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Hubbard holds on to hand Lakeview a loss

Staff photo / R. Michael Semple Hubbard quarterback Alex Hackwelder celebrates a touchdown during the second quarter of Friday’s game against Lakeview.

HUBBARD — After a 13-6 loss to Girard two weeks ago, Lakeview head football coach Derrick Bush explained his aggressive in-game strategy by saying the Bulldogs were just “trying to win football games.”

That win-at-all-costs mindset was on display again Friday night, but Hubbard effectively took advantage of Lakeview’s aggression and, more importantly, its mistakes in a 30-20 Eagles home win.

“[We] just didn’t do enough of the little things. They executed better than we did,” Bush said.

Although Bush tried a fake punt, surprise onside kick and went for it on fourth down numerous times, Hubbard capitalized on special teams errors and favorable field position to build and eventually maintain a lead throughout the game.

Trouble began early for the Bulldogs, who started sophomore Eli Gough at quarterback in place of the injured Drew McKowan.

Lakeview’s first drive quickly stalled, forcing Bush to punt inside his own 25. But the attempt went awry and, faced with a potential blocked punt, led to a desperate pass attempt, which was immediately ruled intentional grounding.

The penalty gave the Eagles the ball at Lakeview’s 5-yard line, and a few plays later, quarterback Alexander Hackwelder rolled left and found a receiver in the back of the end zone for a short touchdown pass.

Lakeview responded by orchestrating a nine-play drive powered by the legs of Thomas Easton, who found an opening in the middle of the Eagles’ defense and ran for a 28-yard touchdown.

After a blocked extra-point attempt, Lakeview tried but failed an onside kick, giving Hubbard the ball on the Bulldogs’ half of the field.

To cap off a Hackwelder-dominated drive, Michael Hazimihalis rushed for a 4-yard touchdown to give Hubbard a 14-6 lead.

Lakeview, which frequently utilized a quarterback-less personnel in the first half, continued its Easton-led rushing attack on the subsequent drive.

After being stopped on third-and-2 on its own 42, the Bulldogs executed a fake punt that resulted in a 39-yard gain. Two plays later, Easton rushed for his second touchdown of the game. Easton also carried the ball into the end zone on the 2-point try to tie the game.

“I’m not gonna lie, we actually practiced being prepared for that,” Hubbard coach Brian Hoffman said of the fake punt. “And they got us on that one, which we were upset about.”

Just like Easton, Hackwelder used his legs to gash the opposing defense. In response to Lakeview’s game-tying drive, the Hubbard quarterback sliced through the Bulldogs’ defense for a 41-yard touchdown run.

After another Lakeview punting miscue — a weak snap led to a blocked punt — Hubbard took over at the Bulldogs’ 11-yard line and eventually kicked an 18-yard field goal with just seconds left in the first half to take a 24-14 lead into the locker room.

“That’s the thing with special teams; special teams is a third of the game, just like the other two-thirds of the game, and we just didn’t get it done. It’s something we work on every day at practice, and we just weren’t good enough,” Bush said.

Neither team managed to score in the third quarter, but early in the fourth, the Eagles extended their lead to 14 — Caleb MacKay’s PAT was blocked — with a 7-yard touchdown pass from Hackwelder to Mathew Chaney, which concluded a 10-play drive.

Although Lakeview would score again on the ensuing possession, which took 14 plays, the Bulldogs were unable to execute the 2-point conversion, leaving the score at 30-20, where it would remain for the rest of the game.

The win snaps a three-game losing streak for Hubbard.

“Losing three in a row has been tough,” Hoffman said. “Last week, the loss in overtime to Beaver Local… I think it says a lot about our players, because, coming to work this week in preparation for the game, they were very focused, playing for one another, very attentive in practice.”

Lakeview’s losing streak now stands at three after Friday’s defeat. The Bulldogs (4-4, 1-4 in Northeast 8) will host Poland next week.

Hubbard (5-3, 2-1) will travel to Girard next Friday in hopes of securing its sixth win of the year.

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