GAS CITY – For a standard high school football game that has 48 minutes of regulation, it certainly seemed a lot longer than that for the Manchester Squires. Unofficially, Friday night’s matchup lasted just over three hours, in which the Squires had to endure a 57-13 loss to the host Mississinewa Indians. Debuting as head coach after leaving North Miami last season, Greg Miller and his squad did not have this in mind. “Mississinewa has a very good ball club, I am not going to take anything away from them,” Miller said. “Coach Funk knows his systems and plays, and they run it very well.” Mistakes proved costly for the Squires (0-1), as they committed five turnovers and converted just three first downs. “We have just got to bounce back,” Miller said. “I don’t think our effort or our play is indicative of the score. I thought we had opportunities.” The Squires took advantage of the first opportunity they had right away. On the opening drive for the Indians, Peyton Lowe returned a kickoff to the Squires’ 29-yard line. The Squires’ defense held its ground fine, forcing Mississinewa (1-0) into a 4th-down situation on that drive. But the Indians converted both times--including a 4-yard touchdown pass from Hontz McCarty to Seth McPheron. The Squires answered quickly on their opening drive. Junior quarterback Lucas Schilling went 3 for 4 through the air for 49 yards and capped it with a 20-yard scamper into the end zone on the drive. “When things did not go our way, we did not quit,” Miller said. “We kept fighting, and that tells us a lot about our group of young men here.” Just shy of eight minutes into the game, it looked like a track meet in the opening week of the season. But, miscues got in the way of Manchester keeping up with the Indians. The Indians scored a total of six touchdowns in the second and third quarters, including a 72-yard run for a score and a 35-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown from Lowe. Also notable from the game were the number of players sidelined for a short while for muscle cramps. “We had an easy two-a-days with a cool summer, and the heat kind of got to us tonight,” Miller said. Miller praised his players on sticking together, even when things seemed really bad for the first game of the young season. “They were encouraging. As a team, we are going to be strong, and we are going to be stronger as time goes on.” The Squires continue their road trip Friday when they travel to Bluffton to greet the Tigers, who steamrolled over Three Rivers Conference school Northfield 39-13. The Indians will face Maconaquah, who took care of business with coach Miller’s former North Miami team with a 48-12 victory.
MISSISSINEWA 57, MANCHESTER 13 MA 6 0 0 6 – 13 MS 12 18 27 0 – 57 First Quarter MS – McCarty 4 pass to McPheron (PAT failed) 7:46 MA – Schilling 20 run (PAT failed) 4:05 MS – McCarty 2 run (PAT failed) 1:28 Second Quarter MS – Dailey 28 run (PAT failed) 11:44 MS – Lowe 38 fumble recovery PAT failed) 9:57 MS – Markley 5 yd (PAT failed) 3:00 Third Quarter MS – Dailey 10 yd run (PAT good) 10:00 MS – Lowe 72 run (PAT good) 8:37 MS – Dailey 32 run (PAT failed) 6:57 MS – Markley 1 run PAT good) 3:14 Fourth Quarter MA - Schilling 6 run (PAT good)
