April 23, 2024
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Hiawatha defense falters in loss to South Beloit

Hiawatha running back Cole Brantley works through a drill during practice Monday, Aug. 16, 2021 at the school in Kirkland.

Hiawatha running back Cole Brantley works through a drill during practice Monday, Aug. 16, 2021 at the school in Kirkland. (Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.com/Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.co)

Hiawatha led by two midway through the third quarter, but South Beloit scored the final 28 points and knocked off the Hawks, 50-24, on Friday at South Beloit.

“We put up a really good effort,” Hiawatha coach Nick Doolittle said. “We just didn’t make plays when we needed to. It hurt us. But we played well. It was a close game, back and forth, and the score doesn’t really reflect how close the game was.”

Doolittle said the difference in the final 18 minutes was the Hawks’ (2-2) inability to capitalize on their opportunities.

“They had big plays and we did not,” Doolittle said. “We dropped some passes and missed some plays. That’s what it came down to. They hit on theirs, and we missed ours.”

It was the second week in a row Hiawatha allowed at least 50 points, falling 56-8 at Orangeville last week.

“I think we’re pretty young. Even our upperclassmen are young when it comes to football,” Doolittle said. “We tend to make get ahead of ourselves and overpursue. We leave a lot of backside stuff open. We’re going to learn and grow and get better every week.”

South Beloit improved to 3-1 with the win. The Hawks travel to Ashton-Franklin Center next week for their third straight road game.