CROSBY – Playing for second place in the district standings, the Crosby Cougars ran into a tough C.E. King Panthers team and was unable to pull out an upset, losing 39-24.
The loss was only the second one for Crosby in district, with the other coming to Dayton, which beat every other team in district as well.
The Cougars found themselves behind early in the game and was unable to make up the lost ground.
In the first quarter, King scored first on Terrence Guys 13-yard run. Four minutes later Crosby tied the game when Dominic Merka scored from the 7-yard line.
In the final seconds of the first quarter the Panthers kicked a 33-yard field goal to go up 10-7.
Crosbys offense stalled in the second quarter, as they were unable to put up any points. The Panthers took advantage of this to score two more touchdowns to give themselves a 23-7 halftime lead.
The Cougars got back one the scores in the third quarter when Forrest Tyler scored from the one-yard line.
The Panthers responded quickly with Jimmie White scoring on a 49-yard run. Another field goal in the fourth quarter by King made it a 29-14 game.
Sam Fowler added his own field goal for Crosby in the fourth quarter, hitting from 32 yards out.
Merka gave Crosby their final score of the game with an eight-yard pass to Paul Erwin.
Merka was 24 of 37 for 243 yards with one interception. He also rushed for 42 yards on eight carries. Tyler led the Cougars in receptions with five catches for 74 yards.
The primary difference between the two teams was the running attack. The Panthers had 462 yards rushing, with A. Alexander accounting for 136 of those yards, Z. Jones with 93 yards and Josh Williams with 92 yards.
The Cougars will now turn their attention to the Lumberton Raiders in Bi-District play. The teams will meet Friday at Turner Stadium in Humble at 7:30 p.m.
