Triton's Creigbaum stumps Whiting

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BOURBON -- Whether Adam Creigbaum lined up at quarterback (mostly) or running back (briefly), Whiting had little answer for the Triton junior on Friday night.

Creigbaum rushed for 236 yards and four touchdowns, including two of at least 59 yards, on 21 carries to propel the Trojans to a 35-14 victory over Whiting in a Sectional 33 opener.

Fifteen of those carries came at quarterback, and he played the first series of the fourth quarter at running back, carrying six times for 50 yards.

"Quarterback? I thought he was a running back," quipped Oilers coach Jeff Cain, whose team allowed 392 yards rushing overall. "He's the real deal. It didn't take a lot of tape watching to see he was going to be a problem.

"He's a threat just touching the ball, period."

Creigbaum's 5-yard touchdown run with 43.3 seconds left in the first half broke a 14-14 tie, giving Triton (6-4) the lead for good. The Trojans missed the extra point, but the Oilers were called for roughing the kicker, with Cale Kennedy then running in a 2-point conversion.

It also was a night of missed opportunities -- some of their own making, at least one on which they were on the receiving end of a tough call -- for the Oilers (6-4).

The Trojans fumbled on three straight plays in the first three minutes of the second quarter, with the Oilers recovering each time, at the Whiting 45 and then the Triton 22 and 30. But they scored only off the third fumble, Charles Meyers' recovery, on Emerick Quiroz's 12-yard touchdown run with 7:22 in the half for a 7-7 tie.

"We had our chances -- that's what I just told our kids," Cain said. "Sometimes it's not meant to be. But take nothing away from them. That's a talented ballclub."

On the game's opening possession, Whiting had driven as deep as the Triton 7, before missing a field goal. Two plays later, Creigbaum raced 80 yards for a touchdown with 8:24 left in the first quarter.

Creigbaum got loose for a 59-yard TD run with 6:34 left in the half to give the Trojans a 14-7 lead, breaking at least three tackles after it appeared the Oilers had him stopped for a loss.

Whiting tied the score again on Dan Macon's 63-yard touchdown pass to Juwan Simmons with 3:44 left in the half. Macon completed 20-of-41 passes -- to nine different receivers -- for 214 yards, and Simmons had five catches for 92 yards.

The Oilers appeared to have recovered the second-half kickoff, a squib that kept squirting free, near the Triton 10. But there was an inadvertent whistle from the officials when the ball still was loose, and the kickoff was retaken. The Oilers wound up stopping the Trojans on a fake punt near midfield, but Triton then came up with an interception -- Dustin Kreft's first of two -- of a deflected pass.

And the Trojans turned that pick into a Kennedy 3-yard touchdown run with 6:42 left in the third and a 28-14 edge, after Whiting blocked the extra point.

"That's part of football," Cain said of the inadvertent whistle. "Is it a shame it happened at that point of the game? Absolutely. Our kids are doing the best they can do out there, their kids are doing the best they can do out there. I have no ill will toward those officials."

Note

Whiting senior running back Alex Leddesma went down with 34.4 seconds left in the first half, after absorbing a hit from Zach Moriarty on an incomplete pass over the middle. Initial word was that he had suffered a concussion, getting knocked out, but he was moving his extremities. He was taken to Plymouth for examination.

Leddesma was taken from the field on a backboard and stretcher as each team kneeled on its respective sideline and in its huddle. Play resumed after a delay of almost 10 minute.

Contact Michael Osipoff at 648-3137 or mosipoff@post-trib.com. Comment on this story at www.post-trib.com.