It was the tale of two halves for the host Yorktown Patriots (3-2) in their non-district high-school football game against the Westfield Bulldogs on Sept. 24.
On the strength of a couple of long passes, Yorktown led at halftime, 14-0. Then in the second half, Yorktown got very little on offense and lost, 20-17, in overtime.
Westfield (4-1) put together two long scoring drives to tie the score at 14 at the end of regulation.
In overtime, Yorktown took a 17-14 lead on a 22-yard field goal by Tomas Edmeades. Westfield next had the ball and scored a touchdown on its third play to win.
“We kicked the field goal there because we hadn’t been moving the ball in the second half so we wanted to get something,” Yorktown coach Bruce Hanson said.
Yorktown had just 50 total yards in the second half, after gaining 187 in the first two quarters.
“We just couldn’t move the ball enough in the second half. Westfield was tough up front and just grinded it out on us and kept the ball,” Hanson said. “We didn’t have the ball much in the second half.”
Westfield had possession of the ball for 16 minutes in the second half and Yorktown half that much.
Edmeades was short on a 44-yard field goal attempt to end regulation play.
Yorktown’s first-half touchdowns were scored on a two-yard run by Miles Fang, then James Yoest’s 80-yard pass to Charlie Tayler, with Edmeades kicking both extra points. A 38-yard Yoest-to-Taylor pass set up Fang’s touchdown run.
Taylor had four catches for 129 yards and Fang and Xandar Starks had one catch each. Yoest was 6 of 11 for 142 yards.
Miles Rosman had 40 yards rushing and Fang had 32 yards to lead the Yorktown ground attack. Yoest ran for 23 yards.
Yorktown starting runningback Starks injured an ankle early in the first half and was sidelined for the rest of the game.
“It hurt not having him,” Hanson said.
On defense for Yorktown, Michael Merritt, Tyler Woodward, Colin McCormack and Starks were among players with tackles for losses. Yorktown hosts the winless McLean Highlanders (0-5, 0-1) in a Liberty District game, Friday, Sept. 30 at 7 p.m.