TURNOVERS DOOM BULLPUP FRESHMEN!
By William for www.mcpherson-county-ks.com
(Post is SPONSORED by CROSSDOVE WRITERS)
ANDALE – It was two costly turnovers that turned the tide for the McPherson High freshman football team as they tumbled on the road Monday at Andale, losing 26-6.
After Andale went up 14-0 with a first quarter touchdown and then another score early in the second quarter, the Bullpups were making an offensive drive in the final minutes of the half and had the ball near the red zone with half a minute to go when disaster struck. That disaster was an interception of a Hunter Alvord pass which Andale returned 95 yards to score and take a more commanding 20-0 lead into the halftime break.
“Andale is a physical football team and came out running downhill,” noted Freshman Head Coach Heath Gerstner. “It took our guys a while to adjust to that style, but we are really proud of the fight in our guys. With the interception just before half, it really took wind out of our sails and we were concerned as coaches at half, but our guys really did not feel sorry for themselves and played with extreme effort in the second half!”
Hoping to get themselves back into the game, the Bullpups took the second half kickoff and marched the length of the field when just as they were about to put points on the scoreboard, that bug called a turnover zapped them once again. Like just before the end of the first half, it was an interception that shut the doors on scoring, at least for the time being.
While Andale upped their lead to 26-0 early in the fourth quarter, McPherson still did not give up and continued to move the ball consistently and finally reached the end zone on a quarterback scramble by Hunter Alvord from five yards out to put six points on the board for the Bullpups.
Coach Gerstner concluded his post-game reflections by saying, “Coach (David) Goerzen and myself really enjoy coaching these guys. They are a coachable group and were making adjustments on the fly today. This group of freshmen are special and if they continue to play as hard as they did in the second-half, they have a bright future.”
Next up for the Bullpup freshman football team will be next Monday, September 30 when they play host to Abilene.
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