Homecoming game sends lions home with a victory

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Kristopher Levasseur
  • 48th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England --  After a long game with daring plays by both sides, the Heidelberg High School Lions took the Lakenheath High School Lancers 27-14 during the homecoming football game Oct. 13.

The Lions Quarterback ensured their victory during the second quarter as he plowed through the Lancers defense making the score 27-0.

"We struggled the second quarter, but refocused during halftime to come back and compete during the second half," said Matthew Martinez, Lakenheath High School Lancers head coach. "It was a tough loss, but on the positive side, the team decided not to drop their heads and casually accept defeat. We have been looking to turn the corner on a new attitude about football and during, we made a positive step towards our goal."

The first quarter started off with no real movement. The ball stayed behind the Lancers 40-yard line, but the Lions couldn't seal the deal.

The Lions broke the 0-0 streak by claiming the first touchdown of the game on the second play of the second quarter by breaking through the Lancers defense and running it in. The Lions decided to put it up for the extra point but, it was no good.

The Lancers couldn't catch a break during the second quarter. The Lions quickly tipped the scale of the game scoring four touchdowns before the Lancer could even blink.

After running through four downs quickly, the Lancers punt to the 50-yard line. The Lions returned for 20 yards, enough field position to take it in for another touchdown. This time, they went for two and got it.

This was just the beginning of the Lancers nightmare. The Lions cornerback intercepted a pass on the first play of their possession, and brought it back to the 5-yard line.

With the amazing field position, it did not take the Lions long to run it in for another touchdown and an extra point.

After another uneventful possession by the Lancers, they decide to punt but were shut down by the Lions and taken to the 4-yard line. The Lion's quarterback powered his way through on the first play for the touchdown. They received the extra point making the final score for the second quarter 27-0.

The game was a tale of two halfs. The Lancers of the second-half were a well-oiled machine, and they virtually shut-down the Lions for the final two quarters.

The second-half passing attack caught the Lion's secondary flat-footed and a stifling Lancer defense demanded respect and provided good field position throughout the last two quarters.

The Lancers executed very well in the second half and shifted the momentum after the very first series. The Heidelberg Lions looked dazed and confused because they were getting beaten off the ball in both directions.

"On a couple occasions the Lions defense failed to put a man on the Lancer's slot receiver, so he was relatively wide-open just about every time Lakenheath setup 'twins right," said Chief Master Sgt. Mitchell Balutski, 48th Communications Squadron chief enlisted manager and football enthusiast. "The Lions safety kept looking 'weak side' and was lucky that we didn't exploit the uncovered slot-man for a couple of touchdowns or huge gains."

The Lancer team that took the field in the third quarter was unpredictable and extremely fired-up. During the quarter, the Lancers managed to recover a fumble, run in two touchdowns and receive an extra point for both. The Lancers held the line solid, denying the Lions every chance they got leaving the score at the end of the third 27-14.

In the fourth quarter, the Lions had nowhere to run because the Lancer's defensive line was exploiting gaps, shutting down the run-lanes and stretching out the sweeps for little-to-no gain. On offense, the Lancers were striking with quick-developing plays and using the Corner-Back cushion to exploit the short patterns.

By and large, the clock was Lakenheath's toughest adversary in the second half. Even though the Lancers were bringing their "A" game in the second half, they were unable to complete any more touchdowns.

Had it not been for a couple dropped passes by the offence and some missed tackles by the defense, the game would have had a more favorable outcome for the Lancers.