ROBERTSDALE, Ala. – After trailing the entire game, the Robertsdale Golden

Bears varsity football team scored with 42.3 seconds left in the contest

to take a 17-13 lead and went on to give Coach Scott Phelps his first

Regional win as a Robertsdale Bear over the Williamson Lions Friday night

at J.D. Sellars Stadium in Robertdale.

Williamson scored with 2:43 to go in the first quarter to take a 7-0 lead

and, following a Colby Norman 21-yard field goal with 9:32 to play, took a

13-3 halftime lead, scoring with 2:31 to play in the second period.

The Bears were able to cut the lead to 13-10, scoring with 10:08 to play

in the game, then made two key defensive stops to keep the game in reach.

"The football is a funny thing, you can give up lots of yards, but if you

stay with it and never quit, good things can happen, and that's what we

did tonight," Phelps said.

Williamson would get the ball back at their own 20 after the Robertsdale

score and drive to the Robertsdale 17-yard line, but a penalty pushed the

ball back to the 22. A fumble on the next play netted no gain, then the

Bears were able to set up fourth-and-4 at the 27, where Timothy Betts and

Sir Raven Curry stuffed the Lions back to the 32-yard line after a fumbled

snap.

Robertsdale's ensuing offensive series went backwards to the 19 and the

Bears gave Williamson the ball back at the 50. Two quick first downs had

the Lions knocking on the door again at the 17.

But the Bear defense stiffened again. A penalty and another fumble marched

the ball back to the 27 and Williamson managed to gain eight yards on

second down to get back to the 19 before Cordero Dade stuffed a pass play

for a six-yard loss and the Lions again mishandled the shot-gun snap to

give Robertsdale good field position at their own 44.

A 26-yard strike from Caleb Sumrall to John Vaughn put the Bears deep in

Williamson territory at the 30, then a pair of five-yard runs by Sumrall

and Samuel Tolbert, followed by a defensive holding call gave the Bears a

first down just outside the 10.

Tolbert ran for two yards before Sumrall hit Justin Vaughn who stretched

the ball into the end zone for the score, giving Robertsdale its first,

and last, lead of the contest. Norman added the extra point to give the

Bears a 17-13 lead with just 42.3 seconds to play.

But the Bears had to make one final defensive stand to secure the win

after the Lions took the ball back at their own 32 and quickly drove into

Bear territory at the 23.

Again the Lions couldn't get a handle the long snap from the shot-gun and

Dade sacked quarterback Marzette Mason for a 19-yard loss back to the Bear

42, taking precious time off the clock.

With 8.2 seconds left, the Lions managed to hurl the ball to the end zone

twice, but both times a pack of Bears was able to surround and bat the

ball away, preserving the victory.

"It all comes down to kids making plays," Phelps said. "Tonight they

realized they had to step it up and make plays, and that's just what they

did."

After completing just 2 of 10 passes with an interception for 41 yards in

the first half, Sumrall was 8 of 11 with a pick in the second for 136

yards and a TD. He also ran for a score in the second half, going for a

total of 62 yards on 13 carries. Tolbert added 58 yards on 15 carries in

the contest.

Christopher Caldwell rushed for 132 yards on 16 carries, while Derrick

White added 114 yards on 14 carries for the Lions.

The Golden Bears take their 2-1 record (1-1 in 6A Region 2) on the road

next week when they travel to Satsuma.