It was homecoming night at Glenbrook School and the stands were full of faithful alumni ready to see the Apaches take on the Union Christian Academy Lions.
Behind the big crowd Glenbrook got off to a solid start, but stumbled late and eventually fell to UCA, 38-13.
It was a tough loss for the Apaches (0-8), but Glenbrook head coach Caleb Carmikle wanted to thank the large crowd for coming out to support the team.
“I’ve been told by several people that this is the best gate we’ve had in a long time at Glenbrook,” Carmikle said. “The attendance has been awesome and the past two weeks the students have put together a great student section and the spirit has increased tremendously. It shows just how great the school is, and better days are ahead. When we start having some success this is going to be a great place to be.”
On Friday night, the Apaches were hoping to continue the offensive success shown against Claiborne Academy in the previous week, but UCA came out with a solid defensive gameplan and sophomore signal-caller Seth Tyler didn’t have many open receivers on the night.
“The effort was their,” Carmikle said. “I thought the defense came out and played pretty well and kept us in it early, we just couldn’t find our rhythm on offense. We couldn’t get any push up front and the windows were much smaller for Seth this week. That makes it difficult for a young quarterback.”
The Glenbrook defense did the best they could to keep the game close. The Apaches came out on fire, forcing a pair of three and outs on Union’s first two possessions.
But with the offense stagnant, Union found their stride in the second quarter with a pair of touchdown runs.
Glenbrook answered with a nice drive, capped by a one-yard Seth Tyler touchdown run, but trailed 24-6 at the half.
In the second half, Glenbrook’s defense forced some turnovers, with Drennon Keen and De’Maza Robinson coming up with big interceptions, but the offense couldn’t solve the puzzle that was the Lion defense.
“This was the first time our secondary had been tested in a while,” Carmikle said. “I was really proud of them, we got a couple of interceptions and our pass rush was great. Coach Sorey was doing a great job of dialing up pressure all night. We kept them on their heels, but we just wore down in the end.”
Glenbrook was able to get a touchdown late in the game, a nice throw and catch from Seth Tyler to standout senior Hunter Vaughn, but the ensuing onside kick was recovered by Union to end the game.
Tyler threw for 144 yards and one touchdown with three interceptions, adding 105 yards and a score on the ground. Hunter Vaughn had nine catches for 127 yards and a touchdown to lead the receivers and Marshall Meek carried nine times for 35 yards.
Tyler Perryman and Drennan Keen tied for the team lead with eight tackles. Keen added an interception and De’Maza Robinson picked off two passes for the Apaches. Parker Christy had seven tackles and a sack, Lyle Reagan had five tackles and a sack and Garrett Sanders added five tackles.
This week brings a showdown with MAIS power Trinity Episcopal, a well-known force in the private school association.
That game will be on the road in Natchez, Mississippi.