DRESDEN — The Tri-Valley offense will need time to mature.
It was evident in the season opener on Friday night.
The young Scotties suffered through self-inflicted miscues, as three interceptions and two bad snaps thwarted any rhythm in a 28-0 setback to Columbus DeSales at Jack Anderson Stadium.
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One of the bad snaps came on the opening drive of the game. The Scotties were facing a 3rd-and-1 at the DeSales 29-yardline when the snap rolled past quarterback Max Lyall. He jumped on it to secure a punt, but it was an ominous sign for the offense.
The Scotties were limited to only six total yards in the first half and didn't earn a first down until 4:45 left in the game.
Lyall finished just 7-of-20 for 31 yards, while no runner had more than 20 on the ground with Jayden Wallace carrying the ball seven times for 16 yards.
Tri-Valley coach Cam West understood there would be struggles, while knowing his team can learn from the film.
His Scotties head to Licking Heights for a Week 2 showdown next Friday.
"We have new guys in key positions and expected to have some mistakes. DeSales has three linemen and two linebackers that are as good, if not better, than any we will see all season," West said. "We did put some plays in that we didn't connect on. We didn't execute, and that was probably frustrating for our defense.
"Our guys saw a good team, a playoff team. They now understand what it takes to compete at that level."
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The Tri-Valley defense did its part, besides a few big plays. The first one for the Stallions came on their opening drive when quarterback Avery Garlock found an opening on third-and-7 and outran the defense for a 57-yard yard touchdown. Joey Bangert added the first of four extra points for an early 7-0 lead at the 9:45 mark of the first quarter.
DeSales looked like it may run away early after intercepting Lyall for the first time on the ensuing Tri-Valley drive.
But, the Scotties defense forced a fumble that led to a punt, and on the next DeSales drive, Ashton Sensibaugh stuffed Garlock in the hole on fourth-and-1 to turn the ball over on downs.
That effort stood out to West, who praised his team's fight for all four quarters.
Garlock finished with 128 yards and three touchdowns and Caruso chipped in 103 yards for the Stallions, who only attempted 11 passes.
"I thought our defense was fantastic. They played with physicality, and we're going to see good things on film," West remarked. "This whole team fought to the bitter end. I've seen some groups fall down 14-0 then it's 40-0, but this group didn't do that. We learned about their attitude and effort, and those are things we can build on."
DeSales extended its lead late in the first quarter. Facing third-and-6, Garlock again found a seam and raced 53 yards for the score and a 14-0 advantage.
The Scotties' Drake Durst ended the next Stallions' drive with an interception deep in Tri-Valley territory, and another defensive stop later in the second quarter kept the Scotties within striking defense.
However, another offensive miscue put a damper on those defensive stops. Lyall was swarmed on a DeSales blitz, and the pass was tipped into the hands of Ty Neubert, who rumbled 20 yards for the pick six with 2:09 left in the half. Bangert's PAT made it 21-0, which was the score at the break.
Lyall's third interception of the game, which came at the DeSales 10 in the third, setup the Stallions' final scoring drive of the game. They covered 90 yards on nine plays, including a 40-yard connection between Garlock and Michael Walker that reached Tri-Valley territory. Caruso busted out for a 28-yard gain four plays later, leading to Garlock's 4-yard TD surge that pushed the lead to 28-0 with 1:21 left in the third.