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Indians Battle Eagles

The St. Francis Indian football team opened their 2011 season in Colby on September 2nd. The Indians played well but had difficulty converting good field position into scores when the opportunity arose.

Colby returned the kickoff to the Indian 44 yard line. The Eagles took their opening drive all the way down the field and scored a touchdown to take a 0-6 lead. Colby's fullback, Taylor, ran 15 yards for the initial score. An inaccurate snap made the hold difficult and the ball sailed to the left.

St. Francis drove down the field, but the drive stalled on the Eagle 10 yard line when a 4th down pass fell incomplete.

After the Eagles punted the ball back to the Indians, St. Francis drove the ball to the Colby 33 yard line, but could not advance the ball farther due to a mishandled snap on 4th & 5. The Indians held the Eagles defensively again and took over on their own 43 yard line after another Colby punt.

This Indian possession took the ball all the way to the Colby 1 yard line after Dylan Wolaver caught a pass from quarterback Jonathan Butler. St. Francis was in business - 1st and goal at the 1 yard line. The Colby defense rose to the occasion and the Indians could not punch the ball into the end zone. Colby took over on downs deep in their own territory.

Colby mishandled the snap on their first play from scrimmage and the Indians stopped the play in the end zone for a safety. Colby led 2-6 with 3:36 left in the half.

After the safety kick, St. Francis took over on the Colby 44 yard line. The Indians could not advance the ball and punted the ball back to the Eagles who set up on their own 5 yard line.

Colby had less that 2 minutes to try to score. Colby advanced the ball out to the Eagle 35 yard line on the first play from scrimmage. Using the sideline and timeouts to control the clock, the Eagles advanced the ball to the Indian 15 yard line on a pass to Zane Winger with 16 seconds left. The drive stalled and the Eagles took a 2-6 lead into the locker room.

St. Francis received the 3rd quarter kickoff, but fumbled the ball on the first play from scrimmage. Colby recovered on the Indian 25 yard line. On the first Eagle play from scrimmage, Brown scored a 25 yard touchdown for the Eagles. Cox ran for the two point conversion. The Indians trailed 2-14 with less than a minute gone in the 3rd period.

On the following possession, St. Francis failed to gain a 1st down and was forced to punt the ball back to the Eagles. Wienger advanced the ball to midfield, but a penalty on Colby moved the ball back to the 30 yard line. A fourth down penalty on the Eagles made it a 4th and 7 situation, and the Eagles punted the ball away. The punt rolled out of bounds at the Indian 22 yard line.

The next Indian drive appeared to stall, but an illegal participation penalty on Colby kept the drive alive near midfield. On the next series, St. Francis was forced to punt. A facemask penalty on the Indians moved the ball to the Indian 39 yard line.

Beau Brown took the ball 39 yards to paydirt on the first play from scrimmage for the Eagles. The conversion run failed. The Indians fell behind 2-20 with 1:37 left in the 3rd period. Kaleb Zwick was injured on the play and the game was delayed for more than 10 minutes.

St. Francis recovered the squib kick on the 50 yard line. The Indians soon faced 4th and 7. The Eagles were called for encroachment on the play. The Indians (2nd) fourth down pass play fell incomplete and the Eagles took over with a few seconds left in the 3rd period.

Colby methodically advanced the ball down the field to score again with 4:03 remaining. Woofter scored the touchdown on a 5 yard run. The PAT kick was short. The Indians trailed 2-26.

St. Francis recovered the squib kickoff on the Indian 42 yard line. On 2nd down, Colby intercepted a Butler pass and returned it to the Indian 49 yard line.

The Indians prevented the Eagles from earning a first down and took over the ball wilth less than two mintues to go. The clock expired with the Indians on the short end of a 2-26 score.

The Indians will play Norton in St. Francis on Friday, September 9th. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 PM.