Talk about putting a damper on Senior Night: Gabe Everhart plunged into the end zone from 2 yards out with 36 seconds remaining for the winning points as Greenfield-Central spoiled the regular-season finale for the Centerville football team Friday, Oct. 16.
The final score was Greenfield-Central 14, Centerville 12.
In a game played on a soggy night on Marlin Craig Field, Class 5A Greenfield-Central snapped a seven-game losing streak and halted Class 3A Centerville’s three-game winning streak.
“It’s just a tough one,” Bulldog head coach Ryan Cole said. “We had a couple of opportunities down here in the second half that we didn’t convert. You’re playing in the mud and in the rain, and it takes you out of your game plan and it turns into just a slugfest. A couple of big plays were the difference. That was it.”
The playbooks were limited for both teams as a rainy night resulted in a muddy mess of a field, especially between the hash marks. Both teams relied on inside rushing plays with an occasional run to the outside or short pass.
One of those short passes, a 12-yard lob from Jace Hollendonner to wide-open Brylen Riggs, capped a 14-play scoring drive and put Centerville ahead 6-0 in the first quarter.
Greenfield-Central led 7-6 at the half on Everhart’s tackle-busting 13-yard touchdown run with 1:13 remaining in the second quarter — one play after a Centerville interception was negated by a penalty.
Conditions went from mucky to miserable after halftime. A cold, steady rain resumed, with the heaviest showers in the fourth quarter.
It seemed the Bulldogs would muddle through with a win when Hunter Sonntag, on his way to a 100-yard rushing night, swam to the end zone for a 4-yard score to put Centerville ahead 12-7 with 4:54 to go.
The Bulldogs’ outlook got even brighter when the defense stopped the next Greenfield-Central drive on downs. Centerville took possession at the Cougar 21-yard line with just 3:53 to go.
Everything went in the wrong direction for the Bulldogs from there.
Three plays netted negative yardage. The operation on a field goal attempt went awry. The Cougars regained possession with 2:19 to go.
Greenfield-Central didn’t have a first down in the second half to that point. The Cougars had completed just one pass all night, and it was only for 4 yards, so no worries, right?
That all changed in one play. Greenfield-Central gained 22 yards on a running back option pass on the first snap of its last-ditch drive. The Cougars soon followed up with another big chunk of yardage through the air to get to the Bulldogs’ 8-yard line.
Three running plays later, Greenfield-Central took the lead when 6-foot-3-inch, 230-pound Everhart plowed into the end zone. Sawyer Chatmon found enough footing in the mud to connect on his second extra point and make it 14-12. Centerville’s PAT attempts had ended in a missed kick and a failed two-point conversion — points that were dearly missed in the end.
“We just played a 5A school with 1,000 more kids in their enrollment, and I thought we controlled the line of scrimmage,” Cole said. “I was proud of our offensive line and defensive line for the job they did. I thought our linebackers played outstanding — we shut down their run game. I wish we could have made a couple of plays down here when we got in the scoring position, but we didn’t convert. Now we go to the postseason. Everybody in the tournament starts 0-0, and it’s a fresh start next week.”
Greenfield-Central (2-7) 0 7 0 7 14
Centerville (4-5) 6 0 0 6 12
Greenfield-Central stats: Rushing: Gabe Everhart 20-84, Draven Nolting 6-38, Chase Antle 4-19, Trenton Smith 5-15, Kyson Nicholson 2-8. Passing: Nicholson 1-1-0-22, Antle 1-3-0-22, Nolting 2-3-0-19. Receiving: Brady Martin 3-59, McCoy Wilson 1-4.
Centerville stats (unofficial): Rushing: Hunter Sonntag 28-107, Jace Hollendonner 6-10. Passing: Hollendonner 10-20-1-77. Receiving: Brylen Riggs 4-43, Sonntag 1-16, Anderson 1-11, Kyle Dickenson 4-7
A version of this article will appear in the October 21 2026 print edition of the Western Wayne News.
