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Washington Evening Journal
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Mt. Pleasant fights, but falls, in final home game
Fort Madison’s late flurry overwhelms Panther football team
MT. PLEASANT — In the middle two quarter of Mt. Pleasant’s final home game of the season, the Panthers showed they could compete. Unfortunately for the home fans, Fort Madison controlled the beginning and the end of a 55-14 Bloodhound victory.
Fort Madison rushed out to an early 21-0 lead, scoring twice in the first quarter and once early in the second, all on the ground.
Fort Madison threatened to go up four scores, holding the ball deep in Mt. Pleasant territory midway through the second quarter, but the Panther defense held the Bloodhounds to a field-goal attempt. The kick was missed, and the Panthers had a chance to cut into the lead.
Junior Zachary Newton, who stepped in as the starting quarterback for the first time in his varsity career, hit Payson Coleman with a deep ball down the sideline to flip the field. Coleman had to make a circus catch to come down with the ball, but the Panthers were in business.
Mt. Pleasant would get down inside the five, and Payton Walker scored on a short touchdown run to cut the lead down to 21-7. A key defensive pass breakup by Carson Andreasen on the ensuing Bloodhound drive stopped a potential touchdown and kept the game at two scores.
“These last few weeks, our guys have really fought,” said Mt. Pleasant head coach John Bowlin. “In the middle of the season, it looked like we could have folded in, but I think these guys are fighting like crazy.”
After a Phoenix Watson interception in the end zone halted the Bloodhounds’ first drive of the third quarter, Fort Madison would find the end zone again. Watson was on the receiving end of a long pass on the next Panther drive, and Newton scampered in for an 14-yard touchdown run, and Mt. Pleasant was back in it, at 28-14.
Fort Madison would control the fourth quarter. Quarterback Marcus Guzman ran for three touchdowns in the final period, and the Bloodhounds also had a pick-six.
The Panthers had the ball down 21 early in the fourth quarter, and nearly caught the Bloodhound defense sleeping on a fake punt attempt, but the ball fell innocently to the turf, and the Bloodhounds retook control from that point forward.
“They're giving me all they got,” Bowlin said. “We gave ourselves a chance.”
Newton completed five passes for 92 yards, and also ran for 20 yards and a touchdown in the loss. Coleman caught two passes for 47 yards, and Watson had two catches for 40.
Walker ran for 50 yards and one touchdown. He also led the Panther defense with nine tackles.
Mt. Pleasant had another good day in the kick return game. Coleman took eight returns for 193 yards, and Avin Truong broke one return for 53.
Mt. Pleasant is now 0-8 on the year. The Panthers will hit the road next Friday to take on No. 8 (3A) Davenport Assumption.
