Trojans fall to Eagles in loss

Brian Cendejas, Sports Editor|October 3, 2016

Quarterback+Luke+Buckner+scrambles+for+the+first+down.

Kristin Farris

Quarterback Luke Buckner scrambles for the first down.

Last Friday night at J.T. Christopher Stadium, the Tunstall Trojans struggled against the fast-paced and contentious George Washington Eagles; losing to them in the 38-15 blowout. With the Trojans lost, they are now 0-4 all time against the Eagles and have an all time score of 124-49.

Tunstall’s defense struggled throughout the night; allowing more than 300 rushing yards. The Trojans defense also allowed the majority of GW’s points on the run. Tunstall’s running game, on the other hand, wasn’t as productive as they were last week against Patrick County. Overall, the Trojans only managed to get 111 rushing yards on 47 carries combined. Trevor Lovelace did most of the leg work for the Trojans; carrying the ball 28 times for 59 yards. Clay Hardy had eight carries for 13 yards while Chase Poe had five carries for 19 yards

On the bright side, Their rushing was also held accountable for their only two touchdowns the entire night. Tunstall’s first touchdown came with two seconds left in the second quarter. Their drive would start with on their own 19-yard line with a little over three minutes in the first half. A few drives up the field later, led them to the GW 2-yard line. Lovelace  would fake out a couple of GW defenders as he ran into the end zone as time expired. Lovelace scored their final touchdown late in the third quarter. After Lovelace punched his way in for five yards, Hardy found his in on the two point conversion.

Luke Buckner also performed well despite of the loss. For the first time this season, Buckner has thrown for over 200 yards. totaling 220 passing yards and 13-23. Half of his completed passes went to Michael Pyrtle, who caught seven passes with 122 yards.Malik Irvin caught two passes for 42 yards and Johnathan Tyler also caught two passes, this time for 36 yards. Ben Donahue and Myles Pyrtle each caught one pass and combined for 20 yards.

With heavy rain rolling into the Danville area the past few days. the field condition led to a physically punishing game. Things would take a turn for the worst in the second half. Trojans defensive back Hunter Beck suffered a horrific compound fracture  injury and was carried off the field on a a stretcher. Beck would raise his arm up to the crowd; signifying that he would be alright. In what seemed to be his last game of his young career, Beck left it on a high note. He recovered a fumble and ran the ball for a mere 50 yards. giving the Trojans a shot in red-zone territory. Tunstall head coach was emotional after the game discussing Beck’s performance.

“Hunter Beck is a great kid and nobody deserves an injury like that,” said Potts “It’s his senior year. He’s a tough kid and he’s a smart kid. His last game in high school was a memorable one for some good reasons and one bad reason.”

Trojans lineman Matt Fultcher sustained a knee injury minutes after Beck was carried off the field.
Tunstall will have time to recover from last week as they head into the bye week. Their next game will be on the road against Halifax County.