After a few years of domination in 8-man, the Manchester Academy Mavericks made the return to 11-man football Friday night against Kirk Academy.
The Mavs were able to hang around for much of the game before big plays and penalties caught up to them leading to a 21-6 season-opening loss.
After the game, MA head coach Bryan Dendy bemoaned the lack of execution and attention to detail his team exhibited in the loss.
“I thought we played hard, but we just made some mistakes, especially on special teams,” said Dendy. “We also had too many penalties. We have to clean it up and be better.”
Offensively, quarterback Tobia McGee led the way with five carries for 114 yards and an 84-yard touchdown.
Workhorse Jake White narrowly missed the 100 yard mark with 97 yards on 26 carries, Ethan White had 22 yards on seven carries and Adam Edgar had two yards on two carries.
McGee completed one pass for nine yards, and Brendan Thrasher completed six passes for 27 yards.
The top receiver on the night was Ethan White with three receptions for 25 yards.
The defense was led by Garner Burton with eight tackles (one sack), Ty Walton with six tackles, and Jake White with three. Bodie Martin had a fumble recovery.
Manchester hits the road this week when they travel to Delta Streets.
