Ranked number two in Division I Six-Man in the state, Ira has never had to play four quarters this year until they faced Spur Friday night.
In the battle of the Bulldogs in Ira, Ira (8-0, 1-0) actually trailed for the first time and had to play a full game for the first time this season.
Spur (5-2, 0-1) jumped out to a 12-0 lead in the first four minutes of the game. Ethan Parsons scored on the first offensive play, a 60-yard run, and later in the quarter, Cory Hamilton scored on a 19-yard run.
But Ira responded when Anthony Coy scored on a 13-yard run. Addison Fowlkes, who made five two-point conversion kicks during the game, added the two points to cut the deficit to 12-8. With 1:22 left in the first quarter, Karson Valentine caught a 25-yard pass from Nathan Goodwin to give Ira a 16-12 lead heading into the second quarter.
Valentine’s 25-yard touchdown run with 2:09 left in the half increased the Ira lead to 24-12, but Spur came right back, thanks to its defense. Valentine was stopped in the backfield and fumbled the football. Beau Martinez returned the ball 31 yards for the touchdown, but Ira still took a 24-18 lead into halftime.
Spur fans hopes were raised once in the second half. Spur tied the game on Parsons’ 9-yard run with 7:54 left in the third quarter, but that would be the last shining moment as Ira dominated the game going forward.
With 2:12 left in the third quarter, Coy scored on a 1-yard run, and Valentine added a 32-yard touchdown run with 59 seconds on the clock.
The final score of 54-24 belies the battle that was. Spur faced one of the best six-man teams in the state and made them play all four quarters. That’s something that no other team this year has done.
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