The Harrisburg Bulldogs charged into Marceline with an upset on their minds and for awhile at the end of the first half, it looked as if there was a chance. The Tigers of Marceline, however, scored five touchdowns in the second half to make the final score 50-14.

“They were a better team and there was a moment, where we kind of, may have  had a scare in them,” said Bulldog coach Steve Hopkins. “They responded like a championship team should. We lost a numbers game as we were without our two tight ends but that wouldn’t have mattered. They were the superior team tonight and when it came down to it, boy they performed outstandingly and did a great job.”

Marceline, put early pressure on the Bulldogs as they scored twice in the first quarter before Harrisburg found the end zone late in the first half on a Wyatt Robinson run that covered 86 yards and cut Marceline’s lead to eight points. 

The Bulldogs mounted another drive and were able to take the ball down to the Marceline 3-yard line before the end of the half but the drive stalled there. “If I had called a different play, maybe we score there.” Coach Hopkins said. “That was a great, great effort by (senior running back) Wyatt Robinson. He certainly gave us every opportunity to win this game tonight, for what he could do. But there were a lot of other kids, too. We just came up short against a superior team.”

Robinson rushed for 152 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries. Junior Jace Carr hauled in five passes for 59 yards while senior Justus Whitaker accounted for three more receptions for 30 yards.

The beginning of the second half brought about what seemed to be a different ballgame. Marceline came out strong taking a 30-6 lead on two touchdowns and a safety before Jace Carr reeled in an 11-yard touchdown pass from Quarterback Tanner Lanes cutting the Tiger lead to 30-14.

Marceline completed the scoring with three touchdowns to finish the game at 50-16.

Despite falling short in the final score, the Bulldogs did not roll over. Junior quarterback Tanner Lanes completed 13 of 21 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown.

Marceline will play Milan in its next encounter as they attempt to advance while Harrisburg finishes its year at 8-4 and looks to a future without five players that completed their high school careers Friday night. Seniors Robinson, Whitaker, Kevin Raines, Dayton Samuels, and Gram Benton all lent different qualities to the program. “We’re going to miss every one of them,” Coach Hopkins said. “We stressed to them that their value as an individual is not based on a win-loss record or what they accomplish on the football field. They have value as an individual just because they are and I really want them to know that because right now it feels hard, it feels very painful.”

On the season Marceline moves to 2-0 over the Bulldogs, outscoring Harrisburg 106-22.