Bryant’s defense held up admirably, but was unable to overcome an offensive onslaught by Pulaski Academy in Tuesday night’s benefit game. The Hornets lost 48-30 after four quarters.
Turnovers, missed opportunities and untimely penalties ruled the day for Bryant.
With 5:45 to go in the first quarter, junior defensive end Nate Wallace notched a tackle for a loss of 3 yards on a Pulaski Academy first down. After an incompletion, sophomore Cantrell Wallace almost sacked Bruin quarterback Layne Hatcher and forced an incompletion. Junior linebacker Jakob Neel knocked down a pass to complete a four-and-out at the Bryant 22-yard line.
The Hornets took over and gained only 3 yards before a Martin Ramirez field goal brought the score to 7-3. That 4-point margin was the closest Bryant would get to catching the Bruins.
“We just didn’t make plays, we didn’t throw the ball away on first down sometimes,” Coach Buck James said. “We threw the ball into coverage a few times. We always let a guy loose with their blitzes and stuff. A lot of it is stuff that we should correct and should have done better at.”