Spencer/Columbus falls to Auburndale in season opener
The Spencer/Columbus Rockets football team played its first game at home on Aug. 23 against Auburndale. An inability to score in the first half of the game put the Rockets behind offensively during the game, resulting in a 42-21 loss.
While the Rockets did have a couple drives that took them down the field in the first half of the game, none of those drives resulted in points. Auburndale managed to score three times in the first half to put them up 21-0 at the end of the half.
The Rockets came back from halftime with the drive to score points. In the third quarter, Rockets quarterback Devlin Timmler threw a 10-yard pass caught by Mac Konieczny for the team’s first touchdown of the game. The Rockets scored again on their next possession off a 35-yard throw by Timmler to Teddy Meyer. Auburndale also scored two touchdowns in the third quarter.
With the score 35-14, the fourth quarter of the game saw Spencer/Columbus score one more touchdown on a handoff from Konieczny to Carter Luepke. It wasn’t enough to overcome Auburndale, as they scored another touchdown near the end of the game to win 42-21.
In the game, Timmler had 194 passing yards and a 20/27 completion record for the Rockets, throwing for two touchdowns and one interception. Also on offense, Jack Hooper had 84 rushing yards on 14 carries, with his longest run being 15 yards. Luepke had 33 yards on five carries, and his longest run was 16 yards. For wide receivers, Meyer had 96 receiving yards and caught seven passes, while Kaleb Hilgemann caught three passes for 35 yards. On defense, Luepke had four takedowns and one assist and Hilgemann had four takedowns and four assists.
Reporter Cheyenne Thomas contributed to this article.
At right, Spencer/Columbus player Mac Konieczny darts out from behind the line of scrimmage to complete a running play for the Rockets. He didn’t gain any yardage on the play, but he did later catch three passes for the team, one of which led to a touchdown.
CHEYENNE THOMAS/STAFF PHOTO
