Owen falls short in hard-fought battle against East Henderson
Warhorse defense stands tall in 3-0 loss to Eagles
Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
September 14, 2024
Defense led the way, Sept. 13, as Owen hosted East Henderson on First Responders Night at Warhorse Stadium in a tightly contested clash, but offensive struggles prevented the home team from picking up its first victory of the season.
In a game where neither team found the end zone, the Eagles prevailed, 3-0, while the Warhorses remained winless, despite their best showing of the season.
Owen came into the contest with an 0-3 record, after falling 36-6 on the road against North Henderson a week prior. The team’s defense had allowed an average of nearly 39 points per game before hosting an East Henderson program averaging more than 25 points per outing.
The Warhorse defensive unit set the tone early, swarming to the ball to stop North Henderson’s opening drive and recovering an errant snap on their opponent’s 34 yard line. The offense, however, was unable to capitalize on the first of several Eagles turnovers, failing to convert on fourth down.
That pattern repeated itself throughout, as the game remained scoreless until the middle of the second quarter, when a 27-yard field goal by North Henderson established a lead that would hold for the rest of the night.
The Owen defensive attack was spearheaded by seniors Austin Anderson, Tristan King and junior Rio Obispo, a trio that has been “making plays all year,” according to head coach John Faircloth.
“Rio has played phenomenal all year, even if it doesn’t show up in the stat line like it does in other positions,” he said of the offensive and defensive lineman. “We had a really good defensive outing that we should all be proud of.”
While the defense put together its best performance of the season, the Warhorse offense was unable to break through, despite a late third quarter drive that ended at the Eagles 5 yard line. The versatile running back combination of sophomores Steven Anderson, Haiden Small and junior Hayden Burpeau found little space against an aggressive East Henderson defense.
“There were a couple of calls I wish I had back, because it’s always easy to blame other people but I feel like I made more mistakes tonight than some of these kids,” Faircloth said. “I have to self-reflect and see what I can do to be better and put them in a position to be successful.”
The coach lauded the effort of his players, despite the bitter outcome.
“These kids are starting to believe, and they can see themselves getting better,” Faircloth said. “That’s what stings about this loss; we made improvements and were in the game all the way through, we just couldn’t pull it out. Now we know we have to get a little better on third and fourth downs, get a couple more stops, executive a few more plays to get the chains moving.”
That process starts with the coaching staff, he added.
“We’re going back to the drawing board, which is where I look for ways in which I can get better,” Faircloth said.
The game marked the culmination of First Responders Night, in which Owen recognized area firefighters, law enforcement officers and veterans and commemorated the 23rd anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in a pre-game ceremony at midfield.
Owen will return to its home field at 7:30 p.m., Friday, Sept. 20, when the Warhorses host Western Highlands Conference foe, Draughn, on homecoming night.
Photos of First Responders Night and Owen vs. East Henderson can be viewed in the gallery at the top of the page.