By NEAL WAGNER / City Editor

The Hope Christian School Eagles downed visiting Georgia-Alabama Christian School Sept. 2 36-32 in eight-man football action.

The Eagles (2-1) recorded 364 yards of total offense in the win.

Sophomore Dillon Thompson led Hope in receptions, with four catches for 138 yards.

Defensive standouts included Andrew Whitson with 12 tackles and a fumble recovery, Jonathan Misso with 11 tackles, and Reid Allen with eight tackles and a fumble recovery.

“We are starting to gain our composure. We’ve got a young group of guys, and they are starting to get a little bit of experience,” said Hope head coach Mark Rettig. “I’ve told them that their technique and want-to will determine how well they do this season.”

Hope scored in the first quarter on a 79-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Eric Spence to Thompson, and Charles Streets added the 2-point conversion.

Spence again connected with Thompson in the second quarter on a 12-yard touchdown pass, and Andrew Whitson added the 2-point conversion.

In the third quarter, Spence connected with Thompson on a 33-yard touchdown pass.

The fourth quarter saw a pair of Hope touchdowns: One on a Spence-to-Streets 59-yard pass, and another after Whitson caused a fumble and Josh Clevenger recovered the ball on the 12-yard line.

Streets then scored on a 1-yard run, and Bell added the 2-point conversion.