MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — Morgantown needed to play a near perfect game to give itself a chance against defending champion Martinsburg Friday night to put itself in position to upset the Bulldogs. A blocked punt and two fumbles later, Morgantown found itself down 21-0 and in a hole it could not climb out of, falling to the Bulldogs 51-7.
“We made too many mistakes. We kind of took the gun out and shot ourselves in the left foot then took it out and shot ourselves in the right foot and it just snowballed from there,” coach Matt Lacy admitted after the game.
Morgantown helped Martinsburg’s offense early in the first quarter. On the initial drive, the Mohigans were forced to punt and the snap went over punter Preston Fox’s head. He was able to collect the bad snap and attempted to punt the ball away, however, it was blocked by Martinsburg’s Trey Sine, setting up the Bulldog offense at the Mohigans 5-yard line.
Two players later, quarterback Tyson Bagent scored on a 3-yard touchdown run giving Martinsburg a 7-0 lead.
The Bulldogs added to the lead on their next drive, capping off a 10-play drive with a 1-yard scoring run by Mikey Jackson.
The Bulldogs got the football right back on a Morgantown fumble at the Mohigans 25-yard line. However, Morgantown’s defense stuffed the Martinsburg offense on four plays forcing a turnover on downs.
But Morgantown could not capitalize on the moment. Martinsburg forced a second fumble on the ensuing drive and the Bulldogs took advantage of the Morgantown misstep. Bagent connected with Matt Vanduzer for a 6-yard touchdown pass and on the next Dewayne Grantham scored on a 1-yard run, giving the Bulldogs a 27-0 lead at halftime.
In the second half, Martinsburg scored on four of its five drives, completing its 19th straight win.
Despite the final score, Morgantown’s defense performed admirably against a Martinsburg offense that is loaded with weapons.
“We told the kids at halftime, the defense played lights out with the field position they were given. You can’t give a good team like that great field position like that all night. They really don’t have a chance to make a mistake when they only have to go 20 yards,” said Lacy.
Morgantown’s lone offensive highlight came in the third quarter, when Alajuan Robinson broke away for a 75-yard touchdown run, the Mohigans’ only score of the game.
Bagent finished the game with 195 yards passing and three touchdowns, two through the air and one rushing.
Morgantown heads back to the eastern panhandle for the second consecutive week next Friday to face undefeated Musselman.