The Trenton Bulldogs won a Grand River Conference battle on the grass of C.F. Russell Stadium for the second time in as many weeks on Friday night, using a stifling defensive performance to overcome four turnovers in a 26-0 shutout of Putnam County, heard locally on Hot Country Z 101.7.
Although the Bulldogs did not put up the eye-popping rushing stats of the prior week against Princeton, Trenton did have the better of the play at the line of scrimmage, with the hosts breaking on top with 7:46 remaining in the opening quarter, on a pass connection between Coleman Griffin and Tucker Otto. Tom Johnson had the play-by-play call:
Putnam County was able to keep the score at 6-0 for the majority of the first half, but the Midget offense, unable to put together effective drives, kept the defense on the field for multiple minutes. With 2:08 remaining in the half, Trenton added a second tally, as sophomore halfback Gabe Novak scored his second rushing touchdown of the 2021 season:
Sam Gibson, who finished the night with a team-high 21 carries and an unofficial total of 85 yards, added the two-point conversion, backing into the end zone on the fullback dive, making the score 14-0.
The back-breaking score for Putnam County’s victory hopes may very well have arrived with just 35 seconds remaining in the half, as line pressure by THS forced a late-throw from the hurried sophomore quarterback of the Midgets:
The failed two-point conversion left the halftime score at 20-0, with Novak, on his longest run of the season to date, adding the final points of the night in the first minute of the third quarter:
Novak finished the night with 12 carries for 127 yards and a pair of touchdowns, all career highs for the sophomore. The win pushes Trenton’s record to 2-2 overall, and 2-0 in the Grand River Conference, while dropping Putnam County to 1-3 overall and 0-2 in conference play. For Trenton, the game did have areas of concern going into a showdown game for first place next Friday night at Milan, as the Bulldogs racked up 11 penalties for 105 yards, and turned over the ball four times, three times via fumble and once by interception. The Trenton defense did grab three takeovers against the Putnam County offense, all by interception, with Novak picking off a pass in the second quarter, and Otto grabbing an interception in the fourth quarter.
Putnam County returns to Dave Mitchell Field to host the Princeton Tigers on Friday night, with coverage on KTTN FM 92.3 for the 7 o’clock kickoff.
Here are the high school football scores from Friday, September 17, 2021:
Milan 48, Princeton 14 (Coverage on KTTN FM 92.3)
Polo 13, Gallatin 12 (Polo is 4-0 overall, 2-0 in GRC)
South Harrison 14, Maysville 0 (South Harrison’s first win of the season)
East Buchanan 22, Penney 12
Plattsburg 22, North Platte 16
West Platte 39, Lawson 0
Mid-Buchanan 48, Lathrop 7
Chillicothe 48, Cameron 7
St. Pius X 14, Maryville 13
Lafayette 56, Savannah 49
Macon 32, Highland 30
Palmyra 23, Brookfield 6
Monroe City 44, Centralia 6
South Shelby 35, Clark County 20
Lincoln 34, Scotland County 12
Marceline 37, Fayette 0
Harrisburg 44, Westran 14
Carrollton at Salisbury – CANCELLED – COVID-19
Paris 44, Bayless 22
Knob Noster 64, Agape 8
Holden 18, Crest Ridge 0
Richmond 52, Pembroke Hill 8
Lafayette County 35, Summit Christian 21
8-Man:
King City 64, Pattonsburg 6
North Andrew 88, Northland Christian 20
Osceola at Stanberry – CANCELLED – COVID-19
Worth County 84, Albany 28
North Shelby 58, Schuyler County 0
Mound City 70, Southwest Livingston 8
South Holt 20, Platte Valley 18
Rock Port 70, Nodaway Valley 24
East Atchison 54, DeKalb 6
Stewartsville-Osborn 78, Keytesville 34
Northwest (Hughesville) 40, Knox County 28
St. Paul Lutheran 52, Concordia 22
Orrick 90, Braymer 52
Norborne/Hardin-Central 56, Santa Fe 46
Bishop LeBlond 44, St. Joseph Christian 16
