AURORA | Friday night’s Centennial League football showdown between Cherry Creek and Cherokee Trail provided drama to the last point.
The battle between the league championship contenders see-sawed back and forth all night, only to end up on the verge of being tied in the closing seconds of regulation.
Cherokee Trail junior running back Cameron Smith scored his third touchdown of the night with 27.5 seconds left to make it a one-point game, but Jerdan Daniels’ extra point attempt went wide left, allowing eighth-ranked Cherry Creek to escape with a 28-27 victory over the No. 4 Cougars at frigid Legacy Stadium.
The Bruins (4-2, 2-0 in Centennial League) dealt coach Monte Thelen’s Cougars their only loss of the regular season in 2012 and got the better of Cherokee Trail again with the help of four rushing touchdowns, three by DJ Luke and one by Milo Hall.
Smith racked up 148 yards and three scores to lead the offensive highlights for the Cougars (4-2, 1-1), while Izaiah Lottie also got Cherokee Trail on the scoreboard with an interception return for a touchdown in the first quarter.
(8) CHERRY CREEK 28, (4) CHEROKEE TRAIL 27
Score by quarters:
Cherry Creek 7 7 14 0 — 28
Cherokee Trail 7 7 7 6 — 27
Courtney Oakes is Sports Editor of the Aurora Sentinel. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. Facebook: Aurora Prep Sentinel