When Nate Frimpong moved from England to Columbia in 2006, he thought he would be a soccer player, as he had been back home. Frimpong is not playing soccer, but he is still winning games with his foot.

On Saturday afternoon at Hammond, Frimpong recovered his own onside kick with 45 seconds left, then kicked a 41-yard field goal as time expired to give the Scorpions a 9-7 win over the Golden Bears.

I'm happy, that's what I wanted. I always dreamed about doing the game-winning kick," Frimpong said. "The feeling's amazing. We're going to go home and have some fun tonight."

For 43 minutes, neither team could get anything going offensively. But with just over three minutes left in the game, Hammond quarterback Sam Plazak hit receiver Taylor Kopnitsky up the middle for a 45-yard touchdown and then kicked the extra point for a 7-0 lead. The Scorpions responded with an 86-yard drive after a high snap on the first play pinned them back on their own 14-yard line. Quarterback Neko Rynn-Mason connected with sophomore Adam Reed for 42 yards on four completions, setting up a 31-yard TD pass to Shamal Marryshow, who tip-toed up the sideline to score with 44 seconds left. The Scorpions could have tried to tie the game by kicking the extra point, but instead decided to go for two and win the game in regulation.

"When you're on the road, you go for the win," Oakland Mills coach Jim Riss said.

The play failed, leaving Oakland Mills behind, 7-6. That's when Frimpong's onside kick gave the Scorpions another chance.

"I was just there and it was just me and a Hammond kid underneath, but I had more of the ball," Frimpong said. "As soon as I recovered that fumble, (my teammates) were like, 'You're going to be kicking soon.' "

Rynn-Mason completed passes of 22 and 4 yards to Reed which put the ball on the Hammond 27-yard line and within Frimpong's range for a field-goal attempt.

"We know (if) we get around the 30-yard line or shorter, this kid can hit," Riss said. "He cleared (the crossbar) by a good bit."

Plazak passed for 127 yards with one TD and one interception. Rynn-Mason had 150 yards passing (101 of them in fourth quarter) with one interception and a touchdown. Reed was the game's leading receiver, catching seven passes for 73 yards. Six of his seven catches came in the fourth quarter.

The Scorpions (1-2) go for two straight wins Saturday, Sept. 27 when they host Howard at 2 p.m. Hammond (0-3) will be looking for its first win of the season Friday, Sept. 26 when it hosts Glenelg at 7 p.m.

For more on this game and other county football contests, read Thursday's editions of the Howard County Times and the Columbia Flier.

OAKLAND MILLS 9, HAMMOND 7
Oakland Mills (1-2)    0  0  0  9  -  9
Hammond (0-3)         0  0  0  7  -  7
Scoring Summary
Fourth quarter
Ha: Kopnitsky 45 pass from Plazak (Plazak kick), 3:08
OM: Marryshow 31 pass from Rynn-Mason (run failed), :44
OM: Frimpong 41 FG, :00

RELATED STORY: 2008 Howard County Football Standings

This is an edited version of a previously published story

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