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Show For CHS loses Playoff hopes spoiled bv Bees BRIGHAM CITY - Hopes of making it in the playoffs were spoiled last Friday afternoon for the Cedar Redmen as they lost 21-7 to a strong Box Elder Bee team. Cedar had its problems getting its running game going against the tough Bee defense who have limited their last six opponents to 21 points. The Bees were the region five champions and this year Cedar had hopes of defeating the champions instead of being the defeated champions. The game was a rough and rowdy one played in cold rainy weather, and Cedar had its problems with injuries. Several key Redmen, including Robert Nakken and Troy Neilsen, were hampered with leg injuries that slowed their performances. Box Elder notched up the first six 1 points on the scoreboard with 6:14 left in the first quarter. The Bees sent their big fullback up the middle for an 18 yard scoring spree to culminate a 72-yard 72-yard drive. "We had a couple of lapses on defense, and they took advantage of it," coach Dave Jenson said. The Box Elder running attack tested and tried the Redmen defenders all afternoon. Jenson mentioned the names of Ben Whitney and Greg Bulloch as being defensive standouts. Whitney also did a fired-up job on offense as he scored from one yard out, capping off a 55-yard drive for the Redmen. Despite Whitney's run the Bees played a super defense the best Cedar has faced all year. "I think Dixie's better than Box Elder, but I do think that Box Elder does have a better defense," Jenson said. Before the Redmen scored, the Bees extended their lead to 14-0 on a 47-yard option play to sting the Redmen for a touchdown. Late in the half Cedar got a big break when Craig Cardon picked off a Box Elder pass and then did a little stinging of his own when he returned the interception in-terception 55 yards. However, the Redmen weren't able to capitalize on the turnover as they pushed but saw time expire in the half before they could get close to the goalline. "We weren't able to run on them as well as we have other teams we've played," Jenson commented. The entire Redmen offense was limited to just 124 yards total offense for the game against the stingy Box Elder defense. The second half featured as fierce a defensive battle as both teams had seen all year. The Redmen and the Bees both earned each others respect with strong efforts on defense. "We played very well in the second half," Jenson said, "but on offense we had a rough time getting things going." For a few moments things did look bright for the Redmen as they began to get things moving. As soon as they did, however, the Bees were there to sting them once again. On a halfback pass the Bees swarmed to pick it off and set up their offense on Cedar's 40-yard line. Box Elder quickly marched to the 11-yard 11-yard line where a Bee pass buzzed across the Redmen defense for a touchdown. touch-down. Box Elder's extra point boosted their lead to 21-7 and was the final score of the game. In the closing moments of the game the Redmen threatened to make one final score as they reached the Box Elder 11-yard line but were unable to penetrate the strong Bee defense for the score. The Bees were then able to run the clock out to capture the victory and move on to the second round of playoff action. |