.gif)
The Rice Raiders took on Van Vleck Friday night on their home field and lost by only one score in heartbreaking fashion.
The Raiders lost Friday’s district matchup 42-35 but were in it all the way till the final buzzer and just ran out of time.
The Raiders’ offense racked up a total of 328 total yards Friday night scoring with two rushing touchdowns and three passing touchdowns, but turnovers again played a factor, and Van Vleck took advantage.
The Raiders turned the ball over five times Friday night leading to multiple scoring chances for Van Vleck. The Raiders fumbled the ball three times all of which were recovered by Van Vleck along with two interceptions to cap off their defensive effort.
Not to be out done on their home field the Raiders defense also forced some turnovers throughout Friday’s matchup. The Raiders forced two fumbles and recovered one of them leading to a score for their team.
The Raiders offense played a fantastic game and being down a score late they were feeling confident they could find the endzone one last time to give themselves a chance. Unfortunately, this was not the case and they fell to Van Vleck 42-35.
Freshman quarterback Kordae Johnson continues to develop as a varsity starter as the season goes on and he played one of his best games on Friday. Johnson completed 12 of his 28 passes for 253 yards and three touchdowns.
Junior receivers Josiah Cobia and Jon Woods were big for the passing game Friday night for the Raiders being reliable and consistent targets for Johnson. Cobia caught only pass but it was a 62-yard touchdown while Woods caught two balls for 74 yards and a touchdown.
Sophomore receiver Robert Bennett also contributed to the high-flying pass attack by catching four balls for 52 yards and a touchdown.
Johnson also showed off his ability to run the football Friday night carrying the ball seven times for seven yards and a rushing touchdown. Johnson’s dual-threat ability was on full display Friday night and kept the Raiders in the game while the defense was bending but not breaking.
Junior running back D’Neriyan Fuller joined Johnson having a strong game out of the back field carrying the ball six times for 49 yards and a touchdown with his longest run being 41 yards.
The Raiders are heading into their bye week after the tough loss where they will take the time to rest before traveling to East Bernard for their final game of the regular season.
