After losing to Wootton and Sherwood in back-to-back games, football won a close game against B-CC, keeping its playoff hopes alive until the Bulldogs lost a heartbreaker to Whitman.
The Bulldogs defeated B-CC, Oct. 29 ,14-8 at home as the team improved its record to 5-4. The next week the Bulldogs hopes were crushed as they lost at Whitman Nov. 5, 14-21, and finished the season off with a 5-5 record.
“The fact that we got beat bad the week before [to Sherwood] was fire to win the next game and we were able to finish [against B-CC],” head coach Joe Allen said.
Towards the end of the first half against B-CC, both teams were scoreless until senior captain Jake Sickels intercepted a B-CC pass and returned it for 43 yards onto the B-CC 17 yard line. Then, junior Curtis Kamara rushed for a touchdown and senior captain Afif Bandak added the extra point to put CHS up 7-0 at half.
“When I got the pick, I was looking where to go and I found the place with the least amount of people,” Sickels said.
In the third quarter, CHS surrendered a safety, narrowing the lead to just five. However, on their next possession the Bulldogs drove the ball 55 yards and scored when junior quarterback Lansana Keita ran it in from the two-yard line.
This gave CHS a 14-2 lead entering the fourth quarter, which seemed to be enough for the win as the Bulldog defense put on a phenomenal performance. B-CC managed to score a touchdown and when the Barons got the ball back, senior Robert Bowis deflected a pass in the end zone to keep the Bulldogs ahead.
Defensively, junior captain Bret Sickels led the team with 12 tackles, two being sacks.  Senior Jesse Simon had six tackles, one being a key sack late in the fourth quarter on a B-CC fourth and 20.
“The defense and the offensive line stepped it up and were major parts of the win,” Keita said.
In the win, Keita completed four of ten passes for 45 yards and rushed eight times for 33 yards. Kamara rushed 24 times for 132 yards, and senior captain Marcus Brown ran for 36 yards on nine rushes.
“We were able to keep our composure and focus on winning,” Brown said. “The win was a great feeling, and now all the seniors can look back and say they won on their senior night.”
Unfortunately, the Bulldogs’ season ended with a loss to Whitman. Through the first three quarters, CHS produced little offense and entered the fourth quarter in a 21-0 deficit.
The Bulldog offense woke up in the fourth quarter as Keita led the team down the field and scored on a one-yard run. The Bulldogs then got the two-point conversion on a Keita pass to Brown.
“Whitman had big size on the defensive line and it was difficult to penetrate,” Keita said. “But in the fourth quarter we started to spread out and pass more and it led to two touchdowns.”
With time winding down, the Bulldogs kicked and recovered an on-side kick. Later in the possession, the Bulldogs faced a fourth and long and Keita threw a deep pass to junior Quan Gill who made the catch and ran the ball for a 58-yard touchdown to bring the Bulldogs within a touchdown with less than five minutes.
The Bulldogs got one more possession during which the team drove as far as the Vikings 30-yard line before turning the ball over, as Whitman escaped with the win.
“Our last game was a tough loss,” Keita said. “In order for us to be a better team next year we must have everyone practice more, get bigger, faster and stronger in the offseason.”