Slow start dooms Bulldogs in 27-14 loss at Polo

The Trenton Bulldogs showed an improved level of football over the final 2 1/2 quarters of Friday’s Grand River Conference football game at Polo, but falling into a 19 point hole early doomed THS, in a 27-14 final from Bob Shearer Stadium, broadcast on Hot Country Z 101.7.

Polo, taking the ball to start the game, scored on the second play from scrimmage, with Cody Blackwell racing 59 yards for a touchdown.  The two-point conversion rub by Caleb Thompson gave the Panthers an 8-0 lead.  That advantage doubled with 1:30 left in the first quarter, on a direct snap to Mason Chapman, with the junior back running to his left, against the flow of the Trenton defense, to go 21 yards for the score.  Blackwell added the two-point conversion via the ground.

One of the top kickers in the Grand River Conference, senior Killian Roark, pushed Polo’s lead to 19-0 early in the second quarter, driving the ball squarely through the north goal posts at the stadium.

From that point, momentum began to slowly shift Trenton’s way, with an interception by Canyon Von Burg with just over 4 minutes left in the half setting up the Bulldogs with field position near mid-field.  Three minutes later, THS had its first pre-halftime points of the season, on a 4 yard quarterback keeper by Coleman Griffin.  The two-point conversion failed, leaving Trenton down 19-6 at the half.

Perhaps the biggest impediment to the Bulldogs hopes of a rally came midway through the third quarter, as Trenton, starting the half with the ball, drove the ball inside the Polo 25 yard line, only to see the drive stall on downs, leaving Trenton with the confidence of a sustained drive that flipped field position, but the nagging frustration of being unable to chop into the lead.

The letdown for the Bulldogs got worse on the Polo drive, as a long run by Blackwell put the Panthers inside the Trenton 10 yard line.  Two plays later, junior Nic Covey scored on a three yard dive, with a two-point pass from Thompson to Chapman pushing the lead to 27-6.

The only points scored in the fourth quarter went to the Bulldogs, as Quincy Griffin broke a tackle in the backfield and dashed his way to the left pylon for a rushing score with 3:35 to go, with Griffin adding the two-point run on a similar looking play, cutting the lead to 27-14.  An onside kick for THS failed, and no more scoring was done by either side.

For Polo (2-4, 2-2), Blackwell had 17 carries for 136 yards.  Trenton had Payden McCullough with 16 carries for 63 yards, Coleman Griffin 14 carries for 57 yards, and Quincy Griffin six carries for 43 yards.  The Bulldogs (0-4, 0-2) will travel to Maysville to play the Wolverines on Friday, October 9th on Hot Country Z 101.7, with Polo’s next opponent, also traveling to Polo High School, sitting as the Princeton Tigers, coming into this week’s game on a two-game winning streak.

Here is the high school football scoreboard from Friday, October 2, 2020: 

Princeton 30, Maysville 14 (on KTTN FM 92.3) 

Milan 43, Gallatin 20 

South Harrison 62, Putnam County 14

Mid-Buchanan 63, Penney 6

East Buchanan 42, Plattsburg 16

West Platte 32, Lathrop 19

Lawson 42, North Platte 14

Higginsville 44, Holden 0 

Richmond 44, Carrollton 6

Lexington 50, El Dorado Springs 20 

St. Joseph Lafayette 33, Chillicothe 7 

Savannah 69, Cameron 14

Monroe City 26, Brookfield 12

Centralia 50, Cuba 12

Grain Valley 38, Kearney 14

Smithville 27, Grandview 12

Palmyra 15, Clark County 14

Macon 50, South Shelby 0 

Columbia Battle 37, Moberly 36

Hannibal 47, Kirksville 14

Mexico 49, Fulton 28 

Oak Grove 29, Pleasant Hill 28 

Marceline 58, St. Joseph Christian 14

Westran 26, Scotland County 12

Fayette 32, Paris 0 

Harrisburg 72, Russellville 22

Knox County 42, Salisbury 12

8 MAN 

North Andrew 36, Stanberry 6

Pattonsburg 86, Rich Hill 56

Albany 52, Schuyler County 14

East Atchison 34, Mound City 6

King City 52, Rock Port 32

North Shelby 56, Keytesville-Northwestern 6

Jasper 32, Braymer 8 

Liberal 46, Norborne/Hardin-Central 34

Worth County 56, Orrick 40

South Holt / Nodaway-Holt 56, Stewartsville-Osborn 6

Southwest Livingston 60, Platte Valley 6

Northwest Nodaway 54, DeKalb 8 

Bishop LeBlond 60, KC East Christian 44

St. Paul Lutheran 42, Santa Fe 14