Published: September 20, 2008 01:13 am      

‘Dogs wear out Kings

CLINTON — Following Clinton’s 35-14 Mississippi Athletic Conference loss to second-ranked Bettendorf, Tyler Redman put into words what many a coach and player have probably thought over the years after facing the perennial football powerhouse.

“There’s not a lot to say about this game,” the Clinton senior receiver said. “Our guys got tired, and there wasn’t anything we could do about it. They’re going to reload every year.”

Bettendorf (4-0) showcased its depth in the win, pulling away from the River Kings after the two teams played evenly until the waning moments of the second half.

Tied 7-7 with less than a minute remaining until halftime, the Bulldogs took advantage of a Clinton three-and-out series that gave them the ball at midfield.

Bettendorf moved the ball down the field and scored on a Carter Ridenour 1-yard touchdown plunge to edge out in front 14-7 heading into the locker room.

The Bulldogs scored on their first and last drives of the first half.

A 74-yard kickoff return by Pat Brown gave Bettendorf the ball with good field position. A couple of first downs later, Jared Masterson broke through for a 1-yard touchdown run to give the Bulldogs the early lead.

On their second drive, the River Kings started driving the ball down the field, highlighted by a David Johnson 37-yard run. On the night, Johnson tallied 196 total yards with 107 coming on the ground and 89 through the air.

Quarterback Jake Mangler hit Johnson on an 11-yard pass to the Bettendorf 16-yard line.

Three plays later Mangler found Redman on a crossing route. As the senior fought for more yardage, the ball popped free and Bettendorf recovered on the 1-yard line.

“That’s part of the game, going hard,” Clinton head coach Lee Camp said. “We were assured that we could move the ball on them, though.”

On Bettendorf’s next possession, Clinton returned the favor by recovering a fumble on the Bettendorf 22-yard line.

After a Clinton penalty moved the River Kings back 17 yards, Mangler hit Johnson on a 24-yard passing play to the Bulldogs 12.

Two plays later, the River Kings found pay dirt as Jake Mangler went in from 4 yards out.

The score remained even until Bettendorf scored with less than a minute remaining.

In the second half, Bettendorf flexed its muscles in running the score up to 35-7.

Clinton regrouped and scored as backup quarterback Tyler Morehead found Johnson on a crossing route with 5:55 left in the game to bring the score to 35-14.

The River Kings managed only four first downs in the second half as the Bettendorf’s team depth became apparent.

“The second half was letdown,” Redman said. “The main thing is people got tired. They had us back on our heels.”

Camp said his team was ready for the challenge, but the Bulldogs just wore out the River Kings.

“We came ready to play,” Camp said. “Either team could have been up at half. We had our chances, but we just let them get ahead. In the second half we made some mental mistakes. They maybe dropped their heads a little bit, but then we regrouped.”

The River Kings fell to 2-2 on the year, while Bettendorf improved to 4-0.

Clinton will host Davenport Assumption on Friday for homecoming.



Score by Quarters

Bettendorf 7 7 14 7 —35

Clinton 0 7 0 7 —14

Scoring

B—Jared Masterson 1 run (Nate Meyer kick), 8:28 1st.

C—Jake Mangler 4 run (Mangler kick), 10:42 2nd.

B—Carter Ridenour 2 run (Meyer kick), :37 2nd.

B—Joey Trizzino 1 run (Meyer kick), 5:44 3rd.

B—Masterson 4 run (Meyer kick), 2:27 3rd.

B—Jake Stoltenberg 6 run (Meyer kick), 8:09 4th.

C—David Johnson 54 pass from Tyler Morehead (Ryan Judge kick), 5:55 4th.

BETT CLI

First Downs 15 10

Rushes-Yards 40-179 32-143

Passing Yards 105 164

Comp-Att-Int 10-21-0 10-16-0

Punts-Average 2-45 4-29

Fumbles-Lost 2-2 4-3

Penalties-Yards 2-15 6-35



Individual Leaders

Rushing—Bettendorf: Jared Masterson 17-76, Jake Stoltenberg 6-47, Joey Trizzino 9-44, Carter Ridenour 5-5, Pat Brown 1-7, Chris Sanders 1-0; Clinton David Johnson 11-107, Jake Mangler 11-9, Ty Hatheway 3-17, Maurice Walker 5-4, Matt Murphy 1-7, Adam Young 1-(-1).

Passing—Bettendorf: Ridenour 10-21-0-105. Clinton: Mangler 9-14-0-110, Tyler Morehead 1-1-1-54, Johnson 0-1-0-0.

Receiving—Bettendorf: Brown 4-40, Mitch Overstreet 4-51, Masterson 1-13, Bryce Ewan 1-1. Clinton: Johnson 3-89, Tyler Redman 5-65, Walker 1-9, Hatheway 1-1.

Records—Bettendorf 4-0 Mississippi Athletic Conference; Clinton 2-2.

Next games—Bettendorf at North Scott, Friday; Davenport Assumption at Clinton, Friday.

Sophomores—Bettendorf def. Clinton 37-0.