Guesman leads Rockets to win over Waynesburg
Adam Huckestein
Houston Guesman did a little of everything in leading Jefferson-Morgan to a 34-28 victory over Waynesburg in non-conference play Friday night.
The Raiders (1-1) were playing with a heavy heart, as the Waynesburg community was mourning the loss of junior high principal and former athletic director for the Central Greene School District Justin Stephenson.
Stephenson’s nephew, Jacob Stephenson, played his heart out for Waynesburg in rushing for 106 yards on 11 carries and three touchdowns. He threw for 188 yards and a touchdown.
With the Rockets (2-0) hanging on to a six-point lead, Stephenson drove the Raiders to the Jefferson-Morgan 28-yard line, but the Rockets forced a fourth down and Stephenson’s last pass was batted down by Johnny Gilbert.
Guesman was 12-of-16 for 131 yards and one touchdown. He rushed for 103 yards on 26 carries and reached the end zone three times.
Deakyn Dehoet pulled in seven receptions for 79 yards and a touchdown.
The Rockets ran 30 plays in the second half to keep the ball out of Stephenson’s hands.
Waynesburg led 21-20 after three quarters but J-M went in front 26-21 on Guesman’s 1-yard touchdown run on the first play of the fourth quarter.
Stephenson brought his team right back with a 57-yard TD run on the next play from scrimmage with Dalton Taylor’s extra point giving the Raiders a 28-26 lead.
Guesman put the Rockets ahead to stay with a 4-yard touchdown run with 2:35 remaining and he also ran in the two-point conversion to set the final score.
Guesman scored on a one-yard run at 8:05 of the first quarter to give Jefferson-Morgan a 6-0 lead. Deakyn Dehoet pulled in a 45-yard reception from Guesman on third-and-15 to the Waynesburg seven to set-up the score.
Waynesburg took a 7-6 advantage with 4:32 remaining in the first after Teagen Crouse caught a 37-yard pass from Stephenson and Dalton Taylor made the first of four PATs.
Guesman and Dehoet hooked up again, but this one went for a score, as Dehoet’s 26-yard catch and Guesman’s two-point conversion run gave the Rockets a 14-7 lead with 11:54 left in the second quarter.
Guesman set Jefferson-Morgan up in good field position with an interception on the Raiders’ next drive, but Waynesburg’s defense got the offense back on the field and Stephenson’s eight-yard run with 3:42 left in the second tied the game at 14-14.
It didn’t take the Rockets long to regain the lead, as Dehoet took the ensuing kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown and a 20-14 advantage.
The Raiders engineered a perfectly-timed drive that culminated on Stephenson’s 10-yard run for a touchdown with no time remaining and a 21-20 lead at the halftime break. Stephenson took the snap under center and raced around the line for the score.
Jack Ricciuti recovered a fumble for Waynesburg.