Hopewell hands Edison first loss

MILAN — The offensive and defensive lines are where games are won. Edison couldn't get the control it needed to win Friday and fell to Hopewell-Loudon 22-14 at Freedom Field in non-league play. "We lost the game up front at the line of scrimmage," Edison coach Jim Hall said. "We couldn't do the things we like to do. Our first drive was great, and then we turned it over. Then, they got it, and then we got it and turned it over again. We gave up a ton of field positions, and they capitalized." The Chargers (2-1) started strong when Bryson Wittmer exploded for 47 yards across two carries, but later at the 10-yard line, Edison fumbled. The Chieftains (3-0) put a drive together but had to punt. The game was scoreless after one quarter. "We made a couple of mistakes in the secondary," Hall said. "Just everything that could go wrong or get blown did. Credit to Hopewell, though; they are a well-coached team. Their guys up front were tough." In the second quarter, Kellen Frankart hit Jack Colatruglio for 23 yards, which put the Chieftains at the 5-yard line. Frankart covered that distance on the next drive. H-L missed on the two-point conversion but led 6-0. Edison converted on third down on its next drive but turned the ball over on downs. H-L wasted no time moving the ball down the field. On third down, Chieftains quarterback Jacoby Ellis was sacked by Jacob Kuhl, bringing up fourth down. Hopewell-Loudon converted, though. Ellis connected with Jack Colatruglio for a 27-yard touchdown with 25 seconds to go in the half. Ellis added the two-point conversion pass to Brody Brickman for a 14-0 lead at halftime. Things compounded for Edison as Wittmer was hurt in the first half. He did not return to the game. "We got the big score before the half," Hopewell-Loudon coach Brian Colatruglio said. "I told them at the half Edison doesn't lose. They don't lose that often, and they were going to come out and fight like crazy. I knew this was going to be a four-quarter game." Edison put up a fight in the third quarter when Cole Leimeister hit Coltyn Meagrow for a 31-yard touchdown pass. The extra point by Alex Davidson cut the Edison deficit to 14-7. Edison recovered a fumbled kickoff and immediately cashed in. Leimeister found Andy Strecker for a 28-yard touchdown to tie the game 14-14. Leimeister then picked off a pass but Hopewell-Loudon was able to retake the lead for good on its next offensive possession when Frankart scored on a three-yard run. Edison standout running back/linebacker Bryson Wittmer left the game with an injury. Hopewell 0 14 0 8 — 22Edison 0 0 14 0 — 14HL — Kellen Frankart 5 run (run failed)HL — Jack Colatruglio 27 pass from Jacoby Ellis (Brody Brickman pass from Ellis)E — Coltyn Meagrow 31 pass from Cole Leimeister (Alex Davidson kick)E — Andy Strecker 28 pass from Leimeister (Davidson kick)HL — Frankart 3 run (Colatruglio pass from Ellis)