Putnam County holds off Panthers 43-41
Owenby scores five touchdowns, completes record breaking season
By TODD FORREST Sentinel Writer

Sophomore Quarterback Kolt Owenby, who has broken nearly every Union County (2-8) passing record this season, finished with another huge game, throwing for three touchdowns and rushing for two. Union's first two scores came on Owenby rushing touchdowns from 73 and 52 yards, respectively. Owenby also caught a pass from Gowder that went for 20 yards. Owenby's favorite target, Blake Gowder scored on a 77 yard touchdown reception, late in the second quarter to tie the game 21-21. Jared Arrant also had two touchdown receptions and Robert Heider added another score on the ground.

After starting on it' s own 15 yard line, Union County scored on it's first possession when Owenby took a quarterback draw for 73 yards to give the Panthers a 7-0 lead, just one minute into the game. Union would hold a 7-lead after one quarter.

The War Eagles of Putnam County (2-7-1) answered with two consecutive scores after going three and out on it's first possession and it looked as if they would take a 14-7 lead into halftime. However, that's when Owenby found Gowder and he went 77 yards for the score and the Panthers knotted the score at 14-14. The 77 yard score would only be Gowder's third longest play of the season. After some assistance from the yellow hankies, Putnam County tacked on a field goal as the clock expired in the second quarter and the War Eagles would lead 24-21 going at the half.

Putnam opened up a nine point lead when they took the opening drive of the third quarter 72 yards for a touchdown with 9:18 remaining in the third. Putnam was unsuccessful on the two-point conversion.

Exactly one minute and thirty seconds later, Union completed a 66 yard drive when Owenby connected with Arrant over the middle for a ten yard score to cut the War Eagle lead to three at 30- 27. Union's defense would buckle down and keep Putnam out of the endzone for the remainder of the third quarter and that allowed Owenby and the Panther offense to go to work at the end of the quarter. Owenby would lead Union 72 yards to another touchdown when Heider punched it in from a yard out to give the Panthers a 34-30 with just over two minutes to play in quarter number three.

Union's defense gave the ball back to the offense and Owenby took the Panthers 55 yards until, Putnam County picked off a Panther pass inside their own 15 yard line. Putnam would return the interception twenty yards out to the 35 yard line. That's when they took the lead back from the Panthers at the 9:01 mark of the fourth quarter.

Owenby was unaffected by the interception on the previous possession as he marched the offense 63 yards to regain the lead at 41-37 when he found Arrant for his second touchdown catch on a 21 yard reception.

Putnam would take over on the 22 yard line and go on a long time consuming drive where they converted a fourth and goal from the five for the go-ahead touchdown with just :48 showing on the clock.

Cody Dyer's kickoff return would set the Panthers up with good field position on their own 37 yard line. The Panthers were faced with a fourth and ten when Coach Peugh reached deep into the playbook for some trickeration. Owenby would throw a screen pass to Gowder and he threw the ball back across the field to Owenby and he would go twenty yards into War Eagle territory with just seven seconds remaining. Owenby would then hit Gowder on a 12 yard pass but Gowder would be brought down and with no timeouts remaining, the Panther drive would stall just inside the Putnam 35 yard line.