Warriors break through
CHERRY TWP — Homecoming wasn't the only thing to celebrate Friday night at Moniteau High School. The Warriors defeated Redbank Valley for the team's first win of the season, a 32-8 victory.
“It feels good,” Warriors coach Jeff Campbell said. “We've been in a lot of games, and we just haven't been able to finish.”
Both teams got off to slow starts, and Moniteau found itself making the first crucial mistake. The Warriors fumbled the ball on the first play of their second possession after gaining just 2 yards on their opening drive.
Fortunately for the Warriors, the Bulldogs were not able to capitalize on the turnover.
The Warriors had the ball to begin the second quarter, and with the new quarter came new offense.
Moniteau opened up its ground attack and began slicing away at the Bulldog defense. It took 40 seconds into the quarter for the Warriors to get on the board with Dustin Geagan's 4-yard touchdown. Geagan started the game at quarterback due to injury.The extra point was missed and the Warriors were up 6-0.
“It was a big change,” Geagan said of playing quarterback. “Whatever is best for the team I'm willing to do, and I'm glad that we finally got a win out of it.”
Moniteau's defense was quickly able to force Redbank Valley into a punting situation, and got the ball back just over two minutes later with great field position at the 50-yard line.
From there it took the Warriors just three plays, all on the ground, to put another score on the board. This time, running behind a strong offensive line, Geagan scored from 47 yards out, and a failed two-point conversion run by Trevor Shaffer kept the score 12-0.
“I think that's the best game they (offensive line) have played all year,” Geagan said. “I think that gives us momentum for the next few games.”
Redbank Valley seemed to gain some momentum when a tipped pass from Geagan was intercepted by the Bulldog defense near midfield. Despite the defense's efforts, the offense was stifled by the Warriors and was forced to punt yet again.
The combination of Shaffer and and fellow junior running back Stephen Hagg showcased their talents on the ensuing drive and led the Warriors to a touchdown at 4:07, and ultimately a halftime lead of 18-0.
“These guys did a wonderful job tonight,” Campbell said.
The Bulldogs marched 79 yards in six plays to their first score of the game early in the third period — a Brandon Bailey 34-yard touchdown run. The Bulldogs would go for two and convert, making the score 18-8.
That was all Redbank could put together as the stifling Warrior defense shut it down throughout the remainder of the game. They forced Bulldog quarterback Jake Dougherty to beat them with his arm, but it was too tall of an order.
Moniteau scored two more times on runs by Shaffer and Andrew Armagost of 25 and 8 yards, respectively.
A balanced running attack and few mistakes were big keys to victory for Campbell.
“We've shot ourselves in the foot so many times this year it's killed us. A lot of that is indicative of young kids,” Campbell said.
Moniteau (1-5, 0-2) travels to St. Marys next Friday.
“It's going to be a tough game,” Campbell said. “It's a tough place to play.”
