A clear, crisp football evening welcomed the Fresh-Soph Fulton Steamers and Morrison Ponies to E. M. “Bud” Cole Field in Morrison, IL, on Friday, October 2, 2015.
Morrison didn’t waste any time creating excitement. An onside kick to open the game bounded off a Fulton player and was recovered at the Fulton 38-yard line, by Morrison’s Britt Ottens. Nathan Bush immediately pushed up the middle for eight yards. Tristin DeMay skirted for 14 yards and Bush again for eight, before Reilly Dolan completed the score from the 10-yard line. Morrison jumped on top 6-0 at the 7:26 mark of the first quarter. Morrison again on-sided the following kickoff, but Fulton fell on the ball on their own 43-yard line. They moved the line of scrimmage with the aid of a 17-yard pass from quarterback Bryce Grant to Tyler Bruggenwirth and a 20-yard run by Erik North. They lined up second-and-five on the 10-yard line, when Dolan recovered a North fumble to end the drive. Morrison ended the quarter in possession on the Fulton 31-yard line, thanks in part, to runs by Aaron Deter of 13, Jacob Schlegel of 14, and Dolan of 11 yards. The drive ended four plays later as the Ponies failed to convert a fourth-and-six ,and Fulton took over on downs on their own 25-yard line. With the aid of a 19-yard pass connection from quarterback Bryce Grant to Erik North, and again on a 27 yarder to Tyler Bruggenwith, and a 16-yard run by Nate McLuckie, the Steamers quickly positioned themselves to score. At the 3:11 mark, Grant connected again with North for a 19-yard touchdown. North was stopped at the 4-yard line, but his drive and extra effort ended him in the end zone. The extra point failed. Unable to gain a first down, Morrison was forced to punt to Fulton. Grant received a Morrison punt on the 44-yard line with 43.2 seconds left in the half. A fumbled snap lost two before Grant found Austin Schroeder at the 25-yard line of Morrison, with 6.7 seconds left in the half. That was enough for one play, and Fulton made it happen. Grant found Bruggenwirth in the end zone, and North scored the two-point conversion to create the halftime score of Morrison 6, Fulton 14.
Morrison started the second half on the Fulton 35-yard line where DeMay took the first snap 21 yards to start the drive. Three Fulton penalties aided the Ponies’ drive, and Schlegel crossed the goal line from ten yards out; Morrison crawled closer at 14-12. Fulton reacted immediately after falling on an onside kick at their own 45-yard line. The fourth play ended in a 48-yard run by Austin Schroeder down the visitor’s sideline, to up the Steamer score to 20-12. Not to be outdone, the Ponies’ Zach Cartwright returned the kickoff to the Fulton 46-yard line. Three snaps later Dolan completed a pass to Schlegel for 39 yards. Bush carried the last nine yards to pay dirt on the next two plays, and Morrison had closed to 20-18. A Morrison penalty moved the line of scrimmage for the extra point conversion back five yards; it failed, leaving the score at 20-18. Morrison short kicked the kickoff, and Cartwright recovered the free ball at the Fulton 28-yard line. Fourteen yards were gathered by Bush, before the quarter ended with Morrison sitting fourth-and-goal on the 7-yard line.
The Steamers’ defense anticipated correctly on the opening play of the last quarter. They swarmed Bush for a 6-yard loss, and they retained possession on the 13-yard line. Morrison’s defense stiffened also, and the Steamers had to punt five plays later with 7:21 left in the game. Utilizing the running of Bush, Deter, and Schlegel, the Ponies used the ground game to move to the Fulton 32-yard line, as the clock moved toward the three minute mark. A costly penalty moved the ball back to the 43, before Deter carried twice to set up a fourth-and-eight at the Fulton 30-yard line. Dolan took the snap, rolled left, and attempted to connect with Schlegel in the end zone. The pass was incomplete, and Fulton took over possession with 3:15 remaining and owning a two-point lead. Two Fulton penalties moved the ball back to the 45-yard line. The Ponies were digging in, with hopes of one more possession if they could stop this drive. Those hopes flew out the window on the next play. Grant scrambled and found an open receiver on the Morrison 27-yard line for a 40-yard gain. The Steamers kneed out the clock to save a 20-18 win over the Morrison Ponies.
The Ponies will take the field again for a Homecoming match-up against Orion, IL, next Friday evening, October 9, starting at 5:30 p.m.