The Manual Crimsons won 7-6 against the Western Warriors last night. It was the first win for Manual this season.
The game started with Western’s kickoff to Manual. Manual’s first drive stalled at midfield and from there it continued to happen for the rest of the quarter.
Manual’s second drive broke into Western’s territory followed by an off-sides penalty against Western giving Manual their first down of the night. At the end of the first quarter, Manual lost the ball and the game was tied 0-0.
Western started the second quarter with possession of the ball on their 18 yard line. Western quarterback, Tyon Pearson (#1,12), dropped the ball and with the pass falling incomplete, Western punted to Manual. Deaaron Robinson (#20,10) caught the ball on the 45 yard line and rushed the ball 5 yards giving Manual another first down.
After getting the ball to the 32 yard line, a penalty against Alex Conlin (#10,11) resulted in an 18 yard loss.
It was back and forth on both sides of the field but neither team could break through the other’s defensive line. By the end of the first half, the game was still stuck at 0-0.
Beginning of the third quarter, Manual kicked to Western. Western gained their first down and continued to move across the field. Kenneth Thompson (#25, 12) had a 20 yard gain. Shortly after, Tyon Pearson (#1,12) ran the ball in for a touchdown by the Warriors. A bad snap lead to a bad kick so the score was now 6-0.
Although the Crimsons were trailing, they did not give up hope.
Western had possession of the ball again at the start of the fourth quarter. Manual’s defense held up and Western punted to the Crimsons.
With 9:00 left in the game, Manual got the ball on the 50 yard line. Conlin threw a long, 50 yard pass to Marcis Floyd (#2, 12) as he ran in for the Crimsons’ touchdown of the night.
Nick Kopp (#9,12) followed up with a good kick putting Manual in the lead 7-6.
“It was a great feeling after the touchdown tonight. We’re finally winning and we can get better from it,” Floyd said.
Western got the ball back with 7:45 to go. They took the ball to midfield and a bad snap over the quarterback lead to an 18 yard loss to the Warriors. They couldn’t recover from their lost yardage and Manual took over the ball and ran out the clock.
“I feel like it’s a good loss. We loss but our team gained a lot from it and we just have to go back Monday with a strong mindset and get ready for next week,” Western’s quarterback, Pearson said.
“It’s our first win and we’re just moving forward from it with a positive mindset only. We executed today and we came out and won because we deserved it. We need to have faith and go and practice hard for the homecoming game next week,” Aidan Robbins (#7,11) said.
The Crimsons play Ballard next week on Sept. 18 at 7:30 p.m. at Manual Stadium.
