By Maddie Nichols

The Red Hawks traveled to Greenville’s Legacy Field last Friday, September 9, for their first conference game of the season. After a well fought game, Cedar Springs ended the night with a win of 17-3.

The game started with a spark when junior John Todd returned the kick and made a long run to Greenville’s 37-yard line. Soon after, senior Jacob Hooker made a short run in for a touchdown with 10 minutes and 23 seconds left of the first quarter. The two point conversion failed, but the Hawks got the lead they needed making it 6-0 right away. Cedar continued to shut down Greenville with tackles by seniors Austin Ellis and Jaron Spencer. With only a little over a minute left of the first quarter, senior Dustin Shaw kicked a 34-yard field goal to increase the lead to 9-0 Red Hawks. Tackles at the end of the quarter by sophomore Ryan Ringler and seniors Jaron Spencer and Dustin Shaw prevented Greenville from getting any points.

Going into the second quarter, Jacob Hooker recovered a fumble and got the crowd roaring when he landed the ball on the 12-yard line. Hooker carried the ball the next few plays until it was 4th down on the 1-yard line. Senior quarterback Collin Alvesteffer then made an unusual touchdown by climbing over his teammates’ backs and crossing the ball over into the end zone. The two-point conversion from Alvesteffer to senior Dylan Ostrom-Howell was good, upping the score to 17-0 with 8 minutes left in the first half. Runs by Todd, Hooker, and Ringler kept the momentum going while important tackles by Alvesteffer, Ellis, and junior Nate Patin kept the Yellow Jackets from scoring.

In the second half, Cedar’s defense stepped up to maintain the lead they had. Although there were some close calls, Cedar held them off from making any runs into the end zone. Ringler, Alvesteffer, Shaw, Todd, sophomore Lucas Pienton and senior Austin Basso all made major tackles as the Yellow Jackets closed in on the one yard line. Towards the very end of the third quarter, Greenville kicked a field goal to make the score 17-3.

The Red Hawks continued with a strong defense in the fourth quarter. With huge tackles by Todd, Ryan Ringler, senior Fred Rutledge, Patin, Basso, junior Jordon Lyon, Pienton, and senior Jordan Ringler, the Yellow Jackets struggled to get close to a touchdown. Although there was no scoring by the Hawks, there were still some great runs by Ryan Ringler, Todd, Ostrom-Howell, Hooker, and Jordan Ringler to finish off the game 17-3.

Cedar Springs had 181 yards on the ground. Leading rushers were John Todd, with 60 yards on nine carries; Jacob Hooker with 46 yards on 12 carries; and Collin Alvesteffer with 24 yards on 11 carries.

Cedar Springs is now 1-0 in conference and 2-1 overall.

The Red Hawks have their Homecoming game this coming Friday, September 16, against Northview. Game time is 7 p.m. Come on out and cheer on your Red Hawks!