haps lacking some of the ….
haps lacking some of the explosive plays they’ve had in games prior, was effective at times. Mateo Lopez had gotten the scoring started in the first quarter with a 14-yard run on their third possession of the game and Tucker Meyer found his tight end Kaden Wiese on a pop pass for a three-yard touchdown pass midway through the second quarter. Healy added a third touchdown in the third quarter on an eight-yard scamper that put the Hornets up 21-0. However, some good plays from Pittsville’s defense to stall out multiple drives by the Hornets kept the Panthers in the game.
“This was a very good Pittsville defense that we went up against,” head coach Jim Hagen said. “Give them a lot of credit for the good game plan. They made it difficult at times to get anything going consistently and they didn’t allow us to get any big plays.”
Adding to this, the Hornets had several miscues on the offensive side of the ball. After an impressive interception along the sideline in the first quarter by Lopez, Colby drove the ball down into the red zone but came away with no points after the Panthers forced them into a field goal attempt that sailed wide of the uprights. Then, with time running out in the second quarter, Colby drove down to the Panther’s one yard line but mishandled an exchange. The ball was loose and Pittsville came up with the fumble recovery.
“I thought we didn’t have great focus going into this game and at times it showed,” Hagen said. “Fumbling down on the goalline right before half, missing an easy field goal early in the game, not finishing blocks and not converting on some third down plays.”
All of this led to a game that felt like it had been controlled by the Hornets, but Pittsville was still very much within striking distance. A quick hit pass across the middle to Waylon Grimm late in the fourth quarter went for 67 yards, the speedy Robida the only thing stopping the touchdown. But the Panthers would not be denied, punching the ball in two plays later.
However, time was not on Pittsville’s side, and after failing to follow up on their next possession, the game was all but over. The Panthers did make a push into Hornet territory on their last drive of the game, but Colby once again stopped them from scoring.
Offensively, Healy once again led the way for the Hornets. He ran the ball 25 times for 99 yards and a touchdown. Tevin Rue added six carries for 27 yards and Lopez finished with five for 46 yards and a touchdown.
Quarterback Tucker Meyer completed ten of his 20 pass attempts, ending the night with 78 yards and a touchdown. He found Rue four times for 22 yards, Healy twice for 19, and Wiese twice for 11 yards and a score. Robida and Lopez each had a catch for 16 and ten yards respectively.
Colby’s defense held Pittsville to only 115 yards, over half of which were gained on the long pass play in the fourth quarter. Voss led the way with seven tackles, followed by Erik Martinez, Oscar Zamora, and Lopez who had four each. Lopez had an interception in his third straight game, bringing his season total to four and Robida picked off Hardinger in the third quarter.
The Hornets look to remain undefeated as they head to Marathon to take on the Red Raiders on September 30. Marathon fell to Auburndale 50-22 last week after beating Abbotsford in their Marawood conference opener, giving them an overall record of 3-3. Game time is slated for 7:00 p.m.
