Friday’s (Oct. 30) game against Hamilton has been cancelled; Gallatin-Princeton game summary

The game scheduled this Friday between the Gallatin Bulldogs and Hamilton Hornets has been cancelled. (This news was too late to include in the Oct. 28 print edition of the North Missourian.)

Bulldogs struggle against Princeton Tigers and themselves in 28-18 loss

Penalties, turnovers and missed opportunities told much of the story of Gallatin’s 28-18 loss to Princeton in Friday night’s GRC finale. It was a contest that appeared to always be just out of the reach of the Bulldogs, who finish the regular season locked into a fourth place finish in the conference and fifth place standing in their district.

Gallatin, 5-4 overall, will travel to Hamilton this Friday night to square off in a rematch with the Penney Hornets, who closed out their regular season with a convincing 40-12 victory over Lawson. The Bulldogs are looking to avenge a 6 point overtime loss in a Sept. 4 contest held at Bulldog Field.

Friday’s winner will likely make the trip to South Harrison to face the 7-2 Bulldogs, who finished tri-champions in the GRC with Milan and Princeton. South Harrison will host Putnam County this week in Bethany.

Gallatin struggled through many twists and turns on the way to Friday’s final horn. Following a 3-and-out by the Bulldog offense, Princeton showed off a power running game that marched down the field in 9 plays, capped by Eli Henke’s one-yard plunge. Henke added the 2 point conversion.

A safety after a fumbled punt snap put the Bulldogs on the board late in the first quarter. Gallatin wasted a scoring opportunity with seconds to go in the opening quarter after a 36-yard pass reception by Payton Feiden spotted the ball at the Tiger 7. A fumble, one of 5 GHS turnovers on the night, ended the series right before the break.

Gallatin’s defense rose to the occasion in the third quarter when Jacob Maize sacked the Tiger quarterback on a 4th and 7 gamble from the Bulldog 17, but an interception followed. Princeton would threaten again before the end of the second period but Isaac Bird returned the favor by intercepting a pass and returning it to the Tiger 3.

But the merry-go-round continued with yet another Tiger interception that ended the first half.

Princeton took a 14-2 lead in the third after a near-bobbled Tiger punt return. Henke took scoring honors by capping a series aided greatly by back-to-back 15-yard penalties against the Bulldog defense.

A late-hit penalty and Draven Wright pass reception put the ball inside the Tiger red zone. Facing 4th and 4, Vandiver connected to Meeks in the front corner of the end zone for a TD and a repeated connection for the 2-point conversion narrowed the lead to 14-10 early in the fourth quarter.

Princeton battled back with its ground game as Henke took the pigskin 5 times straight before handing off to Berwanger for a 7-yard TD. The conversion run failed but it was now a 2-possession deficit for Gallatin, 20-10.

With time waning, Gallatin failed to convert a 4th and 33 situation and Princeton was able to tack on an insurance score by Henke, a 29-yard run and 2-point conversion.

The Bulldogs scored with less than a minute to play on an 11-yard connection from Vandiver to Peyton Baker, plus a 2-point conversion pass from Vandiver to Bird. Gallatin successfully executed an on-side kick with 30 seconds left on the clock but an interception on a tipped pass allowed the Tigers to sit on the clock.

Wright brothers, Draven and Gage, combine for a tackle of Henke.

Bulldog Scoreboard – Princeton 28, Gallatin 18

Gallatin     2    0     0     16     18
Princeton 8     0     6     14     28
Scoring Summary:
P: Henke 1 yd. run (Henke run).
G: Safety
P: Henke 8 yd. run (run failed).
G: Vandiver 4 yd. pass to Meeks (Vandiver to Meeks).
P: Berwanger 7 yd. run (run failed).
P: Henke 29 yd. run (Henke to Schreffler).
G: Vandiver 11 yd. pass to Baker (Vandiver to Bird).
GHS Statistics:
Passing: Vandiver 13-27-108, 2 TD; 4 Int.
Rushing: Meeks 16-48, D. Wright 3-35, G. Wright 2-3, Vandiver 5-(-19).
Receiving: Feiden 6-55, Meeks 5-32, TD; Baker 2-31, TD.
Leading tacklers: G. Wright 5/5, Feiden 4/4, Bird 4/3, Lang 3/6, Meeks 3/5, Vandiver 3/4, Maize 2/3, Parker 2/3, Hemry 1/3.
Takeaways: QB sack — Maize. Interception — Bird. Fumble recovery — Vandiver. G. Wright. Forced fumble — Maize, Feiden.

GRC East Standings-Week 9
GRC   ALL
Milan           6-1      8-1
S. Harrison 6-1      7-2
Princeton     5-1      6-2
Gallatin        4-3      5-4
Maysville     2-5      3-6
Polo               2-5      2-7
Putnam Co.  1-5      2-7
Trenton        0-5      0-7

Oct. 23 Results
Princeton 28, Gallatin 18
Milan 43, Maysville 6
Putnam Co. 40, Polo 8
S. Harrison 48, Trenton 6

Oct. 30 District Schedule
(5) Gallatin at (4) Hamilton
(8) Putnam Co. at (1) South Harrison
*(6) Scotland County at (3) Princeton
(7) Knox County at (2) Milan

GRC West Standings-Week 9
GRC     ALL
North Andrew 5-0      9-0
Stanberry          4-1       7-1
Albany               2-3      4-4
Pattonsburg      1-3       5-4
Worth Co.          1-3       4-4
King City            1-4       4-5

Oct. 23 Results
Albany 80, Pattonsburg 12
North Andrew 58, Schuyler Co. 0
Stanberry 44, Worth Co. 14
Southwest Livingston 84, King City 66

Oct. 30 District Schedule
D3: (8) DeKalb at (1) North Andrew
*D3: (5) LeBlond at (4) Pattonsburg
D4: (8) Platte Valley at (1) Stanberry
D4: (6) Worth Co. at (3) Mound City
D4: (5) Rock Port at (4) Albany
*Bishop LeBlond has forfeited its game against Pattonsburg due to Covid-19 cases in the LBHS program. Pattonsburg advances to the district semifinal round against the winner of the DeKalb-North Andrew contest