By JOSH ETHRIDGE/For the Reporter

The Montevallo Bulldogs looked to get their first win of the season against the Central-Coosa Cougars, in a regional contest. Their efforts fell short as they were defeated by a score of 19-15, dropping their record to 0-7 on the season.

Coosa received the ball first and drove the ball successfully down the field. As Coosa crossed the 50-yard line, it faced a third and long situation, but quarterback Andrew Hammond connected with fullback Justin Thorton for a 26-yard gain, setting them up inside the ten. The Cougars followed that up with an 8-yard touchdown run by Tre Royal. The extra point made the score 7-0 with 6:19 left in the first quarter.

On Montevallo’s first drive the Bulldogs had no problem moving the ball against the Cougars. In eight plays they drove the ball 48 yards inside the Coosa 20 yard line. However, a false start penalty backed the Bulldogs up and they turned the ball over on downs.

On the next drive, the Bulldog defense shifted the momentum of the game in their direction by forcing an interception in their own territory with 11:11 left in the half. The Montevallo offense was again able to move the ball, but turned the ball over on downs for a second time.

After forcing the Montevallo turnover, the Cougars were backed up deep in their own territory. With their backs against the end zone, the Bulldog defense was able to take the quarterback down, resulting in a safety. The score going into the half was 7-2.

MHS received the ball first in the second half and capitalized off of big plays on their opening drive. It took them just three plays to gain 52 yards and a touchdown.  Da’Jion Young capped the drive off with his 5-yard run. The two point conversion came up short making the score 8-7 Montevallo.

On the next possession Coosa faced a fourth down situation, but a facemask call against Montevallo put the Cougars in business. They capitalized off the Bulldog miscue with a 12-yard touchdown catch by Justin Thorton, his second of the day. Montevallo blocked the extra point, making the score 13-8 with 7:08 left in the third quarter.

Montevallo retook the lead on its next drive adding another touchdown. The Bulldogs followed up the score score by forcing the Cougars to fumble the ball with seven minutes left in the game. However, MHS was not able to hold the ball for very long as they fumbled the ball deep in their own territory.

Coosa capitalized off the fumble by scoring on a 24-yard pass play with 3:37 left in the game.

With time running out in the game, the Bulldogs drove the ball to the Coosa 5-yard line. With only fourteen seconds left on the clock and no timeouts, Montevallo took a shot towards the end zone. The pass was intercepted, giving the Cougars a 19-15 win.

Montevallo head coach Andrew Zow spoke about how his fought hard, but they were still not able to capitalize at the end of the game.

“So close, but still so far away,” said Zow. “As a team we’ve got to learn how to close and as a unit we’ve got to get better.”