The Huntland High School Hornets lost to the Collinwood Trojans 22-20 at home Friday for their fifth loss of the season.
The momentum in the regional matchup went back and forth with the Hornets falling behind in the fourth quarter and coming up just short on a two-point conversion to tie the game late.
The Hornets moved into Collinwood’s territory to start the contest before a high snap on a third-down play forced them to punt.
Huntland’s defense got the ball back at midfield after forcing the Trojans into a quick punt to punt on their first offensive drive.
The Hornets were put in another punting situation, but they wouldn’t get the kick off this time as a low snap was fumbled with the Hornets falling on the loose ball for a turnover on downs.
Starting from Huntland’s 45-yard line after the turnover, the Trojans capitalized with a rushing touchdown to take a 6-0 lead with 10 seconds left in the opening period.
The Hornets had another botched punt on their next drive as the failed kick gave the Trojans excellent field position at Huntland’s 26-yard line.
However, the Hornets pushed the Trojans’ offense back and forced a turnover on downs at that same spot.
The Hornets concluded an eight-minute drive with their first touchdown of the game as BJ Summers scored on the ground, and Grant Morris added a point-after kick to give them a 7-6 lead with 37 seconds left in the first half.
The Trojans attempted to answer back in the waning seconds of the first half, but the Hornets forced a turnover with JT Jackson intercepting a pass thrown to the middle of the field.
Huntland led 7-6 at halftime.
The Trojans opened the second half with a 57-yard scoring drive as they got a rushing touchdown and a two-point conversion to take a 14-7 lead about two minutes into the third quarter.
The Hornets responded quickly as they drove down the field and tied the game on a passing touchdown from Evan Keller to Hunter Bates with six minutes remaining in the third quarter.
Following a punt by the Trojans, the Hornets were also forced to punt at the start of the fourth quarter, and they were not able to get the kick off for the third time in the game with a dropped snap leading to the Trojans taking over at Huntland’s 15-yard line.
The Trojans scored a rushing touchdown a few plays later and added another two-point conversion to put the Hornets in a 22-14 hole with 9:32 remaining.
After trading one punt each, the Hornets drove from their own 9-yard line into Collinwood’s territory as time continued ticking away on the game clock.
Facing a fourth down on Collinwood’s 24-yard line, the Hornets found the end zone one more time as Keller connected with Summers on a pass in the end zone with 1:37 left to play.
The Hornets lined up to go for a game-tying two-point conversion and Keller handed the ball off to Jarren Kinslow, but Kinslow would be stopped inches away from the goal line on the play.
The Hornets were not able to recover the ensuing onside kick, and the Trojans ran out the clock from there as Huntland lost by two points.
Huntland head football coach Bob Robertson said that the series of miscues in the punting game proved to be detrimental to his team.
“Other than that, I thought our kids played hard,” he added before talking about specific areas of the game his team still needs to improve in. “We’ve got to get better up front. We’ve got to get better on special teams. It’s getting late in the season, but we’re going to go back to work Monday to get ready for Community.”
With the loss, the Hornets moved to 1-5 on the season and 0-3 in district play.
They will next play Friday at Community High School. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
