On the night the 1987 champion Emery Spartans were honored, the Emery Spartans and Carbon Dinos turned an important 3A North tilt into an instant classic, one that will surely be remembered in 30 years.
Brock Winter nailed a go-ahead field goal with 16 seconds left in the game to lift the Spartans to the 19-16 win. The win marks the 14th straight time Emery has beaten Carbon. The Dinos last won in 2000.
After a 9-8 first half and a scoreless third quarter, Emery was the next to score with 1:43 remaining in the game. On a third and eight from their own 46-yard line, Kyson Stilson found Colton Willson over the middle for the 54-yard touchdown, Willson’s second TD reception of the game. With the extra point by Winter, the Spartans took the eight point lead, 16-8.
After taking a one-yard loss on a completion to Nate Olson on the first play of the ensuing drive, Dino quarterback Noah Jones found Chance LeChaminant for a 56-yard touchdown hookup, setting up a two-point conversion to tie the game. Jones found Ashton Larsen in the end zone for the conversion, tying the game at 16.
With just 1:03 left in the game, the Spartans capitalized on two Dino mistakes, a kickoff out of bounds and a penalty for too many men on the field, setting up a huge 25-yard completion from Stilson to Easton Gordon that got the Spartans inside the 10-yard line. After a rush by Rance Jensen and two incompletion by Stilson, Winter nailed the 18-yard field goal with 16 seconds left.
A long pass by Jones after the Emery kickoff was picked off by Stilson to end the game.
Winter got the Spartans on the board in the first quarter on a 32-yard field goal on the team’s first possession. Stilson then found Willson with 20 seconds left in the first quarter to extend the Spartans lead to 9-0.
Olson scored the first Dino TD with four minutes left in the half on a 31-yard scamper to cut the Emery lead to 9-8 where it would sit until the fourth quarter.
Emery (1-5, 1-1 3A North) will play its final home game of the year this Friday against the Morgan Trojans.
Carbon (0-6, 0-2 3A North) will host Grantsville at the same time.
Watch highlights of the Emery/Carbon game below:
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