The Princeton High School football team was unable to pull off an upset of Milan Friday night as the Tigers suffered a 34-7 loss in their season opener on the road.
The game appeared to be a good one early on as the two squads traded touchdowns in the first quarter, but Princeton could not keep pace with the Wildcats, who were receiving votes but not ranked in the Class 1 pre-season poll.
Princeton got on the board when quarterback Brant Faulkner hit freshman receiver Cashman Hartley for a first quarter touchdown.
Milan took over in the second quarter, however, tallying two touchdowns to break the 7-7 tie. The second half was all Milan as well as the Wildcats put up two more touchdowns in the fourth quarter, pulling away for the 34-7 win.
“We actually played pretty well, we just got wore out with about eight minutes left in the game and that’s what happens,” Princeton Head Coach John Goodin said. “We missed a couple of plays at the end of the first half that would have brought the score closer than 21-7. They were a pretty good football team, though, and we were pleased with the way we played with them for the majority of the game.”
Faulkner finished 7-of-20 with 113 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions in his quarterbacking debut. He ran well, however, recording 91 yards on 13 carries.
Princeton’s rushing attack netted almost 200 yards on the ground with Floyd Holsted leading the Tigers with 100 yards on 16 carries.
Following the loss to Milan, Princeton will take on a familiar face in week two as the Tigers face Putnam County in their home opener at Eddie Allen Field. Putnam County is in its first year under Dave Cavanah, who coached Princeton prior to Goodin. The Tigers and Midgets will kick off Friday night at 7 p.m.
STATISTICS
Individual Statistics
RUSHING – Princeton, Floyd Holsted, 16-100; Brant Faulkner, 13-91; Ryan Bell, 1-5; Hunter Boxley, 2-4; Cashman Hartley, 1-(-3). PASSING – Princeton, Faulkner, 3-20-2, 113 yards, 1 TD. RECEIVING – Princeton, Hartley, 4-78; Bell, 2-21; Boxley, 1-14. PUNTING – Princeton, Faulkner, 2-70, 45 avg. KICKOFF RETURNS – Princeton, Bell, 5-68. DEFENSE – Princeton, Bell, 11 tackles, 2 TFL; Faulkner, 9 tackles; Boxley, 8 tackles; Hartley, 7 tackles; Tyler Phillips, 7 tackles; Holsted, 6 tackles, 1 forced fumble; Ethan Smith, 5 tackles, 1 TFL; Joseph Lovett, 4 tackles, 1 fumble recovery; Joshua Schoonover, 4 tackles; Adam Milburn, 3 tackles; Jared Campbell, 3 tackles; Adam Konopasek, 2 tackles.
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