AUGUST 20, 2004 – PIQUA, OHIO
It was a rainy night for football on Friday at Alexander Stadium as Piqua hosted Springfield South to the tune of a 7-7 tie in just two quarters of action.

Piqua started things off when senior Joe Hudson picked up a sack on the first drive of the game for a loss of 7 yards. South then used it’s running game to score the first touchdown of the game, a 3 yard scamper at the 7:20 mark of the first quarter. The extra point was perfect to give South a 7-0 advantage.

“It took us a series or two to catch up to their speed,” Piqua coach Bill Nees said. “They have some very fast guys on that team.”

Speedy sophomore Brandon Saine had a nice return on the ensuing kickoff to put Piqua in business at the 37 yard line. Saine then showed some power by carrying the pile up to the 44 yard line after being hit at the line of scrimmage. The Piqua drive stalled and the Tribe was forced to punt.

Springfield South took over at their own 48 yard line as the rain continued. However, a bad snap forced a fourth and 16. The Wildcats elected to punt. The slippery ball along with a Piqua rush, caused a short punt. Piqua had the football on their own 45 yard line.

Piqua was then facing a 3rd and 11 when quarterback Andy Pearson dropped back to pass. He found Saine on a screen pass and Saine showed his speed and elusiveness by picking up 25 yards on the play.

The Indians ran a few plays that didn’t gain any yardage. Pearson dropped back on fourth down and found Saine wide open along the left sideline. Saine hauled in the pass and raced to the end zone for the 35 yard score. Joe Hudson’s PAT was good, making the score 7-7 with 11:49 remaining in the second quarter.

“Brandon Saine was wide open and we got him the ball,” added Nees. “I think we surprised them by bringing him out of the backfield. Getting him the ball was something we wanted to do tonight.”

Piqua regained possession before a pass was tipped and intercepted by South. The Wildcats returned it for a touchdown but a holding penalty on South brought the ball back to midfield.

“Our offense only had three negative plays which is not good but we still got what we wanted,” Nees stated. “The rain was a factor and it just kept coming down.”

The two teams traded possessions but no other damage could be done to the scoreboard.

“We knew coming in this would possibly be only a two quarter game,” said Nees. “We feel good but we’ll have to go in and break down the film and correct the mistakes.”

Piqua will open the regular season next Friday when they travel to Grove City to take on the Dawgs. Kickoff is set for 7:30 pm.

by Jesse Swafford
email: jesse@piquafootball.com