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Grain Valley employed some basic math in its 59-41 victory over visiting Lincoln Prep on Friday: Two rushing stars are better than one.
The Eagles used a mix of deft running from quarterback Austin Goldsmith and running back Trace Goad to overcome a huge 310-yard individual rushing effort from Lincoln Prep running back Johnny Hall in a back and forth contest.
The offensive fireworks highlighted a season-opening gridiron battle where both teams flashed moments of dominance.
The uneven performance for Grain Valley – the Eagles scored 28 unanswered points in the second quarter only to fall behind later – is a reflection of the team’s inexperience at multiple positions, said Gouldsmith, a junior.
“We have lots of new guys on offense and defense. It was a good experience to fall behind and still keep our composure,” he said.
Grain Valley’s lack of seasoning showed early as Lincoln Prep dominated the first quarter behind the running of Hall. The senior running back rushed for 62 yards on eight carries, including an 8-yard touchdown run, as the Blue Tigers dominated the time of possession and took an early 7-0 lead. After a Grain Valley three-and-out, Lincoln Prep rode Hall for 27 more yards on five carries before the Eagles forced a punt shortly before the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter belonged to the Eagles. Grain Valley capped an explosive drive with a 2-yard Goade goal line plunge to open the stanza.
The Eagles then turned an interception by David Richards and a fumble recovery on a kickoff into a pair of Gouldsmith short touchdown runs to surge ahead 21-7.
The Eagles would tack on another touchdown on a Richards end zone fumble recovery of a Goade fumble before Lincoln Prep’s Hall scored on a touchdown pass to bring the score to 28-13 at half.
Lincoln Prep withstood the early barrage and stayed competitive, said Lincoln Prep coach Roger Franks.
“I’m proud of my guys. To come out against the No. 2 team in the state last year and hang 41 points on them is great,” Franks said. “We made a lot of mental mistakes but we competed.”
Lincoln Prep opened the second half with a heavy dose of Hall, allowing the running back to tally 46 yards on four carries to narrow the scoring gap. The Blue Tigers were poised to score again before Richards intercepted an errant Tyler Smith pass on the 2-yard line to end the threat.
However, Lincoln Prep would strike again on a 23-yard touchdown run by Hall to make the score 28-25.
Grain Valley Coach Forrest Rovello said inexperience on defense showed.
“We got a lot of young kids starting their first varsity football game. We didn’t want them to get rattled and we wanted to get them into the flow of the football game,” Rovello said. “The defense didn’t play well.”
Lincoln Prep scored on a 65-yard touchdown run by Hall, before Grain Valley responded. The Blue Tigers would score once more, on a Smith 1-yard touchdown, before Gain Valley concluded the game with 21 unanswered points on short touchdown runs by Goade, Gouldsmith and running back Robby Sodano to end the game.
Gouldsmith was pleased with the victory.
“On offense, we made plays when we had to and on defense, we made stops when we had to. It was a good learning experience.”
Grain Valley employed some basic math in its 59-41 victory over visiting Lincoln Prep on Friday: Two rushing stars are better than one.
The Eagles used a mix of deft running from quarterback Austin Goldsmith and running back Trace Goad to overcome a huge 310-yard individual rushing effort from Lincoln Prep running back Johnny Hall in a back and forth contest.
The offensive fireworks highlighted a season-opening gridiron battle where both teams flashed moments of dominance.
The uneven performance for Grain Valley – the Eagles scored 28 unanswered points in the second quarter only to fall behind later – is a reflection of the team’s inexperience at multiple positions, said Gouldsmith, a junior.
“We have lots of new guys on offense and defense. It was a good experience to fall behind and still keep our composure,” he said.
Grain Valley’s lack of seasoning showed early as Lincoln Prep dominated the first quarter behind the running of Hall. The senior running back rushed for 62 yards on eight carries, including an 8-yard touchdown run, as the Blue Tigers dominated the time of possession and took an early 7-0 lead. After a Grain Valley three-and-out, Lincoln Prep rode Hall for 27 more yards on five carries before the Eagles forced a punt shortly before the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter belonged to the Eagles. Grain Valley capped an explosive drive with a 2-yard Goade goal line plunge to open the stanza.
The Eagles then turned an interception by David Richards and a fumble recovery on a kickoff into a pair of Gouldsmith short touchdown runs to surge ahead 21-7.
The Eagles would tack on another touchdown on a Richards end zone fumble recovery of a Goade fumble before Lincoln Prep’s Hall scored on a touchdown pass to bring the score to 28-13 at half.
Lincoln Prep withstood the early barrage and stayed competitive, said Lincoln Prep coach Roger Franks.
“I’m proud of my guys. To come out against the No. 2 team in the state last year and hang 41 points on them is great,” Franks said. “We made a lot of mental mistakes but we competed.”
Lincoln Prep opened the second half with a heavy dose of Hall, allowing the running back to tally 46 yards on four carries to narrow the scoring gap. The Blue Tigers were poised to score again before Richards intercepted an errant Tyler Smith pass on the 2-yard line to end the threat.
However, Lincoln Prep would strike again on a 23-yard touchdown run by Hall to make the score 28-25.
Grain Valley Coach Forrest Rovello said inexperience on defense showed.
“We got a lot of young kids starting their first varsity football game. We didn’t want them to get rattled and we wanted to get them into the flow of the football game,” Rovello said. “The defense didn’t play well.”
Lincoln Prep scored on a 65-yard touchdown run by Hall, before Grain Valley responded. The Blue Tigers would score once more, on a Smith 1-yard touchdown, before Gain Valley concluded the game with 21 unanswered points on short touchdown runs by Goade, Gouldsmith and running back Robby Sodano to end the game.
Gouldsmith was pleased with the victory.
“On offense, we made plays when we had to and on defense, we made stops when we had to. It was a good learning experience.”
