By Gabe Stark
The Trenton Telegraph

The Trenton Bulldogs hosted the Polo Panthers Friday for the first home game of the season. The festivities were short-lived as Polo left with a 22-6 victory.

Trenton opened, kicking off to the Panthers, with the ball going out of bounds, bringing the line of scrimmage back to the 35-yard line. In the first play of the game, Cooper Houser would tackle Polos’ running back for a loss of about a yard. The next two plays would have tackles by Chase Foster and a completed pass ran out of bounds, leaving the Panthers on fourth down with two yards to go. Instead of punting on the 43-yard line, the offense went for it, resulting in a 10-yard gain and a first down. What followed was a steady drive towards the end zone with the Panthers scoring their first touchdown and a subsequent two point conversion with seven minutes left in the quarter.

Cooper Houser then returned Polo’s kick with a convincing run back to the 44-yard line. Houser followed with another nice run of 17 yards. On the next play Elijah Miller ran 12 yards off the edge to take them to the Bulldogs’ 32-yard line. However, after a few tackles for a loss, the Bulldogs couldn’t keep the momentum and punted. However, a flag brought the ball back, and the Bulldogs went for it, connecting on a 24-yard pass to Elijah Miller for a first down. But a fumble ended the drive.

The Panthers drove the ball back to the 49-yard line before fumbling and giving Trenton possession with 28 seconds left in the quarter.

The Bulldogs started the second quarter on their 46-yard line, but after three tackles near the line of scrimmage and a flag, they were forced to punt on fourth down. The Panthers started their drive on the 24-yard line and kept possession of the ball for the next eight minutes before driving into the end zone.

Following a blocked two point conversion, the Panthers kicked off. Sam Ledbetter returned the ball to Trenton’s 45-yard line, leaving the Bulldogs barely a minute before half, starting their drive.

Bradley Miller started the possession with a pass to Kolt Matthews for a gain of 25 yards. However, the bulldogs couldn’t keep the drive going, and after a few attempts for a first down, Trenton turned the ball over on the 22-yard line with 21 seconds left in the half.

Trenton started the half receiving the kick at the 38-yard line. But after three plays, it was fourth and 12 yards to go, and the Bulldogs decided to punt. The Panthers then drove the ball five yards at a time, using the rest of the quarter in a single possession.

The Panthers finally scored a minute into the fourth quarter and added a two point conversion. The bulldogs then started their drive at the opposite 46-yard line, and after three first downs, Elijah Miller dove through a defender to score Trenton’s first touchdown of the night. Trenton was stopped on an attempted 2-point conversion and then had a long kick all the way to the 2-yard line. Polo then drove the ball slowly down the field before turning over on downs at the 34-yard line, leaving the Bulldogs three scores down with only a minute and twenty on the clock and the game ended three plays later.