Too many mistakes for Laurel
Laurel (7) vs. Riverside (24)
Written: Sep 10, 2016
  By Joe Sager
New Castle News
Laurel aimed for perfection Friday night.
Instead, the Spartans found plenty of flaws.
Riverside capitalized on Laurel miscues to post a 24-7 win in a WPIAL 2A Midwestern Conference showdown at Spartan Stadium.
"We still aren't doing the little things that we said would cost us down the road. They cost us tonight," Laurel coach Brian Cooper said. "Penalties, fumbles, interceptions — whatever the case may be — we just had too many mistakes to be able to win the football game."
The Spartans (1-1 conference, 2-1 overall) were looking for their first 3-0 start since the 2009 campaign when they began the year 4-0. However, the Panthers (1-0, 1-1) capitalized on some turnovers to post the win.
"We have to be better prepared. It's on me. I have to make sure we're ready to roll. We didn't get it done," Cooper said. "The bottom line is, those little things can't keep costing us. We have to be able to get the job done. We'll get it fixed. There's still a lot of season left. We just have to get better."
Riverside turned a Laurel fumble into the game's first touchdown. Three plays after pouncing on a loose ball at the Spartans' 44, LeMarcus Cleckley scored on a 10-yard run.
The Panthers pushed their lead to 14-0 early in the second quarter when Austin Dambach cashed in on a 9-yard run.
Laurel responded and drove to the Riverside 4. However, the Spartans did not convert and turned the ball over on downs with 3:47 on the clock.
Laurel got a break as it recovered a Panthers fumble on the Riverside 45 with 1:32 left in the half. The Spartans drove to the 31, but turned it over on downs once again with 49.4 seconds on the clock.
In the third, Laurel drove into Riverside territory early in the third, but turned over the ball again on an interception with 7:02 to go in the frame. The Panthers tallied a field goal off that miscue.
"We had so many opportunities and we didn't capitalize on them," Cooper said. "We were that one big play away and we never got it. We're going to keep working hard until we get better."
Riverside's Lance Fisher sealed the game with 4:34 left on the clock. He snuck in front of a pass and took off 58 yards untouched for a touchdown and a 24-0 advantage.
The Spartans finally converted when Jordan Dantico hauled in a 26-yard TD pass from Will Shaffer with 1:56 to go to break the shutout.
Overall, Riverside limited Laurel to 78 rushing yards. The Spartans had 188 rushing yards against Union to open the year and 187 last week against Mohawk.
"Defensively, we played well, even when they got down close," Riverside coach Ron Sciarro said. "We were really aggressive and the kids played hard."
(Email: ncsports@ncnewsonline.com).
RIVERSIDE LAUREL
18 First downs 10
242 Yards Rushing 84
10 Yards Lost 6
232 Net Rushing 78
8 Passes Attempted 28
5 Passes Completed 11
0 Passes Intercepted 2
87 Yards Passing 124
319 Total Yards 202
1-1 Fumbles-Lost 1-1
4-25.3 Punts-Average 3-29.7
6-53 Penalties-Yards 3-25
RIVERSIDE 7 7 0 17 — 24
LAUREL 0 0 0 7 — 7
Scoring plays
RIVERSIDE — LeMarcus Cleckley, 10-yard run (Adam Saunders kick).
RIVERSIDE — Austin Dambach, 9-yard run (Saunders kick).
RIVERSIDE — Saunders, 34-yard field goal.
RIVERSIDE — Lance Fisher, 58-yard interception return (Saunders kick).
LAUREL —Jordan Dantico, 26-yard pass from Will Shaffer (Andrew Perry kick).
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