The Knights fought and clawed their way all the way to the game’s conclusion but just didn’t have the firepower to take down Westminster. The Owls scored 21 points in the second half in a 21-19 comeback victory over the Knights.
This loss puts an end to the Knights historic 36-game win streak, but it doesn’t put an end to the Knights quest for a fourth straight state title. In the long run, what matters is not how you start but how you finish. This sentiment was shared by both players and coaches following the loss Friday night.
“Even though this was a hard loss, it was a wakeup call,” said Nick Forbes, MHS senior defensive back. “We are just going to be mad and motivated for the rest of the season.”
The Knights were down on their luck from their first offensive snap, as junior quarterback Will Davis was knocked out of the game with a hamstring injury; he did not return. This forced senior Patrick Moore, who is not even listed as a quarterback on the Knights roster, to play the rest of the game under center.
“It’s always hard to lose a starting player,” said Forbes, “especially when it’s a great QB like Will [Davis].”
The absence of Davis didn’t affect the Knights early on as the stout defense stopped the Owls spread offense with ease. Great defense led to advantageous field position for the Knights, and senior Nick Welch was able to rush for a six-yard touchdown with 1:28 left in the first quarter.
After Welch’s run and point-after attempt the Knights took a 7-0 lead. Neither defenses allowed a score until midway through the third quarter when junior running back James Early bullied his way into the end zone for a three-yard touchdown. The Knights took a 13-0 lead, as Welch’s extra-point attempt was blocked.
The momentum began to shift after Early’s touchdown, as junior quarterback Chris Lang led the Owls fast-paced offense downfield and capped off the drive with a 27-yard bullet to the wide open Zane Lewis. Ian Gould hit the extra-point and brought the Owls to within six points of the Knights with 3:15 to play in the third.
The Knights looked resilient after the Owls first score, but the Middletown defense received virtually no rest as the offense was unable to stay on the field.
Lang came out firing on the Owls next drive, and after yet another breakdown in the Knights secondary, he was able to find Patrick Fitzgerald for a 61-yard touchdown with 8:56 left. Lang finished the game with 145 yards on 13-25 passing for two touchdowns.
Suddenly, the Owls had a 14-13 lead after a Gould extra point.
After that touchdown the Knights began to unravel. Moore, backed up into his own end zone, threw a pick six. The Knights had given up 21 points in the second half. Despite all the efforts of Welch, who finished with 124 yards on 14 carries with two touchdowns, the Knights fell to the Owls, 21-19.
“We have to give out relentless effort for the full 48 minutes,” said Forbes. “We just didn’t finish.”
The Knights may have lost the game, but the season is not lost. All great streaks must come to an end.
“I think we had a lot of mistakes, and mistakes are something we have to clean up,” said Knights head coach Kevin Lynott. “We have to get back to work starting now.”
In victory or defeat, lessons can always be learned, and the Knights will take the lessons they learned from this loss forward with them.
“We learned that nothing is given to us,” said Forbes. “We have to work 100 times harder in practice now.”
Even coaches can earn from a loss as tough as this one.
“Right now we have to put to bed this week,” said Lynott. “We have to watch film and see what we have to fix. That’s how we handle it.”
