ROCKTON — The difference between a win and a loss can be as small as a fingertip’s reach.

That was the difference Friday in Hononegah’s 27-21 win over Freeport.

On the final play of the game, Freeport quarterback Kevin Flack threw a Hail Mary into the end zone.

The ball bounced off the hand of an Indian defender, off the hand of Freeport’s Wes Gastel, then was batted to the ground by a Hononegah defender to end the game.

“All you can do is say a little prayer for the kids,” Hononegah coach Tim Sughroue said. “The kids worked so hard all night and deserved a win. They executed and made the play at the end of the game.”

The game was a back-and-forth affair, with neither team ever gaining more than a seven-point lead.

“I think, coming in, a lot of people thought this would be a 45-43 game,” Sughroue said. “Freeport played great defensively, they were very well prepared. We made some nice adjustments, then they made some nice adjustments.

“This was just a great high school football game.”

Freeport, which had been prone to allowing big plays on the ground, buckled down defensively for most of the night.

With the game tied at 21 with 5:34 remaining, Sughroue turned to fullback Brett McWilliams to help push the winning score across.

McWilliams delivered, getting the bulk of the carries on the game-winning drive before Brian Bean ran in the winning score from a yard out with 44 seconds left in the game.

The Indians would miss the extra point, though, giving Freeport not only a chance to tie, but win.

Flack, with plenty of time to throw, led the Pretzel offense methodically down the field, setting up the attempted game-winner.

“I thought our line did a good job,” Freeport coach Terry Werntz said. “They (Hononegah) did a lot of jumping around, a lot of Jacking and Jilling as we call it, to try to get us to jump offside, and we didn’t. We feel, if you send four or five guys, we’ll be able to block you.”

Freeport opened the scoring after recovering an Indians fumble. Flack hit Gastel for a 40-yard touchdown.

Hononegah would fumble three times, but that first touchdown drive would be the only turnover the Pretzels would cash in.

With the win, Hononegah (5-1) takes over third place outright in the NIC-10, while Freeport (4-2) falls to fourth.

- Scott Holland, GateHouse News Service