For the second time this season, Bay City All Saints showed it can play on near-even terms with some of the best teams in the state.
But after a 30-24 loss to No. 3-ranked Onekama, the Cougars are still looking for the win that would cement their place among them.
All Saints (3-2), which lost 15-14 to defending state champion Deckerville in Week 1, hovered within one score of Onekama in the closing minutes. But the Cougars were stopped inside the 5-yard line on their final possession and were forced to settle for close but not quite again.
“Games like this are great to watch, but even better when you win,” All Saints coach Eric Gust said.
“We don’t have any shame in losing a game like this, especially when we never backed down and created our own chances to win the game.”
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After trailing 30-18 at the half, the All Saints defense delivered a second-half shutout, giving the Cougars a chance to pull off the road victory 2 ½ hours from home. After they drew within six points, the Cougars had multiple possessions with a chance to tie or take the lead. But the big score never came.
“Onekama is the real deal and came ready to play,” Gust said.
“Hopefully we can get just a bit more hungry when we’re in games like this, especially when it’s all on the line.”
All Saints, ranked No. 8 in the state for eight-player Division 1, is on pace for a league championship for the third straight year but is now 0-8 in non-conference games during that span.
Senior quarterback Jack Wetters delivered a stellar game, rushing 12 times for 164 yards and two touchdowns while completing 5 of 12 passes for 91 yards and two more scores. Bo Williams tallied 39 rushing yards and 45 receiving yards while Dorian McNary had three receptions for 46 yards. Both hauled in a TD toss from Wetters.
Brennan Pease fronted the All Saints defense with 10 tackles. McNary registered seven tackles and Henry Essex had six, with three tackles for loss.
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