The expectations and hopes of the home team Healdsburg Greyhounds and their fans soared high Friday evening as senior Scott Reynolds took the opening kick-off and raced 70 yards deep in to Fortuna territory. The Hounds took advantage of the field position, scoring just over a minute latter on a 9 yard run by Jared Walker. Unfortunately Healdsburg couldn’t keep the momentum going as the Fortuna Huskies played strong the rest of the game.
Healdsburg had plenty of opportunities to show their skills and experience throughout the night, but costly mistakes and penalties kept the Hounds from claiming their season opener.
Possibly the most costly mistake came when an 11 yard TD run was called back on a penalty. The Husky defense held strong, stopping the Hounds on the 2 yard line. Had the touchdown counted, the Hounds would have taken a strong lead; as it turned out Healdsburg never got another solid chance to score the rest of the evening.
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Fortuna controlled the second quarter, scoring both of their touch downs. The first came with 9:18 left in the quarter on a 13 yard rush by senior running back Brett Renner. An interception by Renner set up Fortuna to score the winning touchdown with 4 seconds left in the half on a 1yard run by QB Zach Hugh.
Neither team could maintain the momentum needed to put points on the board during the second half. The Hound defense provided plenty of opportunities to change the direction of the game with three fumble recoveries, an interception, and blocked punt. Unfortunately the Healdsburg offense couldn’t maintain either an effective ground or passing attack.
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With 19 returning players on this year,s roster, Healdsburg has the experience and talent to be considered a contender, with a very strong chance to make a serious play-off run. Time will tell if the Hounds can move past the shaky opening game.
The Hounds are away the next couple of weeks facing the St. Helena Saints then the Middletown Mustangs. The next home game will be Friday, 9/20 against the Piedmont Highlanders.
