Verbena’s trip to the postseason was short lived, as the Red Devils lost 48-25 at home against Goshen in the first round of the Class 2A state playoffs.

The Red Devils dug themselves and early deficit after Goshen scored touchdowns on its first handful of possessions of the game.

“We blew some coverage and then they just out ran us a few times,” Verbena head coach Mike Harris said.

However, Verbena’s offense came alive in the waning moments of the first half with a methodical drive that was capped off with a 4-yard slant pass from Tristan Short to Anthony Miller for the Red Devils’ first points with 24.6 seconds left.

Trailing 34-7, Verbena’s first possession of the second half picked up where it left off before the half, as Miller got things going with consecutive first down runs of 17 and 11 yards.

Short spread the ball around connecting with Juwan Tyus for a first down completion followed by a second touchdown pass to Miller to cut the score 34-13.

“Our kids aren’t quitters, but our depth and several injuries killed us this year,” Harris said.

Verbena continued to launch deep balls during the fourth quarter and connected on a pair of bombs to Imanai Walls and Tyus.

“We lost that one in the first quarter,” Harris said. “We got behind and just couldn’t quite overcome it.”

Despite the late game heroics, the Red Devils could not spur on the comeback and another successful season came to an abrupt end.

“I love these seniors,” Harris said. “They are some of the best that we’ve ever had.”