By NEAL WAGNER / City Editor

The Hope Christian School Eagles overcame 17 penalties for 150 yards Sept. 16 to down the First Assembly Christian Lions 32-12.

“They called some really silly stuff,” said Hope head coach Mark Rettig. “We had three touchdowns called back because of penalties.”

The Eagles compiled 404 yards of total offense in the win.

Hope jumped to a 8-0 lead at the end of the first quarter after a safety and a 31-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Eric Spence to Josh Clevenger.

After the Lions scored a touchdown in the second quarter, the Eagles took an 8-6 lead into halftime.

The Lions struck again during their first possession of the second half, giving them a 12-8 lead.

But Hope answered back when Senior Andrew Whitson scored on a 6-yard rushing touchdown and added the 2-point conversion.

Hope added another pair of touchdowns in the fourth quarter: One on a Spence 4-yard run and another on 32-yard Whitson run. Whitson and senior Ben Nafe added the 2-point conversions, respectively.

Rettig said he was disappointed with the team’s first-half effort, but said they “came to play” after halftime.

“They came out in the second half and played a ballgame,” Rettig said. “In the first half, they didn’t play a ballgame.

“A win is a win at this point, but Monday is going to be tough,” Rettig said. “We’ve got a lot of work to do.”