Everest bested by Flint Beecher, but coach encouraged by progress in young team's seventh season

CLARKSTON — The Everest Mountaineers have lived up to their nickname, climbing new heights in football.

The list is impressive for a school that isn't yet a decade old: First undefeated season going into the state playoffs; state playoff qualifiers for every year of their seven-year history; repeat winners of the CHSL Intersectional 2 division; repeat winners of the Prep Bowl Intersectional (Cardinal Trophy) Division.

However, their ascent to the top came to a crashing halt Friday evening, Nov. 1, when Flint Beecher — the same team that beat Everest a year ago in an MHSAA Division 8 district final match — out-muscled the Mountaineers in a pre-district contest, 52-25.

Everest’s fate was shared by five other CHSL squads, while five teams moved on to district finals the coming weekend, Nov. 8-9 (more on that below).

“They were just bigger and stronger,” Everest coach Mike Pruchnicki said of Beecher's offense and defense. “I loved how we competed, but we’re going to have to get bigger and stronger, too.”

The game — played on Clarkston High School’s man-made artificial turf because the God-created sod at Everest was a quagmire from the torrential rains the day before — started out looking like a pretty even battle.

Everest threatened to score midway in the first quarter, but Fernando Caccia’s 26-yard field goal attempt sailed wide left.

The Buccaneers’ fired-up offense went on an 11-play, 80-yard touchdown drive, with halfback Damion Scott bulldozing the last 34 yards in five successive carries, the last one into the end zone on a 4-yard run. He followed that up with a two-point rushing conversion — one of four on the day — for an 8-0 lead.

Everest came right back with a 55-yard drive that included 15 penalty yards against Beecher. Jack Lasceski scored from the 15, breaking free after seemingly stalling at the line. Caccia’s extra point made it 8-7.

Any semblance of a closely contested game faded in the next five-and-a-half minutes.

In addition to size, Beecher also had speed. On the second play after Everest’s touchdown, quarterback Jacoby Sanders threw the ball possibly as far as he could to his brother, senior Earnest Sanders, who caught it a step behind Everest’s secondary for a 68-yard touchdown.

On the second play after Caccia converted a 27-yard field goal to make it 16-10, the two Sanders boys reunited for the same play, this one for 60 yards, for the same result to take a 24-10 lead into halftime.

Beecher scored four more times in the second half, all on the ground, on runs of 7, 71, 1 and 28 yards. The Buccaneers piled up 349 yards rushing and 151 passing.

Everest countered with Lasceski’s 3-yard score to conclude a 13-play, 65-yard drive in which the junior halfback carried seven times for 34 yards and passed once for 16. Overall, he was the offense workhorse, 29 runs for 130 yards.

Quarterback Giovanni Mastromatteo threw his longest pass of the game, a 28-yarder, to wide-open Michael McGrath for the Mountaineers’ last points with 65 seconds to play. Mastromatteo gained 107 yards on 15 completions in 28 attempts.

“It was a great season,” Pruchnicki said. “I loved watching the players grow in virtue and grow in manhood.”

Five teams whose season continues

DIVISION 3

University of Detroit Jesuit (7-3) 34, North Farmington 21 — The Cubs built a 27-0 lead by the middle of the third quarter. Senior Nick Johnson had 19 carries for 159 yards and three touchdowns. Quarterback Nathan Brown found Carson Hinton for a 33-yard touchdown. U of D forced seven turnovers. NEXT: Friday, Nov. 8 at 7 p.m. at Farmington (8-1) — The Falcons came from behind to beat Oak Park, 12-6. The two teams have played one another once, in a 1999 Division 2 regional, won by U of D, 28-23.

Orchard Lake St. Mary’s (9-1) 52, Marysville 0 — The Eaglets led 35-0 at the half. The defense contributed two of St. Mary’s eight touchdowns via a recovered fumble and an intercepted pass. NEXT: Saturday, Nov. 9, at 1 p.m. vs. Flint Kearsley (8-2) — The Hornets slipped past Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice, 20-19. This was a story of missed scoring opportunities, namely, missed extra points. Each team scored three touchdowns. Kearsley missed one extra point, Rice missed two extra points, the last one with a minute to go for a tie score and possible overtime.  

DIVISION 7

Riverview Gabriel Richard (8-2) 17, Clinton 14 — Ivan Henderson kicked a 24-yard field goal for the difference. NEXT: Friday, Nov. 8, at 7 p.m. at Jackson Lumen Christi (9-0) — This might be the wrong time for Richard to play the Titans, who are on a 22-game winning streak, having moved down to Division 7 after winning the last three Division 6 state championships.

Detroit Loyola (5-4) 26, Detroit Central 12. NEXT: Saturday, Nov. 9, at  1 p.m. vs. Madison Heights Madison (6-4) at Hazel Park High School — Loyola won’t need much motivation. A year ago in a district final, Madison Heights shut down the Bulldogs, 38-0.

DIVISION 8

Royal Oak Shrine (8-2) 21, Ottawa Lake Whiteford 16 — Charlie Neihaus caught a touchdown pass, Jacob Sanders rushed for one, and quarterback Conor Benson threw for 219 yards and ran 7 yards for the eventual winning touchdown. NEXT: Saturday, Nov. 9, at 1 p.m. vs. Britton Deerfield (6-5) — Back on Oct. 11, Deerfield beat the Knights, 30-14.

Five teams joining Everest on the sidelines

DIVISION 2

Brother Rice (6-4) lost to Flint Kearsley, 20-19 — See the details in the Orchard Lake St. Mary’s entry above. No sense dwelling on what must have been a long ride home.

Warren De La Salle (5-5) lost to Birmingham Groves, 2-0 forfeit — The school canceled its playoff game after news surfaced alleging a hazing incident involving varsity football players. The Warren Police Department is conducting an investigation.

DIVISION 4

Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood (5-4) lost to Harper Woods, 27-10 — The Cranes did their scoring in the third quarter: a 52-yard run by Tariq Muhammad and a 39-yard field goal by Chase Paulus. Cranbrook didn’t help itself on offense by committing 11 penalties.

DIVISION 5

Ann Arbor Fr. Gabriel Richard (5-5) lost to Whitmore Lake, 45-28 — Whitmore Lake rushed for 492 yards to avenge a 22-20 loss to the Fighting Irish earlier in the season.

DIVISION 7

Madison Heights Bishop Foley (6-4) lost to Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port, 56-19 — ‘Nuff said.