Staff writer
There was a lot of scoring Friday during the football game at Centre between the Cougars and Waverly, but the game ended with a 40-point loss, 76-36.
Waverly led 24-0 in the first quarter before Houston Svoboda returned the ball 68 yards on a kick-off to put the Cougars on the board. A pass from Kyle Methvin to Justin Deines added two extra points, and the quarter ended with Waverly leading, 24-8.
The Cougars scored first in the second quarter on a 6-yard run by Kyle Methvin. The conversion attempt failed. Waverly then scored two more touchdowns and two successful conversions, ending the first half with a lead of 40-14.
Hope was restored when Centre narrowed the gap to 10 points in the first half of the third quarter. The Cougars scored two consecutive touchdowns and added four conversion points. The score was 40-30.
But Waverly was not about to let Centre get the upper hand. Three touchdowns and a safety before the quarter ended increased their lead to 34 points. One touchdown was scored on a fumble recovery in the end zone.
The two teams traded touchdowns in the fourth quarter, Waverly scoring first. Kendall Harding ran 11 yards for Centre’s final foray into the end zone.
The Cougars had the ball with one minute left in the game when Waverly intercepted a pass and returned the ball 54 yards for a final touchdown and a 40-point victory.
Waverly compiled 320 yards rushing and 30 yards passing compared to 193 yards rushing and 59 yards passing by Centre.
Kyle Methvin was Centre’s leading rusher with 21 carries for 79 yards. Other rushers were Shane Methvin, 7-41; Kendall Harding, 6-34; Ty Simons, 4-25; Svoboda, 3-10; and Chad Mueller, 1-3.
Kyle Methvin threw four completions in 17 passes for 59 yards. Kordell Harding had two receptions for 34 yards, Justin Deines, 1-20, and Svoboda, 1-5.
Mueller led on defense, with eight solo tackles and three assists. Kendall Harding had six solo tackles and seven assists, Kordell Harding, five and six, and Shane Methvin, four and five.
The Cougars’ final home game is at 7 p.m. Friday against Altoona-Midway.