Sage Hill varsity football (5-5) played the last game of its post-season against the Western Christian Fighting Lancers (10-0) Nov 15. The game resulted in a 55-35 loss for the Lightning, ending Sage’s post-season in the CIF prelims.

The game began poorly for the Sage especially in the area of defense. Western Christian took this to their advantage, ending the first quarter with a 14-7 lead. Their offensive run continued on into the second half, expanding the score gap. Meanwhile Sage continued to struggle in both defense and offense. By halftime, the Lancers were winning, 35-7.

During halftime, head coach J. R. Tolver said to the team, “Don’t care about the score.  Play this like it is your last football game of the season,” attempting to inspire the team to play as hard as they could no matter how bad the score was.

Despite Tolver’s attempts to encourage the team to play its best, Western Christian scored right away in the beginning of the third quarter. Then a touchdown from senior wide receiver Logan Hamilton put Sage on a run. The Lancers responded, scoring another touchdown, but Sage remained unfazed, scoring with a touchdown from sophomore Jacob Fisher.  By the end of the third quarter, the score was 49-19, Western Christian.

The Lighting run continued into fourth quarter.  In addition to the improved offense, Sage also stopped the Lancers offensively.  Touchdowns from defensive back senior Sam Masarik and running back junior Beaumont Roth and a field goal from senior Will Burns put the Lighting up 16 points but it was not enough to win the game.

In the end, Western Christian defeated Sage with a final score of 55-35. With their post-season over, Sage’s football players have now gone off to play in winter sports.  Some have even begun conditioning for 2014’s season.