Apollos Hold Off Crabs as Lonn Kicks Three Field Goals
Riley Kade — JRSports One
Owen Lonn kicked three field goals, the last a 52-yarder early in the fourth quarter, and Houston held off Baltimore 23-20. Houston never trailed, and Baltimore's late touchdown and field goal came too late to change the result.
The turning point came at 10:58 of the first quarter, when Ben Bluman ran 2 yards for a touchdown and put Houston ahead 7-0. Houston built a 14-0 lead before Baltimore scored, and Baltimore never got closer than one score until the final minutes.
Owen Foortwood ran 7 yards for a touchdown at 14:44 of the second quarter to make it 14-0. Parker Tuton answered with a 2-yard touchdown run at 4:02, cutting it to 14-7. Lonn then hit a 38-yard field goal at 0:43 to make it 17-7 at halftime. He added a 51-yarder at 2:48 of the third quarter for a 20-7 lead. Tuton fumbled at 1:17 of the third quarter, and Wade Lairdton recovered for Houston.
Lonn's 52-yard field goal at 14:10 of the fourth quarter made it 23-7, the largest Houston lead of the game. Nanena kicked a 40-yard field goal at 9:47 to make it 23-10. Nick Peasrick threw an interception to Luke Liham at 5:47, and Liham returned it 7 yards. Matteo Schosmann threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Tuton at 2:34, making it 23-17. Liham intercepted Peasrick again at 1:43, returning it 7 yards. Nanena's 21-yard field goal at 1:00 closed the scoring at 23-20.
Schosmann completed 27 of 40 passes for 261 yards and one touchdown with no interceptions for Baltimore. Tuton had 16 carries for 118 yards and a rushing touchdown, and he caught a pass for 10 yards and a second touchdown. Peyton Lendwood led Houston's defense with 11 tackles and a sack. Diego Geado had eight tackles and three sacks for Baltimore.
Peasrick completed 16 of 27 passes for 153 yards with two interceptions and no touchdowns for Houston. Foortwood ran 16 times for 79 yards and a touchdown and caught four passes for 35 yards. Riku Chonyama added six tackles, a sack and a forced fumble for Houston.
Wes Weardworth, the Houston fullback, was out with a concussion and is expected to miss four weeks. Adam Vown, the Houston cornerback, left with a hamstring strain and was ruled out. Wyatt Crurworth, the Baltimore right tackle, was evaluated for a concussion and was listed as questionable; he did not return. Matt Nurt, the Baltimore right outside linebacker, was listed as questionable with hamstring tightness and did not return.
Houston improved to 4-4 with the win, and Baltimore is 5-3.
