Saturday morning marked the opening game in the 7th and 8th grade season. The opener was against Northlake Christian on E. A. Farley Field. The Crusader defense was dominant throughout the first half, not allowing their opponent to cross the 50 the entire half. Led by quarterback Benjamin Chaplain and running back Zachary Repath, the Crusader offense was just as compelling, with every offensive play of the half taking place in Northlake Christian territory. However, due to a couple of turnovers, the Crusaders were unable to capitalize. The score remained 0-0 at halftime.
The second half proved to be much of the same. Even with a few sustained drives, the Crusaders could not find the endzone in the 2nd half. The game looked to be in jeopardy late in the 4th when Northlake Christian put together a drive all the way down to the Crusader 25 yard line, but a key interception by Aubrey Magoun put things to a halt and forced overtime.
In overtime, each team receives the ball at the opponent’s 10 yard line and has 4 downs to score. The Crusader defense was up to the challenge, holding Northlake Christian from scoring, but the offense couldn’t put the game away. Northlake was finally able to put points on the board in the 2nd overtime, but failed to convert the 2 point conversion. Unfortunately, the Crusader offense was unable to break through and came up about a yard short on 4th and goal. Even though the Crusaders fell 0-6, they left everything they had on the field and didn’t disappoint.
The next games for the teams are as follows:
