By Patrick MacCoonRecord Sports EditorWhile Wright City dropped a heartbreaking 14-12 contest against Orchard Farm on Friday, one thing in particular stood out to first-year Head Coach Jeff Sargent after reminiscing on the Week 2 contest.The fight his team showed in the second half was something out of the ordinary for a program which in the past would have been known to fold instead of embrace an uphill battle.Instead of letting frustrations continue to mount on offense, the Wildcats (1-1) came out and scored the only two touchdowns in the second half for either side. The offense gained 250 yards in the second half and had a chance to put together a game-winning drive if not for a holding call, which created a first-and-35 situation they could not overcome.Sargent’s message in the halftime locker room stuck with several of his players.“We came out flat on offense and basically, I just told them how embarrassing it was for us to be shut out in the first half,” Sargent said. “I challenged them and asked who would step up and make plays. We are very capable of playing like we did in the second half for all four quarters and if we do that every week we will win those games.”Senior running back DeRenzo Blanks came out of the break on a mission and took his coach’s words to heart.In the final half, Blanks totaled 81 of his 116 rushing yards. The powerful back also set up the first score for Wright City. Following his blockers, Blanks broke free for a 44-yard run to set up the ball on the Orchard Farm five-yard line. Kyle Tuepker finished off the drive with a touchdown on a pitch play to the right side. Just 1:53 in to the new half of football for the Wildcats, they trailed 14-6.“For us to not score in the first half was kind of shocking to us all,” Blanks said. “We knew the team that showed up in the first half wasn’t us, so we came out with a lot more power and energy in the second half. Sargent really motivated us and he sparked a flame in us we don’t think will go out anytime soon. We have a lot of playmakers and we are going to make sure we do all we can to not start out flat again like that.”Wright City’s defense posted its third three-and-out after its first score and a special team’s punt block by Trey Saddler handed even more momentum to the home sideline.The Wildcats’ offense scored on its second drive as well as a new intensity on offense was put on display.Troy Muse capped off the eight-play 37-yard scoring drive with a 10-yard touchdown reception from Andrew Pfuhl on fourth-and-five.“It felt great to score on that fourth-down play,” Muse said. “At that point, I knew scoring was our only option. Andrew threw a great ball and I knew I didn’t want to come up short of the end zone.”With 5:14 left in the third quarter, Wright City only trailed by two.The third quarter came to a conclusion with the Wildcats offense yet again moving the chains and remaining on the field. Orchard Farm was unable to force a punt or turnover on downs in the third quarter.“After that third quarter it seemed like everything was going our way,” Sargent said. “We scored on both drives in the third quarter, but then we didn’t come through when it mattered most.”Wright City gave up a turnover on downs as a fourth-and-two from the Orchard Farm 30-yard line went awry on a deep incomplete pass.The Wildcats defense continued its second-half shutout of the Eagles and gave its offense one last time to put together a game-winning drive.A holding penalty set up Wright City for a tough second-and-35 backed up inside its own 20.Muse slipped away from defenders for a 28-yard catch down the sidelines to set up a manageable third down.However, the next two pass attempts fell incomplete and Orchard Farm took over with 1:49 left and converted one first down to end the game.Even though the loss marked the fifth straight to the Eagles, it was not similar to any of the previous four in which the Wildcats were outscored by a total of 128 points.“I had a lot of people come to me after the game and tell me that previous Wright City football teams would have folded and not fought back like we did in the second half,” Sargent said. “These guys didn’t give up and they learned a great deal from this game by watching film from it already. We are shaping a new culture here and we expect to be in contention throughout the entire season to compete in our district and beat teams we haven’t in the past.”Muse finished with 89 of his 115 receiving yards in the second half. Through two games, the senior receiver leads the Eastern Missouri Conference with 251 receiving yards on 15 catches and two touchdowns.Wright City limited Orchard Farm to 293 yards of offense compared to its 355.In Week 3, Wright City will go up against Montgomery County looking to strike back with an offensive explosion.“I’m going to do everything I can to make sure my players are prepared to find out what a blowout win is about this week,” Sargent said. “We want to be able to come out quick every week and that’s what we plan on doing from here on out.”

Wright City defensive end David Ortega brings down Orchard Farm quarterback DJ Kemp in the backfield during the first quarter Friday. Ortega finished with several tackles for loss in a narrow 14-12 loss for the Wildcats in their home opener.

Patrick MacCoon photo.