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Not a win, but Cougars show offensive gusto in 33-12 loss
Fall is an ideal time to visit Berkeley Springs, W.Va.Families come up to rent cabins and soak in the red, yellow and orange mountain backdrop. Weddings are staged in the rustic town with its Roman bath and warm mineral waters, which locals still use to fill their jugs at the open downtown tap.
For the Kettle Run High football team, Friday's visit to the historic region was a business trip. The Cougars' business: beat a beatable foe and win the first football game in school history
While it never came close to happening in a 33-12 loss to Berkeley Springs High, there was reason to proclaim this the most successful result in Kettle Run's inaugural campaign.
Kettle Run (0-8) reeled off eight gains of 20 or more yards, with quarterback Justin Duvall throwing for a school-record 274 yards. All-purpose back Michael Mayhugh racked up a combined 149 rushing and receiving yards, and Ryan Wicka caught four passes for 136 yards.
After the game, as the rain fell, coach Jeff Lloyd told his team in a midfield moment, “Guys, you took a big step tonight.”
Despite all the hard knocks and bruised egos absorbed in their eight setbacks, Lloyd has adopted a Always-Be-Positive manta, and he saw more pluses Friday.
Yet he was also frustrated.
Lloyd knew Berkeley Springs was his school's most realistic shot at a win. The host Indians were 1-6 and fairly small in stature — as evidenced by 140-pound quarterback Matt Colwell and the school's population of around 650 students.
“I really thought we could get that first win tonight, but we left a lot of points on the field,” said Lloyd, lamenting his team's bad luck and other circumstances .
In the first half, Kettle Run had a 49-yard touchdown run by Chance Fitzwater called back after a holding penalty. The Cougars later surged to the 1-yard line on Mayhugh's 35-yard run, but could not convert.
Lloyd's amazingly resilient Cougars kept on competing. Kettle Run scored the first two touchdowns of the second half and turned momentum their way. The Cougars scored on a 6-yard TD pass from Duvall to Kyle Warshauer midway through the third quarter, and on Duvall's 2-yard QB sneak midway through the fourth.
Kettle Run nearly scored in the closing minute when Duvall hit Wicka to the Indians' 11. So, coupled with the two near touchdowns in the first half, you can argue that Kettle Run could have had five touchdowns, and won this game.
All in all, the players felt it was their best effort, even if it left them once again a bit empty. “We got so close to the end zone, but we didn’t get enough points. That’s what got us,” said Duvall, before adding about some of the failed opportunities: “It’s on me.”
There's no doubt Kettle Run has some dangerous skill position talent in Mayhugh, Wicka, Fitzwater and Duvall.
At the same time, the team struggles with inconsistent blocking and a lack of defensive cohesion. “It's a process. We have a youthful team,” said Lloyd.
With tough closing games left at Eastern View and Sherando, it appears the Cougars will finish their first year at 0-10. But the building blocks are in place for next year, said Wicka, who cited a precedent to back his case.
“Sherando did not win a game its first year (in 1993), then went 7-3. It shows us that if they can do it, so can we,” he said.
Like many of his teammates, Wicka is a sophomore who figures to be in the midst of the partying when the Cougars finally break through.
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