The Silvercreek Silverbacks on May 11 ended the season with a hard-fought victory over the Haven Bridge Dreamcatchers. Fans filled Davenport Stadium in order to witness the next chapter in the long-storied rivalry between the two teams. Coming into the game undefeated, the Dreamcatchers were heavily favored to come away with the win, but the Silverbacks were determined to add a blemish to their perfect record. “Our goal heading into the game was to create a nightmare for the Dreamcatchers, and that’s exactly what we did,” said Dylan Baker, head coach of the Silverbacks. “Haven Bridge thought they could just come into town from Louisiana and sleepwalk their way to an easy victory before the playoffs, but we weren’t going to let that happen.” Silvercreek caught Haven Bridge off guard at the beginning of the first quarter when cornerback James Draper intercepted a pass and returned it for a touchdown. The Silverbacks followed that with another 14 unanswered points, bringing the score to 21-0 at the end of the quarter.
The Dreamcatchers returned to form in the second quarter, putting a total of 24 points on the board after scoring three touchdowns and a field goal. However, Silvercreek would end the half in the lead after scoring three touchdowns of their own, including a 67-yard pass from quarterback Peter Wright to wide receiver Mike Lewis. The game went into halftime with the score at 42-24. The third quarter began with the Silverbacks immediately scoring a touchdown when running back Harrison Snyder returned an 85-yard kickoff to the endzone. The Dreamcatchers would score on their next two drives, shrinking the deficit to just 11 points, bringing the score to 49-38.
Silvercreek dominated the final quarter, extending their sizeable lead with two touchdown passes from Wright and one rushing touchdown from Snyder. Haven Bridge attempted to mount a comeback but were only able to add another field goal to their total. With two minutes left in the quarter, the Silverbacks scored a safety when linebacker Joshua Lee sacked the Dreamcatchers’ QB in their own endzone. The game ended 72-41, a program-record score for Silvercreek High. “This was far from our best season, but to go out on a massive win like this was just what we needed,” Baker said. “It’s definitely going to light a fire under us to come back even stronger next year.”