Football Falls Under Thursday Night Lights

DEFIANCE, Ohio - The Defiance College football team welcomed a familiar foe in Manchester University to town in their first "home" game of the 2019 season. Under the lights of Fred Brown stadium at Defiance High School the Yellow Jackets battled the Spartans to a 52-21 defeat. 

The Spartans struck first in the affair, putting up 38 points in the first two quarters of action. Defiance found their way onto the board as the second half wound down. A 19-yard kickoff return from Donyea Mcnary (Dayton / David H. Ponitz CTC) let the DC drive begin with just 1:19 on the clock. After a short rush from Terry Geiger (Columbus / Columbus Crusaders), Devon Hewitt (Trenton, N.J. / Lawrence) found open field and took a 25-yard run down to the Manchester 24 yard line. After a timeout from Head Coach Manny Matsakis, Reggie Washington (Laurel, Md. / Aberdeen) rushed in for the touchdown. 

The strong end to the first half gave the Yellow Jackets new life, sparking two more touchdowns in the second 30 minutes of action. A long drive down the field saw the Yellow Jackets tally their second score of the game via a Hewitt four-yard rush. 

Quickly going back at the Spartans, DC found their way to the endzone again with a little over one minute remaining in the third quarter. A Washington pass to Amin Shaheed (Fayetteville, Ga. / Sandy Creek) set up another Hewitt TD, this time from 16 yards out. The Yellow Jackets refused to capitulate as they lined-up for the two-point conversion. After a bit of scrambling from Washington the sophomore found Jason Santora (Avon / Avon) in the back of the endzone to bring the score to 52-21. 

Washington finished the night with 195 total yards including breaking into triple-digits with 106 yards on the ground. The Laurel, Md. native went 7-for-19 throwing on the day. Close behind in the rushing game was Hewitt who tallied 95 yards on 30 carries and two touchdowns. 

Defensively, Steven Lucas (Warren, Mich. / Center Line) led the way in tackles with seven. Jaylen Redd (Memphis, Tenn. / Germantown)earned four solo tackles and one assisted in the Purple and Gold defense. Brandon Russ (Copperas Cove, Tex. / Copperas Cove), Rigo Villa (Ft. Myers, Fla. / Lehigh) and Deshawn Anderson (Stuart, Fla. / Martin County) each found their way into the Spartan backfield to record tackles for loss. 

Defiance's record now stands at 0-3 on the year after the nonconference battle with Manchester. DC will return to action on Saturday, September 28 as they begin the HCAC season with a trip to Anderson University. Kickoff from Macholtz Stadium is slated for 1:30 pm.