Start jumps on Norwalk in opener

NORWALK — The Norwalk football team struggled to play from behind Friday. Visiting Toledo Start scored twice in the opening quarter for a 14-0 lead, and Norwalk never got closer than 12 points the rest of the way in a 34-17 loss in the season opener at Contractors Stadium. The Spartans came out of the gates firing with a huge shot downfield by Emmanuel Esparza-Moreno. He connected with John Archer for a 54-yard touchdown pass to put them up 6-0 after the extra point kick was no good. Norwalk went three-and-out on offense on its initial possession of the season. Then, the Truckers failed to get the punt off after a bad snap exchange to give Start great field position. Tai'Reese Highsmith needed to only go eight yards for the second touchdown of the game, and teammate Joseph Ridley ran in the two-point conversion for the 14-0 lead. "We've been used to the high of a week one win in my whole time here at Norwalk," said Norwalk coach Keith Mora of the previous three wins over Start. "We haven't had a Week 1 loss, but we've always followed up with a loss in Week 2. So, let's not get ahead of ourselves here." Down two scores, the Truckers responded with a strong drive, led by Ayden Hudson-Brown. He had a 33-yard run to put the Norwalk into Start territory for the first time of the night. Brady Singer was able to cap off the drive on a fourth-down pass to tight end Cam Evans for a 21-yard touchdown pass. Aiden Kahn added the extra point for a 14-7 deficit, but the news didn't get better for the Truckers. Singer exited the game after the score and did not return after an apparent wrist injury. Start then pounced. The Spartans got a big kick return to the Norwalk 38, and Highsmith capped another short scoring drive with a 10-yard touchdown run. Ronnie Denson ran in the two points for a 22-7 lead. Finally, Norwalk caught a break. The Truckers forced a fumble with 42 seconds left in the half and recovered. With Singer out, Hudson-Brown started taking snaps for the Truckers. He was able to move Norwalk into kicking range for Kahn, who made a 25-yard field goal to make it a 22-10 halftime deficit. But like it did to start the game, the Spartans took control early in the third quarter. After forcing a turnover on downs, Denson scored on a 51-yard run just two plays into the ensuing drive The Truckers looked to get some momentum back but were denied on fourth and goal. Archer was then found wide open by Esparza-Moreno for a 59-yard touchdown pass and catch that put Start up 34-10 after the two-point run failed. Freshman Brysen Risner, who had a big second half for the Truckers, then closed out the scoring in the fourth quarter on a 10-yard run. Gentry added the extra point. Mora was proud of the effort his team put in, despite the loss of Singer. "It's not easy to see your quarterback go down with an injury early in the game," he said. The fourth-year head coach was impressed with the way Hudson-Brown was able to step in for Singer. "It's been something we've been talking about for the entire offseason," he said. "We just didn't think it was going to be a starting quarterback situation. We thought it was even more of like a Wildcat package, but yeah, he carried the ball well." Mora said the Truckers will continue to push forward with the Wing-T with or without Singer. "We're not going to change the whole thing, that's for sure," he said. "We have a lot of guys who have experience in what we're doing. The offense is not driven by just the quarterback, and there are obviously some things that we have to tweak." Risner ran 13 times for 141 yards and the touchdown in his first high school game for Norwalk. Hudson-Brown ran 14 times for 44 yards, while Lyric Shipp added 37 yards on 10 attempts. Evans caught both completed passes on three attempts from Singer for 46 yards. Highsmith totaled 155 yards on 15 carries for Start, while Denson added 78 yards on five attempts. Mora said he talked to his players about being progress-driven. Norwalk heads to Ontario next Friday. "We have to make progress every single day," he said. "I explained to them that there's been days last week when we didn't make progress. We want to be a team that's constantly improving. So on Monday, that's going to be our focus." Start 14 8 6 6 — 34 Norwalk 0 10 0 7 — 17S — John Archer 54 pass from Emmanuel Esparza-Moreno (kick failed) S — Tai'Rese Highsmith 8 run (Joseph Ridley run) N — Cam Evans 21 pass from Brady Singer (Aiden Kahn kick) S — Highsmith 10 run (Ronnie Denson run) N — Kahn 25 field goal S — Denson 51 run (kick failed) S — Archer 59 pass from Esparza-Moreno (run failed) N — Brysen Risner 10 run (Gentry kick)