Patriots throttle Newcastle in road opener

Rebecca Maupin | Sep 17, 2020

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With a chill in the air, the Upton-Sundance Patriots travelled to Newcastle to face the Dogies in the first road game of the season. In a back and forth of downs to start the game, the Patriot defense was soon able to back the Dogies deep into their own territory.

As the Newcastle offense continued to struggle, the Patriot defense capitalized with Keaton Mills finding the Dogie quarterback in the end zone for a safety and put the Patriots up 2-0. Reece Barritt continued to help the Patriot offense on the following kickoff, returning the ball to the 47-yard line, however a holding penalty brought them back a few yards to the 44.

Braden Bruce then continued to move the Patriot offense in the right direction as he swept the ball to the 39-yard line for a gain of 16. With the clock running down on the first quarter, the Patriots continued to move the ball in the right direction, setting Jess Claycomb up for the one-yard rush into the end zone with 53.7 seconds left. A successful extra point kick put the Patriots up 9-0 after one quarter of play.

The Newcastle Dogies continued to struggle on offense as quarter two opened up. An incomplete pass on third and very long forced the Dogies to punt the ball away.

After an exceptional defensive effort by the Patriots, their offense took to the field in excellent position, on Newcastle’s 38-yard line. A short series of plays, along with an offsides penalty on the Dogies, allowed Patriot quarterback Brad Kruger to find Reece Barritt for a two-yard reception into the end zone.

Brayden Bruce then added another extra point for the Patriots to put them up 16-0 with 7:57 left to go in the half. Just as the Newcastle offense began to move the ball in the right direction, the Patriot defense stepped it up another notch as Nathan Baker intercepted a pass intended for the Dogies and returned it to the endzone to add another six to the board for the Patriots. (22-0)

With seven minutes remaining in the half, the Patriot defense continued to shut down the Dogies and set their offense up in excellent field position to score. With just under two minutes left to play, quarterback Brad Kruger found Brayden Bruce for a 68-yard reception and another score for the Patriots.

Another successful extra point for the Patriots brought the quarter to a close and the score 29-0 at the half.

The scoring slowed down in the third quarter as each side struggled to gain the yardage needed. It wasn’t until the end of the third quarter that Patriot quarterback Brad Kruger was able to find Lane Gill in the end zone for a nine-yard touchdown reception, increasing the score to 35 for the Patriots.

As the woes continued for the Newcastle Dogies into the fourth quarter, the Patriots remained unwavering and continued to put points on the board. Methodical movement down the field put the Patriots in scoring position once again with quarterback Brad Kruger finding Reece Barrett in the endzone for another 31 yard touchdown reception.

While the extra point was blocked, it made little difference in the final outcome as the Patriots walked off the field with a 41-0 victory.

The U-S Patriots move to 2-0 on the season and will be taking on the 3-0 Wheatland Bulldogs on Friday night in Upton.

Offensive Statistics

Rushing

Rudloff - 13 / 69, Claycomb - 14 / 67 yards(1 TD), Bruce - 3 /17

Receiving

Bruce - 2 / 85 yards (1 TD), Barritt - 3 / 48 yards(2 TD) E. Mills - 1 /15 yards, Gill - 1 / 9 yards (1 TD)

Passing

Krueger - 7 / 14 /157 yards (4 TD)

Defensive Stats

Brayden Bruce - 24 points - 8 Assisted Tackles, 5 Unassisted Tackles, 1.5 Tackles for Loss, .5 Sack.

Jess Claycomb - 12 points - 5 AT, 2 UT, 1 TFL