New Deal Lions Defeat Swifts 28-12

The Nazareth Swifts slid to 0-3 losing to New Deal 28-12. The match up was delayed 15 minutes Friday due to lightning, but managed to be played in its entirety without any other interruptions.
“I was very proud of how the kids played. I hated that this was the first home game the sophomores, juniors and seniors had lost in the high school career. 0-3 is not the way I wanted the season to start but we are improving every week and the tough early schedule will pay off when we hit district”, said Coach Coby Emery when asked for comments after the game.
Things got off to a bumpy start as a swinging gate play was not executed properly and led to a quick 3 and out to start the game. The Lions, who would only throw 2 times during the contest, began their first drive with a strong rushing assault of the Swift defense. On the fourth play of the drive the Lions fumbled and Brennan Cluck scooped it up and returned the ball to the 8 yard line. Unfortunately the Swifts were unable to move the ball and finished the drive by missing a 25 yard field goal.
The Swifts would draw first blood on a 20 yard pass play from Sage Black to Sid Sheffy. The 2 point conversion failed and the Swifts Led 6-0. The lead would not last long as the Lions answered with a touchdown and made PAT for a 7-6 lead.
The Lions then made the most of a short field after a short Sage Black punt by driving 40 yards and scoring the final touchdown of the first half for a 14-6 lead with 0:09 on the clock. “We have to stop allowing our opponents to answer our scoring drives with touchdowns of their own”, replied Coach Emery when asked about his teams defensive performance.
The second half saw New Deal consume seven minutes of the third quarter as they capped a 70 yard scoring drive with an off tackle touchdown and stretched the lead 21-6. The Swifts answered with a drive of their own and moved the ball down to the New Deal 30 yard line where they handed the ball over on downs. When asked about that particular drive Coach Emery responded, “That drive stalling out and not punching the ball across the goal line after Brennan’s fumble return to the 8 really hurt us. You can’t leave points on the field when playing a quality opponent like New Deal.”
The Swifts would dig deep and force the Lions to punt. The Swifts would move within 9 points on a scoring drive that saw spectacular receptions by Ryan Birkenfeld, Clint Huseman, and a huge 4th down conversion on a pass to Sid Sheffy. Unfortunately the 2 point conversion failed.
The score would prove to be too little too late as the Lions would gash the Swifts defense on a 76 yard toss play and result in the final score of the night. Coach Emery was asked how he would summarize the game and answered with the following, “We are very close to being a very good football team, but we have to take advantage of all of our opponent’s turnover opportunities, and we have to finish drives inside our opponent’s territory. Hopefully we will continue to improve next week and take care of business against Morton.”
Next weeks homecoming game will cap off week long festivities that include themed dress up days, a parade, and a chili dinner. Be sure to come out and support the Swifts as they battle the Morton Indians at 7:30 Friday night.

By: Kenley Kleman & Brennan Cluck