BAYFIELD – It’s out of their hands now.
The Bayfield High School football team beat Pagosa Springs 15-13 on Friday in Bayfield to finish above .500, and their playoff fate rests in the hands of others.
BHS (5-4, 4-3 Western League) took a 15-0 lead on two short Zane Phelps touchdown runs and had to hang on in the fourth quarter.
Pagosa Springs running back Keenan Early put the Pirates (2-7, 2-5 WL) on the board with 2 minutes, 2 seconds remaining in the second quarter.
Jeremiah Miller cut the Wolverines’ lead to two less than a minute into the fourth quarter when he shook off a tackle in the backfield and scampered 39 yards for the touchdown.
The game started to resemble last week’s 21-20 heartbreaker to Olathe when Phelps fumbled the ball with less than 4 minutes left to give Pagosa Springs the ball at its 30-yard line.
Wyatt Williams sacked Dean Scott on fourth down with less than a minute left to end the Pirates’ comeback and preserve the Wolverines’ seventh consecutive season above .500.
“I just knew this was my last Friday night game,” said Williams, son of Donna and Mark Williams. “It didn’t matter if it was 40 or 50 to nothing or 15 to 15, a win’s a win to me.”
Bayfield’s defense picked up five sacks in the game primarily through blitzing off the edge.
Bayfield’s offense leaned on Phelps. He led BHS with 33 carries for 115 yards and four catches for 40 yards. He’ll finish the regular season as the Wolverines’ leader with 991 yards rushing and 205 yards receiving.
BHS gave Phelps the ball on eight of its last nine offensive plays, trying to run down the clock.
“It was just what was working,” said Phelps, son of Dion and Koel Phelps. “Coach had confidence in me, and we pulled it out.”
The victory keeps the Wolverines alive for a possible state playoff berth, but they need a lot of help. At least three teams ahead of BHS have to lose, and even then it’s not a certainty.
“The way I see it, we had the chance last week to have our own destiny,” BHS head coach Gary Heide said. “I’m gonna just wait and see if our name’s there or not.”
Whether BHS makes the playoffs or not, Heide wanted his seniors to experience a win in their last home game.
“They deserve this finality, right here,” he said.
kgrabowski@durangoherald.com
