By Sam Parsons
The Oskaloosa Indians traveled to Burlington on Friday night before Labor Day weekend and engaged in a back-and-forth matchup with the Grayhounds, but they ultimately fell short, 26-21.
Osky and Burlington traded early defensive stops, with the Indians reaching the opposing 2-yard line before being turned away on a 4th down conversion attempt in the 4th quarter. But Oskaloosa struck first in quarter #2 when junior Carter Jordan ran for a 10-yard touchdown, putting the Indians up 7-0.
Burlington would be quick to respond, as running back Justin Hudley – who ran for 147 yards on 24 carries in the game – took a handoff into the end zone from 6 yards out. A successful 2-point conversion attempt put the Grayhounds up 8-7 midway through the second quarter. They would add to their lead in the final minute of the first half when Caden Zaugg tossed his first of 3 touchdown passes on the night, a 20-yard toss to tight end Kevin Brown in the end zone on third down with 39 seconds remaining. That was followed by an unsuccessful 2-point conversion attempt, and the score was 14-7 going into halftime with Burlington on top.
Oskaloosa would tie it up late in the 3rd quarter when senior Tyler Edgar found senior Cael Ashman for a 33-yard touchdown and senior Ayden Plumb tacked on the extra point. But Burlington again provided an answer, this time in the 4th quarter as Zaugg connected with Brown once more, this time from 23 yards out, putting the Grayhounds up 20-14 with 6:41 left.
Then, Oskaloosa happened upon their biggest play of the night: a short kickoff by Burlington was muffed by senior Kolby Williams, but Williams quickly gathered the ball and sprinted up the field. Oskaloosa’s kickoff return unit created a massive hole in the middle of the formation, and Williams ran roughly 65 yards all the way to the end zone for a kickoff return touchdown to give Oskaloosa the lead, 21-20 with 6:28 remaining.
Burlington, however, would answer the bell once again. Oskaloosa’s defense forced a 3rd-and-28 situation at Burlington’s 48 yard line after a bad snap and some Grayhound penalties. But Zaugg was able to find receiver Detayvion Pearson streaking down the left sideline, and Pearson scampered all the way into the end zone for a 52-yard score. Another unsuccessful 2-point conversion left the score at 26-21 favoring Burlington with just over 4 minutes left.
Osky’s final attempt at a comeback came up short when Burlington defensive back Roy Brown made an interception on a deep pass attempt. Burlington was able to churn out 14, 9, and 10 yard runs to ice the game and run the clock down to zero, and the final score was 26-21.
Oskaloosa (0-2) will travel to Mount Pleasant on Friday night in pursuit of their first win.
