SUAMICO – After the Bay Port football team jumped out to a 21-0 first-quarter lead, it appeared the rout was on.
Not so fast.
Hurt by four turnovers and a blocked punt, the Pirates (11-1) saw their three-touchdown lead evaporate late in the fourth quarter, only to rebound in overtime with a 28-21 victory over Waunakee (10-2) in a WIAA Division 1 Level 3 game on Nov. 6 at Bay Port High School.
Tied 21-21 going to overtime, quarterback Bray Babich scored on a two-yard TD run to put the Pirates up 28-21 after Connor Duff’s extra point – his fourth of the night.
Faced with a fourth down and two on their overtime possession, the Warriors were stopped short on an incomplete pass, sending Bay Port to the state semifinals for the fourth time in the last five seasons.
With the win, the Pirates will face Hamilton (12-0) – a 17-10 winner over Arrowhead – in the state semifinals at a yet-to-be-determined site.
“My dad said it best – ‘Survive and advance,’” Bay Port Coach Steven Jorgensen said. “It’s not a beauty pageant this time of year. It’s about finding a way, and our guys found a way.”
The game couldn’t have started much better for the Pirates.
On its first possession of the game, Jackson Smith bolted 67 yards for a score not even two minutes into the contest for a 7-0 lead.
Three minutes later, quarterback Braydon Maney hit Jackson Otradovec with a 15-yard TD pass to make it 14-0.
Maney then connected with Owen Sartorelli on a 19-yard strike a few minutes later to jump the lead to 21-0.
From there, the Bay Port offense stalled, while the Warriors slowly got themselves back into the game.
Waunakee got on the board with under a minute remaining in the first half, cutting the deficit to 21-7 heading into intermission.
On their first possession of the second half, the Warriors made it 21-14 before tying the game late in the fourth quarter, setting up the dramatic overtime period.
The Pirates could have essentially iced the game, but Duff’s 37-yard field goal with four minutes left came up short.
Smith rushed for 122 yards on 15 carries, while Babich added 106 yards on 11 carries.
Smith also hauled in seven passes on the night.
The Bay Port defense allowed only 271 total yards.
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