Cape football falls in the rain to the Riders 27-6
Two crucial fumbles in the first quarter gave the Caesar Rodney Riders all the points they needed to make a wet, dreary night even more dismal for the Vikings, as they turned the errors into 14 points and a lead that Cape could not overcome. The Riders finished the game 27-6, moving them to 3-3, while the Vikings dropped to 2-4.
Things started out bleak for the Vikings as the opening kickoff was fumbled. Caesar Rodney quarterback Jared Wagenhoffer wasted no time and called his own number and plunged into the end zone to give the Riders the early lead with 9:44 left in the opening stanza.
“No matter who, from a starter to a special teams guy to anyone, we have all had our moments of non-execution,” said Cape head coach Bill Collick. “We have had good effort from individuals, but not as a full group. We have had opportunities and collectively not done things we need to do.”
Cape came back and at 5:49 left in the first, Kolbi Wright took a Sam Jones handoff and plowed through the Riders’ defense for a 9-yard run. Wright ended the game with 85 yards on 15 carries.
“Kolbi made a good run, and Sam played well at quarterback, his best game so far,” Collick said.
Jones went 5-for-9 for 61 yards in the game. Ben Ashby caught two passes for 45 yards.
A fumble with 2:05 remaining in the first was run back 15 yards for the Riders’ second score of the game.
“Boys, it’s getting late, and we have to get back to work to get a group of people together,” Collick told his team. “We have to focus on playing a full 48 minutes.”
Just before halftime, the Riders’ defense blocked a Hunter Simmons field goal attempt and ran it back for a score, but it was called back on a block in the back penalty, and the half ended at 14-6 in favor of the Riders.
CR started out the second half strong, as a 19-yard strike from Wagenhoffer found Joseph Delgado.
A Zach Dale punt had pinned the Riders on their own 7-yard line, but CR fullback Kevin Robinson ran through the Cape defense and scampered 93 yards to finish the Riders’ scoring.
The fourth quarter found both teams slipping, sliding and sputtering on offense, and the game ended at 27-6.
“If you were to assess our team, we haven’t been able to come together as a team, and I’m disappointed,” Collick said. “We have four games left, winnable games if we can play together as a team. No more excuses.”
The Vikings will travel to Milford Friday, Oct. 20, for a battle with the Buccaneers. Milford ended Woodbridge’s five-game undefeated run with a 20-6 victory Oct. 13.
The game with Caesar Rodney was an Autism Awareness game. Nearly 200 Cape and Caesar Rodney students walked around the field during pregame to raise awareness for autism.
