Trinity Lutheran’s football team took a tough overtime loss to Indiana School for the Deaf at home Friday night.
The Cougars dropped the game 38-30 despite a late offensive surge and strong defense in the closing minutes of regulation.
The team also had a chance to win at the end of regulation but fell when the Orioles scored in overtime and intercepted a pass during a Trinity scoring opportunity.
The Cougars made things interesting when they scored a go-ahead touchdown on a 50-yard pass from Goecker to Trent Shoemaker to give the Cougars a 30-22 lead. Goecker ran the ball in on the two-point conversion with 10:14 left in the fourth quarter.
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The Orioles answered back to tie the game with 3:10 left in the game on a pass from quarterback Jared Beckler to Sabu Middlebrook.
The Cougars drove all the way down the field and the Orioles were able to make a key interception in the end zone to send the game into overtime.
Coach Mike Wilson said he felt his team played much better than in Week 1 but made mistakes at key points in the game.
“I think we played great in spots, but we made a few mistakes when we couldn’t,” he said. “I think they played well tonight, though.”
Wilson said he was encouraged to see his team fight back and not give up.
“I think they showed strength there,” he said.
The Cougars were able to score on their first possession when they used 12 plays to drive down the field and score.
Geocker was rushed by two Orioles and scrambled out of the pocket before he launched an 18-yard pass to Lawson Woods for a touchdown with 2:43 left in the first quarter.
The two-point conversion attempt was not good when Sergei Holtman was stuffed at the line of scrimmage.
The Orioles went on to score 14 unanswered points when Beckler ran for 19 yards for a score with 1:25 left in the first quarter. Kyle Jenkins was able to convert the two-point conversion on a run.
The Orioles then got the ball back after they intercepted a pass from Goecker as he was hit. They drove down the field and scored when Beckler ran for 2 yards with 10:05 left in the second quarter. The two-point conversion was no good, bringing the score to 14-6 in favor of the Orioles.
The Cougars answered back when the Orioles fumbled the ball in the open field. Trinity’s Lawson Woods scooped up the ball and ran 30 yards for the score. Woods also carried the ball in on the two-point conversion to tie the game at 14 with 4:07 left in the first half.
The Cougars’ defense couldn’t hold the Orioles in a late first-half surge, as they scored on a 2-yard pass from Beckler to Jenkins with 1:18 remaining in the first half. Beckler ran it in on the two-point conversion to give the Orioles a 22-14 lead.
The Cougars had to punt the ball after their first drive of the second half but were able to get the ball back on some tough defense. Goecker sacked Beckler to force a turnover on downs.
Trinity started on its 35-yard line and drove down the field on five plays before being faced with a fourth and short at the Orioles’ 15-yard line.
Goecker kept the ball on a run and took off for a 15-yard score. Goecker passed to Jack Marksberry for the two-point conversion to tie the game at 22 with 2:15 left in the third.
Shoemaker finished with four catches for 125 yards, Marksberry had five for 92 and Woods totaled 75 on seven.
Goecker went 16-for-23 through the air with two touchdowns and three interceptions. On the ground, he had one TD on 56 yards. He also had eight solo tackles and four assists.
“Tyler was amazing tonight because he threw the ball well, ran the ball well and made amazing tackles,” Wilson said. “He put us in a position to win, and, to be honest, he started dominating the game.”