Neither team’s offense came out firing on all cylinders, as both teams punted on their first possession. On Chatham’s second possession, punter Brian Gauthier pinned the Braves deep in their own end, punting the ball out to the nine-yard line, but that did not stop the Fonda offense. Josh Nethaway, known for his arm, racked up big yardage with his feet, moving the Braves down the field. Early in the second quarter, Fonda got on the board as Nethaway hooked up with Luke Nethaway on a deep touchdown strike. Luke Nethaway added the extra point as the Panthers faced their first deficit of the year.
For the third straight possession, the Panthers failed to move the ball, and the Braves were looking primed for another score when they started their drive at the fifty-yard line. On third and long, Nethaway looked for another deep completion but was picked off by Josh Keyes. That interception was just what the doctor ordered for the Panthers who used that spark to get on the board. With Keyes struggling to move the ball on the ground, the Panthers looked to Jim Dorato to get the offense going, and the senior running back did just that, getting the Panthers into scoring position. Down to the five, Keyes punched it with an inside handoff. Mike Gilbert added the extra point, and with just 3:34 left in the half the Panthers had tied things up.
But for the Braves, 3:34 was more than enough time to put more points on the board. Nethaway got things going, completing a big pass to Michael Darrow at the Chatham 41-yard line. Nethaway then hooked up with Tyler Hall for two completions, including a 23-yard touchdown strike. After this score, however, Luke Nethaway failed to convert the extra point, putting the Panther deficit at six.
With the outcome of the game still hanging in the balance, the Panthers came through on both sides of the ball to start the second half. The defense held Fonda to a three and out punt; then the offense needed to make a play. On 3rd and 9, the offense got that big play when quarterback Parker Niles faked a handoff to the left and rolled out to the right, outrunning two Fonda defenders in the back field. As Niles turned the corner, he picked up some big blocks as he raced down the sideline for a huge 80-yard touchdown score. Gilbert added his second extra point, and out of nowhere, the Panthers took a 14-13 lead.
After again forcing a three and out, the Panthers got the ball back in good field position. Keyes busted out a big run down to the 22-yard line. Then Keyes ran in his second score of the game with 4:16 remaining. Gilbert’s extra point was blocked, but the Panther lead was up to 20-13.
The teams traded possessions before the Braves finally put something together to end the third quarter. In the fourth, Josh Nethaway again hooked up with Luke Nethaway to get Fonda down to the 21-yard line. After failing to move the chains, Fonda tried a pass into the end zone on 3rd and 10 that was incomplete. A late pass interference flag gave the Braves new life. Again the Panther defense held, forcing 4th down. The Braves went for it, and Nethaway hooked up with Kevin Hanson in the corner of the end zone for a touchdown. After a timeout, Fonda decided to go for the lead and go for two, but Brian Gauthier tackled Nethaway as he rolled out of the pocket to keep the Panthers in front.
The Panthers were stopped on their next drive, setting up a chance for Fonda to re-take the lead. With 2:39 remaining, a Nethaway pass was deflected in the secondary, and Jordan Brahm came up with a big interception. The Panthers were unable to ice the game on the ensuing possession, but they left Fonda very little time. The Braves were able to complete two passes, but the second one over the middle allowed the clock to run out as the Panthers stood alone as the lone undefeated team remaining in the Class C South Division.
Keyes once again led the way for the Panthers rushing for 150 yards and two touchdowns, while Niles topped 100 with one score. Dorato added 85 big yards for the Panthers in the win. Chatham is now 5-0 with just two games remaining on their regular season schedule. Next Friday the Panthers travel to tough 4-1 Tamarac before closing on their regular season the following week at home against Catholic Central.
