HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL : Poway Stops Two-Point Try To Win

Mt. Carmel was trying to remain undefeated in the Palomar League, and Poway was trying to stay above water.

Despite a fourth-quarter rain Friday night, Poway got its wish, earning a 29-28 victory over Mt. Carmel in front of 4,000 in the 16th battle for the Kiwanis Cup between the two rivals.

Poway scored 21 second-quarter points and twice forced the Sundevils to settle for field goals after they had driven inside the 10-yard line. And, with 6 1/2 minutes remaining, Poway (3-3-1, 1-2-1 in league) stopped Mt. Carmel (4-2-1, 2-1-1) on a crucial attempt for a two-point conversion.

Mt. Carmel pulled to 21-16 in the third quarter when Matt Miller passed nine yards to Larry Lehman, but a two-point conversion failed.

Nathan Beedle gave the Sundevils a 22-21 lead with two 22-yard field goals. But Trent Harris made two big plays for the Titans--scoring a touchdown on fourth and one from the one-yard line, and scoring what turned out to be the deciding two-point conversion.

Mt. Carmel scored one more time when Miller leaped over defensive back Tom Fischer to complete a 20-yard scoring run. But on the conversion attempt, Miller’s pass went awry because Poway’s Josh Bright had the quarterback in his grasp.

“They showed me some courage,” Poway Coach Brad Elrod said of the two-point attempt. “They came to win it.”

But so did the Titans. Fischer, Poway’s senior quarterback, rushed for one touchdown and passed for two others, 52 yards to Damian Richey and 15 to Frank Vaughan. Fischer finished 12 of 24 for 255 yards.

Miller finished 20 of 39 for 384 yards. Larry Lehman caught 12 of those passes for 155 yards, and Kelly Taggart had five receptions for 167 yards.

Although Mt. Carmel was seemingly in control in the first half, the game turned in seconds when the Sundevils were burned by turnovers.

Fischer’s 52-yard pass to Richey followed Eric Iannacone’s recovery of a Jeff Scott fumble. Vaughan’s scoring catch was set up by Vince Schultz’s 32-yard punt return on the next possession.