Matching up against a Division-3 school like Windsor was never going to be easy for the Eureka Loggers in their season opener, and that proved to be the case.
With the newly-renovated Albee Stadium not quite ready for the first game of the year, the Loggers played their opener at the Redwood Bowl on Saturday night.
And it was a disappointing night for them as they fell 41-0.
But it wasn’t all bad for the Loggers, who battled for the entire game and never threw in the towel despite the lopsided score.
“My boys didn’t quit,” Eureka head coach Sam Edmonds said. “As far as playing hard for all four quarters, they definitely did.”
Windsor’s speed caused problems for the home team, as the Jaguars got the year off to an impressive start and look like they could be able to make some noise in the North Coast Section this fall.
The Jaguars also have plenty of experience on a roster that features 17 seniors.
“They’re good,” Edmond said. “They’re going to be tough this year. They play as a team, they execute well and they have a lot of speed.”
Still, it was a disappointing start to the new campaign for the H-DNL school, which has struggled to compete in the Pacific League (formerly the Big 4) in recent years and is hoping to turn the corner this fall.
Edmonds is hoping his players will learn from this game as they get set to travel to Shasta next week.
“The biggest lesson for us is we’ve got to get better every week,” the Eureka coach said. “For us, it tells us where we’re at and where we have to improve.”
There were, however, some bright spots, most notably the play of Bryson Burns.
The multi-sports Loggers standout epitomized his team’s fight throughout the night, taking over at quarterback after Ben Klein was forced to the sideline with cramps.
“Bryson Burns had a phenomenal game,” Edmonds said. “He came in to finish the game at quarterback and he played tough on both sides of the ball.”
And that wasn’t all.
“The offensive line played good,” the Eureka coach added. “We’ve been working hard with them. The whole team played hard.”
Senior linebacker Easton Taerea and junior end/linebacker Nevan Rose each had a sack in the loss, while Klein battled and ran the ball well at times.
“Ben Klein did a great job when he was in the game,” Edmonds added. “He used his legs more than he ever has.
“I’m proud of my team. They competed against a better opponent and didn’t quit. And that’s all you can ask of a team, to play all four quarters.”
The Loggers will return to work on Monday preparing for the Wolves as they look to put the opening weekend behind them.
Shasta is 1-0 after a close 23-21 win over Lassen in their season opener on Friday night.
