A confident approach and a strong finish put the Warrenton football team in firm position for its first victory of the season last Friday. Following a 0-3 start, the Warriors opened GAC North action …
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A confident approach and a strong finish put the Warrenton football team in firm position for its first victory of the season last Friday. Following a 0-3 start, the Warriors opened GAC North action with a 37-20 home triumph over St. Charles.
“This provides big momentum for us,” said Coach Steve McDowell. “We told the kids to concentrate on these conference games coming up.”
It wasn’t smooth sailing from the onslaught though, as neither team managed to hang on to possession.
“The first half of the ballgame was kind of sloppy,” said McDowell. “Both sides had a lot of fumbles and went back and forth.”
Ultimately, the Warriors were able to gain the advantage in the turnover battle.
“It was a big key for us Friday night, getting those turnovers in a positive direction,” said McDowell. “We gave the ball over a few times in the first half, but our kids came out in the second half and played great football.”
After a scoreless first quarter, St. Charles got on the board first, but Warrenton junior quarterback Caelon Weir used what McDowell tabbed as his best performance of the season to put the Warriors in control. The signal caller completed 15 of 22 passes for 293 yards and three touchdowns.
“He really did a great job for us,” said McDowell. “He made a lot of good key reads, and we used some run-pass option with him on slants. We knew if we could execute those, it would really benefit us.”
Warrenton tied the game on a one-yard run by senior Nick Mertens in the second quarter and took the lead on a 60-yard touchdown pass to junior Quincy McRoberts.
Locked in a 14-14 matchup at halftime, the Warriors again looked to McRoberts in the third period. Typically more dominant in the run game, he cut loose for a 70-yard touchdown pass to push Warrenton ahead for good.
“They were able to make it 14-14 after a turnover by us, but after that we were really able to execute on offense,” said McDowell. “We took the lead and began to build on it.”
McRoberts finished with 142 yards receiving, along with a team-best 45 rushing yards on seven carries.
“Quincy was able to take some five yard passes out of the backfield and make some big gains,” said McDowell. “He and Kolby Meine had some key catches, along with Mertens.”
Meine hauled in a 19-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter, while junior Isaiah Jones scored on a five-yard run.
“We dominated the ball on both sides of scrimmage in the second half, which was key,” said McDowell.
“Jack did a great job for us at the defensive end position,” said McDowell. “He came across and got a key sack really late in the third quarter that gave us an advantage. We were really able to stand up to them defensively in the second half.”
The Warriors are preparing to host St. Charles West this week in another GAC North matchup.
