Bulldogs defeat Rising Star 54-6

By Kathy Thomson

Moran defeated the Rising Star Wildcats last Friday night, Sept. 6 by a score of 54-6 to improve their record to 2-0.

For the second time in as many weeks, the Bulldogs were able to claim victory over an opponent by the rule of 45 during the third quarter, and head coach John Hughes was pleased with his team’s performance.

“The game went well, as we fixed a lot of the mistakes from last week,” Hughes said. “We still came out a little slow, but it was understandable considering we were playing at home for the first time this year.”

The coach said that he was proud of his players.

“These young men that I get to coach this year continue to amaze me,” he said. 

Hughes said that his players will be preparing for what is expected to be a tough road game on Friday night.

“This week we have to get ready for a Sidney team that is coming off two very close losses,” coach Hughes said. “Sidney is a young team, but they will present a challenge to us. The guys will need to continue to work and improve each week as the season progresses.”

Upcoming Schedule

The Bulldogs take on the Eagles this Friday, Sept. 13 at 7:30 p.m. in Sidney, and they continue on the road the following Friday, Sept. 20 against Rotan.

The ’Dawgs are open on Sept. 27.

Moran’s homecoming is set for Oct. 4 against Chillicothe. 

Junior High Football

The junior high Bulldogs’ first game of the season starts at 5:30 p.m. this evening, Sept. 12, at Bulldog Stadium when they host Sidney.

The middle school team is open on Sept. 19 before traveling to Strawn on Thursday, Sept. 26 for a 6:00 p.m. kickoff.

Rising Star Game 

Moran finished with 198 yards rushing and a total of 153 passing yards on nine completions out of 15 attempts by sophomore quarterback Braden Crow.

Leading the Bulldogs in scoring was Arren Hawley, who tallied up 23 yards on two carries for one TD and also caught a pair of passes for 26 yards including another score. In addition, the sophomore put three of seven PATs through the uprights for six more points.

Senior Jonas Sotelo carried 13 times for 133 yards and two touchdowns.

Also contributing to the Bulldog win was sophomore Lyric Huskey with 43 yards on five handoffs and another 32 on two receptions including one for a TD.

Senior Harley Schafer caught three passes for a total of 67 yards including one TD. Sophomore Trey Cox found pay dirt on one of his two receptions.

Junior Colby Bell added four yards to the rushing total and six points to the scoreboard on his two carries.

Defensive standouts included Huskey and Sotelo with an interception each and freshman Memphis McGough with a fumble recovery.

Sotelo was credited with a total of nine tackles and assists including one sack. Crow and Schafer each had half a dozen tackles to their credit, while Hawley and Huskey added five each and Cox was credited with one.