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Middlebury Tigers Fall At Essex

Tuesday October 11, 2016

By Mike Cameron

The Essex Hornet Football Team coached by Charlie Burnett is always a work-out for any opponent especially when playing before their home town crowd in Essex Junction on Senior Night. The Hornets were primed and ready for another Division 1 showdown on Friday night October 7, 2016.
So far this year, both Middlebury and Essex have developed some solid players on both sides of the ball.  Both teams had suffered early season set-backs.
   The Hornets entered the contest at
 3-2.  Hornet losses came at the hands of Saint Johnsbury and CVU (Champlain Valley Union High).  These two teams are two of the best in the state this year, and Saint J won a head-to-head contest between the two held in Hinesburgh recently.  A win at Essex for the Tigers  would be a significant momentum builder for the rest of the season.  The same could be said of the Hornets.  The Tigers would hit the road to Essex with a record of 4-1. The scouting report on Essex was straight forward.  They    have an excellent quarterback and solid defense, and some team speed.  They can and will throw and the secondary can defend.  Middlebury's tripple-option attack has improved since a loss to Brattleboro in game 3 at Doctor Ray Collins Field.  The second half in that one however was dismal for the Tigers.
   Going into the game at Essex, the Tigers had improved, reeling off impressive wins against Colchester and South Burlington.  A win at Essex would also quell some doubts about the team's ability to win against a team with a winning record.   Tiger coaches Smith, Nuceder and Malcolm have patiently gone about the business of improvement with a new face here, a tweak there and a new sense of focus, all coming in the weeks after the Brattleboro loss.  Against the Hornets at a jam packed Hornet Stadium that would not be the case.
   The Tigers won the toss and chose to defend and stopped Essex on their first series.  Middlebury moved the ball to the Hornet 16 yard line and appeared to be headed for a score.  And then lightning struck in the person of junior tailback
 Jordan Hines.  Hines who had fumbled the Essex snap on a 4th down punt,
moments earlier scooped up a misguided Tiger pitch out on the Middlebury 16 and rocketed down the sideline for an 84 yard score.  This set the tone for the rest of the game.
   The Tigers would turn the ball over three more times in this one and it would prove to be costly.  Essex would tack on a 24 yard field goal after the Tigers put up an excellent goal line stand before the half.  At intermission Middlebury trailed 10-0 and were by no means out of it.  At that point even the Hornet faithful were contemplating a roaring Tiger come-back in the second half, but it never happened.  The Hornets were ahead to stay and they would protect and add to their lead in the second half.
   Hines and rugged Liam Coulter would spearhead a strong Essex running game but the Tigers were equal to the task defensively with stop after stop being made.  Middlebury's Maverick Payne, Patrick Messenger, Skyeler Develin and Marty Niemo played strong defense for the Tigers.  The defense was on the field most of the time in the second half and it began to wear them down.  The offense for
Middlebury could not consistently move against a big, quick and aggressive Essex
defensive line, fired up at the possibility of a win, perhaps even a shut out.
   Coulter's power TD run in the red zone to start the third quarter was a picture of sheer determination. He smashed and crashed a pile of defenders at the corner and then dragged some into the end zone with leg drive for an Essex TD.  The kick by Anthony Hope was good and the score was 17-0.  Still the Tigers would not fold and fought back with a determined drive of their own, their best of the game, in the final stanza.  Andrew Gleason engineered a Middlebury march from the Tiger  13 to the Essex 9.  The drive ended with a pass that was a bit too tall.  Essex would win 17-0. and the Hornet celebration
was on. 
The Tigers will next host Rice Memorial on Friday night October 14th at Doc Collins Field.  They are now 4-2 on the year.  
     

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