Up against an imposing Washington front line, the Warrenton football team found itself outmatched and hurried during a Week Three 30-7 road setback.

The Warriors’ lone touchdown came off a special teams breakthrough, resulting in favorable field position and a subsequent score. Beyond that, moving the ball proved difficult much of the night.

“We knew it was going to be a battle going in,” said Coach Steve McDowell. “They’re huge up front and have a pair of defensive ends like I’ve not seen in a long time. We just weren’t able to do anything against that defensive front.”

Warrenton managed just 129 yards of total offense, with 53 of those coming through the air. Junior quarterback Caelon Weir finished 6 of 12 throwing the ball.

“We threw a lot of short routes to get what we could to move the ball,” said McDowell. “Caelon had some good throws when he had time. He was under pressure quite a bit when he dropped back. Their defense was pretty staunch.”

The Warriors were also limited in the running game, with leading rusher Quincy McRoberts sidelined for the week with an ankle injury. In his absence, Warrenton mustered just 76 yards on the heels of five different players. Senior Connor Tittel led the way with 32 yards on 10 carries, including the only trip to the end zone.

“We punted the ball, which hit their returner, and we recovered for possession,” said McDowell. “Connor made a nice play on offense and was able to get to the ball to the outside and score. It put us in the game and got our kids excited.”

Combined with early shutdowns of Washington, Tittel’s score guided the Warriors into the second quarter notched at 7-7.

“We started out great defensively,” said McDowell. “We forced a turnover first thing off the bat. On the second play from scrimmage we recovered a fumble. We were able to get a recovery there but couldn’t do anything with it at the time. They’re a pretty stout defense.”

The Blue Jays continued to pound the ball in the second period, scoring on a pair of short runs en route to a 21-7 halftime advantage.

“They brought a lot of pressure on our passing downs,” said McDowell. “We couldn’t get a lot going offensively.”

Washington tacked on two more scores in the third quarter, including a safety and a two-yard scamper.

“I was proud of the way the boys played,” said McDowell. “They never quit at any point in time and gave everything they had.”

Senior Jacob Parker finished with 20 yards rushing on six carries. Senior Andrew Cox and Tittel each had two receptions, with 12 and 10 yards, respectively.

Defensively, seniors Shane Brosenne, Tyler Conoyer and Nick Mertens each had six total tackles, with Cox recording a sack. Juniors Kolby Meine and John Starkey and sophomore Colton Brosenne each recovered a fumble.

Warrenton will host St. Charles this Friday.

“They’re going to try to spread the ball out and usually go in a doubles type of offense formation,” said McDowell. “They like to run the ball and run a lot of zone. We’ll have to be really disciplined and execute everything fundamentally.”