Lions come up short on homecoming night

The Cosby Eagles (2-4) played the part of spoiler Friday night against the King’s Academy (1-3), scoring all of their points in the second half after the Lions failed to capitalize on some first-half opportunities to pick up the 16-13 win and put a damper on homecoming night at Husky Field. In front of a nice turn out of students and former alumni, the Lions quickly gave fans something to cheer about against the 1A Eagles. Jehu Hill broke through the middle of the line on fourth down and one and showed a burst of speed as he barreled in for a 16-yard touchdown on the Lions first offensive series with 7:37 left in the first. Keita Ochi added the extra point. The Lions defense controlled the first quarter, forcing a punt and two turnovers on downs in Cosby’s three possessions. The King’s Academy missed a golden opportunity when defensive back Matt King picked off his second pass of the game and gave his team possession around midfield. Lions’ quarterback Zack Fine tossed a swing pass to his left that was caught by King, who turned upfield, juked an Eagles’ linebacker, and raced to the Cosby 25-yard line. A fumbled handoff exchange three plays later ended the King’s scoring threat. Cosby turned the ball over on downs on the ensuing series but the second quarter clock ran out with the Lions in Cosby territory leaving the score 7-0 at the half. The first eight minutes of the second half was a defensive stalemate until Cosby was able to tie the score on an Adam Reliford three yard run with 3:53 left in the third. The Lions answered on the following series when King got loose on a 37-yard scoring jaunt with 1:59 left in the third. The extra point kick failed, making the King’s lead 13-7. The Lions were stifled with poor field position during the final 12 minutes and Cosby took advantage, scoring first on a 21-yard pass from Josh Ford to Jerry Bienick with 5:27 left in the game. The final Eagles’ score came when Fine was called for an intentional grounding while trying to avoid a sack in his own end zone, resulting in a safety.