Connor carries load for Seahawks

EMERY — Jordon Connor was not 100 percent heading into Saturday’s Class 9AA semifinal tilt against Chester Area.

The Bridgewater-Emery/Ethan senior running back has been battling an illness for the past two weeks and took Friday off from practice to get ready.

He was ready.

Connor carried the ball 49 times for 245 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Seahawks to a 40-20 come-from-behind win over the Flyers and a spot in a state title game for the third time in the past four seasons.

“The last couple weeks I’ve been puking and got on medication,” Connor said. “I had some contaminated water or food or something a couple weeks ago and have lost eight or nine pounds.”

Connor scored on a 24-yard run in the second quarter and added TD runs of 1, 4 and 15 yards in the fourth quarter to carry B-E/E in a hotly contested game.

“I was dead,” Connor said. “Last week I could take it, but (Saturday) (I was) just dead tired. I’ve been pounding Gatorade and water all week getting ready for this.”

He and the Seahawks needed every ounce to get past a talented Chester squad.

The Flyers, who are led by senior quarterback Drew Kreutzfeldt, had an answer for everything B-E/E threw their way through the first three quarters and held a 20-18 edge heading to the fourth.

But on the first play of the final 12 minutes, Seahawks senior quarterback Justin Grosdidier broke off a 14-yard run on fourth-and-8. The play got the ball to the Chester 21-yard line and set up Connor’s 1-yard plunge.

“He gave it all tonight,” B-E/E coach Jeff VanLeur said of Connor’s effort. “I couldn’t be prouder of the young man. He’s been struggling through it all week long and he finally took a little bit of a day off (Friday) and tried to get over things.

“He’s not 100 percent, but you’d think he was 100 percent by the way he played. He gave us everything he had in his heart.”

Connor intercepted Kreutzfeldt on the ensuing drive with nine minutes remaining. The Seahawks defense forced a punt, a turnover on downs and picked off another pass in the fourth quarter to widen the gap.

Kreutzfeldt kept Chester in it early on with his arm and his legs.

He had a 2-yard TD run and a pair of TD passes to Jordan VanLiere before halftime. He finished 19 of 37 for 225 yards.

“They made some adjustments after halftime and started playing up tight in man coverage,” Chester coach Brad Benson said of the Seahawks’ pass defense in the second half. “(Kreutzfeldt) tweaked his hamstring in the first half and we were unable to move him around as much as we would have liked.”

The Seahawks outgained the Flyers 388-261 in the game. Grosdidier was 9-for-15 passing for 82 yards, while the B-E/E defense held Chester to 36 yards rushing on 13 carries.

Anthony Huber and Darin Bartscher each had seven tackles and Bartscher added an interception for B-E/E.

The Seahawks (9-2) face Viborg/Hurley in the state championship game at 11 a.m. Thursday. Chester finished its season 8-3.

First Quarter

BEE: Anthony Huber 1 run (Justin Grosdidier run)

Second Quarter

C: Drew Kreutzfeldt 2 run (Cale Scofield pass from Kreutzfeldt)

BEE: Jordon Connor 24 run (Connor run)

C: Jordan VanLiere 51 pass from Kreutzfeldt (run failed)

C: VanLiere 9 pass from Kreutzfeldt (pass failed)

Third Quarter

BEE: Safety (snap out of end zone)

Fourth Quarter

BEE: Connor 1 run (Tyson Kayser pass from Grosdidier)

BEE: Connor 4 run (Ryan Hanks pass from Grosdidier)

BEE: Connor 15 run (pass failed)

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