Clinton suffers quarterfinal playoff loss

Fluke plays and untimely penalties helped end the DeWitt Clinton football team’s season.

Grand Street Campus scored two improbable touchdowns in the third quarter and Clinton was called for nine penalties in the Governors’ 28-8 loss in a PSAL championship division quarterfinal on their muddy home field on Saturday.

Grand Street Campus quarterback Justin White, on third-and-40 from the Clinton 48-yard line, hit Taysir Mack on an out route and he took it the rest of the way for a touchdown to give the Wolves a 20-8 third-quarter lead.

Unsportsmanlike conduct penalties on fifth-seeded Grand Street Campus on consecutive plays gave No. 4 Clinton (9-2) the ball on the Wolves’ 21-yard line on the ensuing drive. But Solomon Reed fumbled on the next play and Justin Philip returned it 75 yards for a touchdown. White ran in the two-point conversion to make it 28-8.

“The team lost its composure,” said Governors quarterback Dashown Wilson Jr. “We came out here very confident. We worked all season, leading up the playoffs and getting here, but we just couldn’t finish. No matter what happens, you have to keep your composure and keep on playing the game. The game isn’t over until the whistle blows at the end of it all.”

Philip intercepted Wilson’s pass on Clinton’s next play from scrimmage to seal the win.

Wilson threw a 20-yard touchdown to Chesley Carter on a fade route down the right sideline in the second quarter to close GSC’s lead to 14-8. Wilson finished 5-of-12 passing for 60 yards and Carter had three catches for 43 yards.

White was 8-of-17 passing for 186 yards and three touchdowns for the Wolves (10-1), who will play second-seeded Lincoln (9-2) in a semifinal on Saturday. White hit Kimani Talbot on a quick slant that he took 80 yards to open the scoring in the first quarter, and then connected with Romiio Littlejohn on a 16-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter followed by Eugene Qualls’ two-point conversion run to make it 14-0.

Two plays before Littlejohn’s touchdown, Clinton defensive back Joseph Kennedy intercepted a pass, but it was negated by a roughing the passer penalty. The Governors were flagged for nine penalties, including three unsportsmanlike conduct infractions, totaling 85 yards.

“You can’t take it back,” said Clinton coach Howard Langley. “It’s frustrating, but at the end of the day, that’s football. That’s playoff football. It’s always going to come down to one or two plays and you hope that you can make them, and if you don’t make them, that’s the result.”

Clinton ran 21 plays in the first quarter, including 11 on the first drive of the game, to only five for Grand Street Campus, but still trailed throughout the period.

“They made plays when they needed to make plays,” Langley said. “If I knew [why we couldn’t score more] I wouldn’t be here telling you about how great they played. They completed their task and we came up short.”

Clinton, which earned a bye in the first round, lost its first playoff game for the second straight year.

“The season as a whole, I’m pleased with the effort,” Langley said. “A lot of folks don’t know the inner workings. I would say this team way overachieved based on a lot of things that were happening behind the scenes. So at the end of the day, I’m very proud of the kids and the staff and the effort we put in.”