Arcanum loses season opener to Riverside

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ARCANUM – It wasn’t the start the Trojans had hoped for kicking off their 2015 football campaign at home against Riverside.

Arcanum had Riverside facing a third down and long to start the game, but Hayden Robinson slipped around the end and raced 39 yards for a touchdown to give the Pirates an early 7-0 lead at 9:24.

The Trojans on the next possession coughed up the football, giving Riverside good field position on the 44-yard line.

Once again Arcanum had Riverside with their backs up against the wall facing a third down and 26, but the Pirates struck again on a draw play as Connor Cotterman took it 32 yards for the score to go up 14-0, and that’s how the first quarter would end.

In the second period Arcanum moved the ball to midfield and stalled, but Daniel O’Donnell was able to pin Riverside on the 1-yard line with a nice punt.

The Trojans held and forced the Pirates to punt it back. This time Arcanum was able to take advantage with the short field, moving the ball into scoring position.

It was junior running back Brandon Kinney who got it across the goal line on a 1-yard plunge. Tack on O’Donnell’s extra point and Arcanum trailed 14-7.

The Trojans gave it back on the ensuing kickoff, after seemingly stopping Connor Cotterman near the 40-yard line. The senior running back slipped out of the grasp of a couple of Arcanum tacklers, raced to the outside and took it to the house, squelching any momentum the Trojans had to go up 20-7.

The score would remain 20-7 at the half.

In the second half Arcanum’s defense was rock solid, pitching a shutout, but the offense missed some scoring opportunities and the score would remain 20-7 as the clock expired with the Trojans falling in the non-conference game with Riverside.

“Here is what it boils down to, we didn’t get it done tonight,” Arcanum football coach TJ Powers said. “We didn’t block well and couldn’t get anything going offensively. It was a very frustrating night. We came out flat. I don’t know why that is; we had a great week of practice. I thought we were in better shape than them, but they came out and smacked us in the mouth, and it was just a rough night.

“On the positive side of things we didn’t quit, we played hard all night … it wasn’t a lack of effort, and after the first quarter we played great defensively,” Powers said.

Trailing late in the second half the Trojans went to the air with Pierce Lindemuth throwing a couple of completions, but Arcanum wasn’t able to finish any drives in the second half.

“We squandered too many opportunities today,” Powers said.

“We tried to find a spark. It wasn’t anything Daniel O’Donnell did … but we needed to throw the ball and try some things,” Powers added.

“We will learn from this, watch some film and improve … I told our guys we can’t dig holes, go in it and stay in it. We got to fight back out keep our heads up and get better, “ Powers concluded.

It doesn’t get any easier for Arcanum as the Trojans host Covington Friday in what will be a key early season game in the Cross County Conference.

https://www.dailyadvocate.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/web1_Riverside-web.jpgDale Barger|For The Daily Advocate

Arcanum’s Brandon Kinney looks for running room. He would eventually score on a 1-yard run for the only score of the night for Arcanum.
https://www.dailyadvocate.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/web1_Brandon-Kinney-web.jpgArcanum’s Brandon Kinney looks for running room. He would eventually score on a 1-yard run for the only score of the night for Arcanum. Dale Barger|For The Daily Advocate

By Dale Barger

For The Daily Advocate

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