 
Junior kicker Nathan Harden hit a game-tying 41-yard field goal as time expired to send the game to overtime at 34-34. On just the second play of the extra period, redshirt freshman quarterback Kai Quinn threw the ball into the end zone where junior wide receiver Brenden Kelly ripped it out of the hands of the defender for the go ahead touchdown. The defense then closed the game, making stops on third and fourth and short to secure the 41-34 win.
 
"I am so very proud of the seniors and how they worked for this program over the years," said head coach Tim Camp. "I am excited the way we finished up the season on a two-game winning streak. I could not have sent these seniors out winners today without the hard work and dedication of my coaching staff. This will help propel us in the right direction for our preparation for fall of 2018."
 
After heading into the locker room down 14-7, the Mountaineers (4-6, 4-6 Frontier) came out with fire in a wild second half that featured two tie scores and five lead changes. Including overtime, the teams scored a combined 54 points in the second half.
 
The Mountaineers scored on their second drive of the third quarter, needing just two plays as Quinn connected with Kelly down the right sideline for 81 yards for their first combined touchdown of the game.
 
Carroll quickly answered back with a six-play, 65-yard drive in just 2:58 of game clock to reclaim the lead 21-14 with 6:52 left in the third quarter.
 
On the Mounties' next drive, they were forced to punt after a sack and penalty pushed them back to midfield. Harden and the punt coverage came through with a big special teams play, however, pinning Carroll down at the one-yard line. On the Saints' first play from scrimmage, a gang of Mountaineers wrestled running back Major Ali to the ground in the end zone for a safety. The defensive play made the score 21-16, but also gave the EOU offense the ball back.
 
The Blue and Gold fed off the momentum created by the special teams and defensive units, taking the ball 90 yards on seven plays, capped off on a two-yard touchdown rush by redshirt sophomore running back Victor Dias. Quinn then completed a pass to redshirt freshman running back Josh Finley for the two-point conversion, giving EOU its first lead of the game 24-21.
 
Carroll once again responded to the EOU touchdown with a methodical 13 play, 69-yard drive that ate up 7:26 of game clock into the fourth quarter. The Saints reclaimed the lead 28-24.
 
The Mountaineers had their own answer in store as the offense found its rhythm, going 65 yards in six plays as Quinn rushed in his second touchdown of the game. With just 6:17 on the clock, EOU led 31-28.
 
Another long drive of 75 yards on 16 plays for the Saints resulted in another touchdown, the fourth-straight between the two teams. Carroll used 5:18 of game clock, giving the Mountaineers just 59 seconds left. However, on one of the most underrated plays of the day, sophomore defensive end Isaiah Cranford blocked the extra point after Carroll's touchdown, keeping the Mounties within three points 34-31.
 
On the final drive of regulation, the Mountaineers got good field position at their own 38-yard line. Quinn rushed for eight yards on second down and then hit wide receiver Nico Chavez for 16 yards on a third-down conversion, putting the ball at the Carroll 38.
 
After an offensive penalty, EOU was pushed back into a tough position at first and 25, with less than a minute left on the clock. Quinn once again completed a pass to Chavez, but the team was forced to call its last timeout with 13 seconds left. After an incomplete pass, Quinn found senior wide receiver Calvin Connors for 17 yards as the senior got out of bounds with just two seconds left in the game.
 
The completion to Connors setup Harden's game-tying field goal as the junior came up clutch for the Mounties once again with no-doubt to send the game to overtime.
 
The Mountaineers finished with their third 500-yard game, putting up 504 total yards with 417 through the air. Quinn finished 18-for-35 for 417 yards with two touchdown passes. He connected with his favorite target in Kelly five times for 195 yards and two touchdowns. Chavez also had five catches for 78 yards while redshirt sophomore wide receiver TJ Hancock also hauled in five balls for 68 yards. Connors had 64 receiving yards on two grabs.
 
Quinn also led the team with 33 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Senior running back Alonzo Mendoza had nine carries for 28 yards.
 
Defensively, junior defensive back Justin Hughes had a monster game with 17 tackles, eight solo, one forced fumble and one pass breakup. He also made the game-ending tackle on fourth down in overtime.
 
Senior linebacker Michael Arenas had 12 tackles and a giant sack that resulted in a loss of eight yards. Fellow senior lineback Colin Deyarmin had 10 tackles, seven solo, two tackles for loss and a sack as well. Redshirt freshman defensive lineman Chase Van Wyck also had a sack with 11 tackles while junior defensive lineman Zach Lacey posted two sacks.
 
Before Saturday's game, the Mountaineers honored their 10 seniors playing in their final collegiate contests. The seniors include Arenas, Connors, Deyarmin, Alonzo, defensive backs Riley Neville and Jorden Payne, offensive linemen Andre Brembry and Brayden Kearsley, defensive lineman Travis Jones and wide receiver Adam Sisson.
 
The senior class is a part of one the program's greatest runs, which included its first trip to the NAIA Championships in 2016 and the first two-playoff victories. They end their careers with two-straight wins and a home overtime victory in walk-off fashion.
 
For more information about Eastern Oregon football, follow @EOUAthletics or visit eousports.com.
 
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Contact: Iain Dexter; 541-962-3946; idexter@eou.edu
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