Brush – It was all defense, all the time until the Beetdiggers decided to dig in.
In a showdown on the plains between two of Class 2A’s top three teams, neither side would give an inch. But once Brush figured out how to move the ball, it could not be stopped and the Beetdiggers rallied in the fourth quarter for a 21-7 victory over Platte Valley in Patriot League play Friday night at Beetdiggers Stadium.
Brush (6-0 overall, 4-0 league), No. 2 in The Denver Post/9News 2A poll, put together two drives of 95 yards or more, and Aaron Quinlin and Dustin Bass combined for three rushing touchdowns, after gaining just 138 yards in the first three quarters.
“It was a defensive battle. … It took our offensive line a while to pick up what they were doing. When you get those long, sustained drives, you get to pick that up after a while. We made some blocking adjustments, but we didn’t change anything. We run what we run,” Brush coach Randy Dreitz said.
Brush seniors Bass and Quinlin followed the lead of quarterback Nick Dreitz in the big fourth quarter. Bass finished with 128 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries, and Quinlin gained 76 of his 86 yards in the second half.
“The leadership of Nick Dreitz turned this game. He calmed us down in the huddle and (offensive lineman) Cameron Alexander told us 4 yards per pop was all we needed,” Bass said.
No. 3 Platte Valley (5-1, 3-1) took the lead in the first quarter when Parker Gutterson recovered a mishandled punt return on the Beetdiggers’ 3-yard line. Ty Tschacher scored one play later, and the scored stayed 7-0 Broncos until early in the fourth quarter.
“Both teams had powerful offenses, and the defenses knew they would have to step up and make the stops. … The fourth quarter is supposed to be our strongest quarter, but we didn’t step up when we needed to,” said Tschacher, who picked off a pass on defense and had 111 total yards on offense.
Brush tied the score with an eight-play, 96-yard drive that was highlighted by a 24-yard pass from Dreitz to Drew Oakenson. Quinlin scored on a trap play from 19 yards out to even things 7-7.
On Platte Valley’s next drive, Tschacher tried to pitch as he was being tackled, and Rafael Munoz recovered the fumble on the Broncos’ 15, Brush’s best field position of the night.
It didn’t take Quinlin long to give the Beetdiggers the lead.
“We were playing tough defense the whole game. I baited the quarterback into making that pitch, and I was in the right place at the right time,” Munoz said.
Platte Valley 7 0 0 0 – 7
Brush 0 0 0 21 – 21
PV – Tschacher 3 run (Tschacher kick). B – Quinlin 19 run (Portuese kick). B – Quinlin 11 run (Portuese kick). B – Bass 8 run (Portuese kick).
