GHS Football had their first home game here in Garretson, facing off against Woonsocket/Wessington Springs/Sanborn Central on Friday, Aug. 28. Though it started out with a crowd-pleasing field goal kick by Cody Erikson, the Blue Dragons could not score after that initial success.
“We made far too many mistakes in the first half on Friday,” said head coach Chris Long. “We have to take much better care of the football to win games. It was a game we were in and could have won, without the miscues and unfortunately some injuries that set us back, we have to fight through those things, they happen.”
The game was brutal. The Dragons had trouble penetrating the Blackhawk defenses, and the Blackhawk offense was quite strong. Brady Debates, GHS senior suffered a dislocated elbow and was taken off the field for an ambulance ride.
Despite the difficulties, the Dragons continued to play hard, but steadily lost ground. Even so, they kept the Blackhawks from scoring again until the fourth quarter.
“I really liked our attitude and effort,” said Long. “We played hard the entire game, stayed positive and worked hard. We have a good group of guys that like each other and play hard. I’ m confident we will see some good things this week."
Garretson had a total of 140 offensive yards compared to the Blackhawks 151 offensive yards gained.
The key to the loss was pass completions, with rushes and four turnovers against the Dragons, two of which were interceptions. Dominic Abraham led the team in rushes with a total of 71 yards, Cason Clark with a total of 14 rushing yards. Cody Erikson scored the only Blue Dragon points with his field goal in the opening moments of the game, and he punted the ball 134 yards this game.
This Friday, the Blue Dragons hit the road to Beresford who are 0-2.
“They have some good athletes, so we will have to tackle well, execute better offensively and be disciplined and stick to our game plan," said coach Long.
