Turnovers key in Central Lee loss at Van Buren

BY JOHN BOHNENKAMP
PCC SPORTS

KEOSAUQUA — It was all about momentum, Central Lee interim head coach Tyler Bryant said.
Every time the Hawks even had a little bit of momentum, they would give it away with a turnover.
That’s why Friday’s 40-21 loss at Van Buren was so frustrating.
There was no better evidence of that in the first half. The Hawks got a safety, and then a touchdown on the ensuing possession, to take a 15-14 lead.
But Van Buren (1-0) went 70 yards in nine plays, taking a 22-15 lead into halftime on Cohyn Jury’s 1-yard touchdown run.
The Hawks got the ball to start the second half, but Dylan Stuecker’s pass was intercepted by Wyatt Mertens, leading to a 3-yard touchdown run by Sam Warth moments later.
Whatever spark the Hawks had was gone.
“That was the turning tide, right there, in the game,” said Bryant, filling in for head coach Chuck Banks.
The Hawks, who lost the ball six times in the game, had turnovers on three consecutive third-quarter possessions that were converted into two Van Buren touchdowns.
“We didn’t want to change up our game plan at halftime, only down seven,” Bryant said. “We were still in the game. The execution kind of hurt.
“The plays where we turned it over, they were there, but we kind of shot ourselves in the foot.”
Central Lee (0-2) scored on its first possession after stopping the Warriors on fourth down at the Hawks’ 30-yard line. Jaedon Betker scored on a 9-yard run, and the Hawks led 7-0.
The Warriors scored on back-to-back possessions to end the first quarter — a 6-yard touchdown run by Mertens and a 3-yard run by Jury.
But the Hawks got a safety when Van Buren quarterback Lane Davis was chased out of the pocket in the end zone. Davis tried to throw the ball away, but the pass didn’t get past the line of scrimmage.
The Hawks took a 15-14 lead on Stuecker’s 32-yard touchdown pass to Kade Myhre, but then the Warriors took control of the game.
Myhre added his second touchdown of the game, and fifth of the season, on Central Lee’s final possession on an 87-yard catch-and-run off a pass from quarterback Mason Schau.
“He’s been a blessing,” Bryant said of Myhre. “We didn’t know if he was going to go out (for football) at first. First week into camp, we thought he was going to be a defensive guy. Then we saw him on the offensive side making plays in practice, so we thought, let’s keep him on the offense. Man, he’s made some really awesome plays.”
Jury had 134 rushing yards, 128 in the first half, before he had to leave the game with an injury in the third quarter. Warth had 113 rushing yards, all but six in the second half.
Schau threw for 117 yards after replacing an injured Stuecker in the fourth quarter.