QUINCY, Ill - Quincy sprint football continued to battle until the final whistle Sunday afternoon, but the Hawks were unable to overcome an early deficit, falling 21-6 to Calumet College of St. Joseph at QU Stadium.
The Hawks found themselves in an early hole after Calumet put together a long opening scoring drive, but Quincy had chances to answer throughout the first quarter. After an interception ended the Hawks' opening possession, Quincy put together a promising drive on its next trip to the field.
Starting at its own 25-yard line, Quincy converted a fourth-and-four when Drew Paben powered ahead for six yards. Paben followed that with another six-yard run, helping the Hawks move across midfield. Quincy ultimately turned the ball over on downs, but the drive showed the Hawks' ability to extend possessions.
Calumet then took advantage of the field position, scoring on a 12-yard touchdown pass to take a 7-0 lead in the opening quarter.
The first quarter ended with another difficult moment for Quincy. With the Hawks backed up at their own 2-yard line, a false-start penalty pushed the offense deeper into its own territory before Truong was sacked in the end zone for a safety, giving Calumet the advantage.
Calumet added another touchdown early in the second quarter, but Quincy responded with its most explosive play of the afternoon.
Paben broke through for a 24-yard run to move the Hawks into Calumet territory, and rather than letting the long down stall the possession, Truong dropped back and found Nasir Carson downfield. Carson broke away for a 57-yard touchdown, putting Quincy on the board with 3:45 remaining in the half.
The extra point attempt was unsuccessful, leaving the Hawks within 15-6 heading into the final minutes of the first half.
Carson continued to be a major weapon for Quincy throughout the afternoon. The wide receiver finished with nine catches for 184 yards and one touchdown, accounting for a large portion of the Hawks' 288 passing yards. His 57-yard touchdown was the longest play of the game for Quincy, while he also produced receptions of 36 and 54 yards during the second half.
Truong finished the day 26-of-50 passing for 288 yards and one touchdown, while Gregory Quince added five receptions for 50 yards and Evan Lopez caught four passes for 17 yards.
The Quincy defense provided an important spark early in the second half.
Calumet moved into Quincy territory on its opening possession of the third quarter before Thomas Murray Jr. forced a fumble on a 5-yard rushing attempt. Murray Jr. recovered the loose ball himself, giving the Hawks another opportunity to cut into the deficit.
Although Quincy could not turn the takeaway into points, the defense continued to make plays throughout the afternoon. Donnell Packer led the Hawks with 10 tackles and three tackles for loss, while Murray Jr. finished with seven tackles and the forced fumble. Quincy totaled 10 tackles for loss as a team.
The third quarter became a battle for field position, with neither team finding the end zone. Truong connected with Carson for a 36-yard gain to help keep the drive alive, but eventually ended on an incomplete fourth-down pass.
Calumet extended its advantage early in the fourth quarter with a 28-yard touchdown pass, making it 21-6.
The Hawks responded and converted a fourth-and-four when Truong found Lopez for nine yards, then moved deeper into Calumet territory with another completion to Carson. The drive eventually reached the Calumet 40 before ending on a fourth-down incompletion.
With time winding down, Quincy got one more opportunity to generate a comeback.
Starting at its own 20-yard line with just over three minutes remaining, Truong immediately found Carson for a 20-yard gain. After a false start, Truong connected with Quince for 15 yards to reach midfield. Two more completions to Quince moved the Hawks to the Calumet 27, putting Quincy in position to make the final minutes interesting.
The Hawks reached the Calumet 20, but three straight incomplete passes ended the possession and effectively ended Quincy's comeback attempt.
Quincy finished with 307 yards of total offense and 18 first downs, running 76 offensive plays compared to 56 for Calumet. The Hawks' 288 passing yards were complemented by 19 rushing yards, with Paben leading the ground game with 32 net yards.
The Hawks will look for their second win of the season during their Senior Day game as they will host Midway University on Sunday, September 27th at 11:00 AM.Â
