SIDNEY — Sidney ran into problems against Troy’s wing-T in the first half of a Miami Valley League game, and an interception in the first 90 seconds of the third quarter sealed the result.
The Yellow Jackets lost 25-7 to the Trojans on Friday at Sidney Memorial Stadium on elementary school night to drop to 2-4 overall and 2-3 in MVL play.
Sidney’s offense had just two possessions in the first half, one of which ended in a safety. Troy built an 8-0 lead by halftime, then returned an interception 50 yards for a touchdown on the third play of the second half to take a 15-0 lead.
“It’s a tough offense to prepare for,” Sidney coach Adam Doenges said of Troy’s wing-T. “They did a nice job with formations, trying to get us out of alignment and stuff. I thought we had a good week of prep, but at the end of the day, you have to execute when you line up against it.
“We didn’t give ourselves a whole lot of opportunities with field position. They did a great job of sustaining drives. We shot ourselves in the foot on special teams. We thought we could do some things on special teams tonight, but we weren’t able to. I give Troy a lot of credit for that.”
Sidney’s defense came up with some big stops, but Troy converted 3-of-3 fourth down attempts and 5-of-13 third down attempts to keep drives going.
“They did a really good job on offense of gaining three or four yards on first down. We might have a good play on second down, but it’d still be manageable for them on third down,” Doenges said. “A lot of times, they were in four-down territory. That kind of offense, it just kind of wears on you and wears on you.”
Troy (4-2, 3-2) gained 265 yards on offense while Sidney gained 208, 93 of which came on their lone scoring play.
Sidney committed two turnovers, turned the ball over on downs five times and was 2 for 10 on third-down conversion attempts.
“We made too many mistakes in all three facets of the game,” Doenges said. “I was kind of disappointed. I thought we had some opportunities to make some plays, but it just wasn’t in the cards tonight. But we’re going to continue to show up. We’ve got at least four games left to play for our seniors.”
After an 0-2 start, Sidney rebounded with wins over Greenville and Vandalia-Butler.
Now after consecutive losses to Piqua and Troy, the Yellow Jackets again have an opportunity to rebound as they start MVL Valley Division play.
Sidney is scheduled to host winless West Carrollton next week for homecoming, then travel to Fairborn (1-5, 1-4) on Oct. 7. The Pirates lost 34-8 to previously winless Greenville on Friday while Fairborn lost 63-0 to Piqua.
The Yellow Jackets beat West Carrollton 36-6 last season. It was the first of four consecutive league victories (including a forfeit by Fairborn) that jump started a Valley Division title run.
“Last year, we were able to put together a run together in the Valley Division,” Doenges said. “We’re still defending champs on that side, and we’re going to have to win some games to keep that title.”
Troy received the opening kickoff and drove to Sidney’s 18. Junior quarterback Cameron Stoltz missed a 35-yard field goal attempt with 5:08 left, but the Trojans scored soon after.
Sidney quarterback Tucker Herron was sacked on the squad’s first offensive play of the night, then mishandled a snap and had to fall on the ball on the second play.
After an incomplete pass, the Yellow Jackets were forced to punt from their own end zone. But punter Joey Flynn fumbled the snap, and a host of Trojans converged and forced the ball out of the back of the end zone for a touchback to give Troy a 2-0 lead.
The Trojans then drove on the ensuing possession and scored when Willie Ritchie broke open a 41-yard touchdown run along the home sideline to boost the lead to 8-0 after a missed extra point with 11:28 left in the second.
Sidney drove into Troy territory on its second drive but turned the ball over on downs. The Trojans drove and ate up the rest of the clock for the half. The Yellow Jackets blocked a 35-yard field goal attempt by Stoltz as time expired.
The Yellow Jackets’ chances of a comeback took a quick blow with the interception early in the third quarter.
Troy sophomore linebacker Marcus Cavanaugh was perfectly placed to intercept a short pass from Herron intended for Sam Reynolds. He ran up the home sideline 50 yards for a touchdown with 10:36 left, and Stoltz kicked the extra point to push the lead to 15-0.
“We were still in it at halftime, and we made some good adjustments, but kudos to Troy, they did a nice job of sliding into that,” Doenges said. “It was a nice call on their part to get that kid in that spot. It was a big play and kind of set the tone for the rest of the second half.”
Sidney went three-and-out, and Troy drove and scored on a 25-yard field goal by Stoltz with 5:20 left to take an 18-0 lead.
The Yellow Jackets then put together their first lengthy drive of the game but turned the ball over on downs at Troy’s 21 late in the third.
The Trojans then punted for the first time all night and pinned Sidney deep in its own territory.
The Yellow Jackets came up with a big play on third down. Herron threw a long pass to Jy Foster-Wheeler along the visitor’s sideline, and he then raced down field on a 92-yard touchdown reception with 9:09 left in the fourth. Flynn kicked the extra point to cut the gap to 18-7.
Sidney went for an onside kick, but Troy recovered. The squad then drove down field, and Stoltz scored on a 9-yard touchdown run on a fourth down with 4:15 left to seal the win.
Sidney drove into Troy territory on its final drive but turned the ball over on downs at the 29 with just under two minutes left.
Herron completed 9-of-20 passes for 173 yards with one TD and one interception. Reynolds caught five passes for 71 yards while Julius Spradling caught four passes for 27 yards. Foster-Wheeler’s TD reception was his only catch of the night.
Sidney’s rushing attack struggled; the squad gained 27 yards on 22 carries.
Nick Kawecki led Troy with 107 rushing yards on 28 carries. The Trojans played without leading rusher Jahari Ward.
