Ludlow found a way to overcome its mistakes Friday night at James Rigney Stadium.
Despite four turnovers and 110 yards in penalties, the Panthers used a strong first half and timely plays from Miller Reed and Jaylen Stone to defeat Bellevue 34-14.
Whether it was the Homecoming atmosphere or simply the intensity surrounding the 112th meeting between the two programs, the game featured plenty of sloppiness. The teams combined for eight turnovers, with penalties and miscues creating stretches of disjointed play.
Reed and Stone connected for two touchdowns through the air, while each added a rushing touchdown.
“They can make a coach look smart,” Panthers coach Woody McMillen said. “They can create and do some things off schedule.”
The difference in the first half was Ludlow’s execution on third down.
All three of the Panthers’ first-half touchdowns came on defining third-down plays, including two in long-yardage situations. Reed’s 15-yard touchdown pass to Stone in the corner of the end zone came with just 10 seconds remaining before halftime, giving Ludlow a 21-0 advantage heading into the break.
“It was huge,” Reed said. “I think it brought the energy and brought everybody together. We got away from it a little bit in the second half, but yeah it kept the energy high and really helped.”
The other was a 18-yard strike to Stone to open up the scoring on third and goal.
PHOTOS: Slideshow provided by Charles Bolton
After the Homecoming winners and float award were announced at halftime, the game settled into a slog in the second half.
“We’ve got some kids that really need to grow up still,” McMillen said. ‘They’re good kids, but we need to grow up. Give Bellevue credit, they kept battling.”
Penalties, turnovers and an ejection contributed to an increasingly choppy game, and Bellevue finally took advantage of Ludlow’s mistakes. The Tigers turned two fourth-quarter Panthers turnovers into touchdowns, cutting the deficit to 28-14 with just over five minutes remaining.
The door kept opening as Ludlow then went three-and-out, giving Bellevue another opportunity to make things interesting. Bellevue’s Evan Brooks couldn’t connect on his next four attempts, and the Panthers eventually put the game away on a Stone 29-yard run, reversing field before finding paydirt.
“Three guys had him in the backfield. We had opportunities and we just didn’t take advantage of them,” Tigers coach Chad Montgomery said. “That’s just been the problem all year. We have three or four big plays, explosive plays, and that’s where we’re at.”
Stone finished with six receptions for 74 yards and added 32 yards rushing.
“We’ve (Reed and Stone) been passing to each other since eighth grade,” Stone said. “I think it’s a lot about our connection. We’re close.”
Ludlow totaled 345 yards of offense, while Bellevue managed just 158.
The Tigers struggled to move the ball for much of the night, with their two touchdowns coming after Ludlow turnovers provided short fields. Aidyn Fortner and Kayden Brown scored on the ground for Bellevue, with Brown leading the Tigers in rushing with 57 yards.
“We changed our offense, Montgomery said. “We were wing-T all summer and actually after after a couple games, we realized it just wasn’t working. We’re about five weeks into our offense, so we’re just we’re still working and learning it. Hopefully after the bye week when we get into district we’ll have some more wrinkles ironed out.”
Despite Bellevue maintaining a 68-39-5 advantage in the all-time series, Ludlow has now won 11 of the last 12 meetings. Friday’s victory also avenged last season’s 12-7 loss to the Tigers.
The Panthers will open district play next week against Trimble County.
“It’s a competitive district,” Stone said. “We’re about to have to play to our best ability if we want to win it. We’re going to have to step it up because we’re better than what we showed tonight.”
Bellevue will have a bye before hosting Dayton in the “Battle for the Paddle.”
PANTHERS 34, TIGERS 14
BELLEVUE — 0-0-0-14 — 14
LUDLOW — 7-14-7-6 — 34
Scoring Plays
1st Quarter
(L) Reed 19-yard pass to Stone (8:37) McMillen kick
2nd Quarter
(L) Reed 73-yard run (9:13) McMillen kick
(L) Reed 15-yard pass to Stone (:10) McMillen kick
3rd Quarter
(L) Watson 1-yard run (1:03) McMillen kick
4th Quarter
(B) Brown 2-yard run (:03) Frigard kick
(B) Fortner 7-yard run (5:21) Frigard kick
(L) Stone 29-yard run (3:03) kick blocked
Game Stats
PassingYards: Ludlow — Reed 9/18, 107 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT, Bellevue — Brooks 9/27, 93 yds, 3 INT
Rushing Yards: Ludlow 248 (Yates 3-6, Reed 14-140, Watson 9-30, Stone 2-32, Rice 5-40), Bellevue 65 (Brown — 20-57, Brooks 9–17, Richards 3-6, Fortner 2-19)
Receiving — Ludlow (Stone 6-74, Rice 2-25, Englemon 1-8), Bellevue (Rolland 4-62, Baker 4-28, Engle 1-3)
Penalties — Ludlow 12/110, Bellevue 6/48
Turnovers: Ludlow 4, Bellevue 4
Records: Bellevue 1-4, Ludlow 4-2
