Last Friday Night, the Mineral Point High School Varsity Football Team dropped its season opener to Lancaster 21-6 in a slow, grind-it-out game.
    Mineral Point would receive the opening kickoff. They opened their first drive with an explosive 33-yard run from Senior Roen Carey behind the experienced Pointer offensive line. Following a penalty, Carey would find the gap again, this time for 23 yards. The Pointers would bring out their offense on 4th & 13 from the Lancaster 37, however the incomplete pass from Freshman Quarterback Roen Carey would result in a turnover on downs.
    The response from Lancaster was immediate; led by Senior Quarterback Nolan Wolf, the Arrows flew down the field. Wolf found Senior Wide Receiver Brennen Gildersleeve early and often, eventually connecting with him in the flat on 2nd & 2 from the 14-yard line for the first touchdown of the season.
    After moving the ball 54 yards down the field, the Pointers punted the ball back to Lancaster. Early in the second quarter, Wolf found Brennen Gildersleeve on the Wide Receiver screen, and Gildersleeve would take it 27 yards to the house. Nolan Wolf, also serving as Lancaster's kicker, tacked on the extra point to make it 14-0 with 10:16 to go in the first half.
While the next Mineral Point drive would look promising following the 59-yard kickoff return by Sophomore Clayton Yanna, the Pointers would come up empty, turning the ball over on downs once again. Both teams would struggle to move the ball on their next few drives, and the Flying Arrows would take their 14-0 lead into the halftime break.
After a wild snap over the head of Lancaster punter Quinton Ploessl, the Mineral Point would take over with prime field position. The Pointers moved the ball down the field to the Lancaster 3-yard line. While they would move backward following a false start, they would finally punch the ball into the endzone on a 5-yard touchdown rush from Quarterback Reid Acherman. Roen Carey would miss the extra point, and the deficit would sit at 8 with 7:35 to play in the 3rd quarter.
Pre-snap penalties would plague both offenses through the remainder of the third quarter and much of the fourth quarter. Mineral Point would attempt to convert 4th & 9 from the Lancaster 39, but defensive pressure from Sophomore Brady Muldoon would lead to the incomplete pass from Liam Carey to Junior Grady Finley. 
With the ball and 5 minutes to play, Lancaster slowly moved the ball down the field, looking to run out the clock. However, following two Mineral Point tackles for loss, Lancaster would face 3rd & 15, well outside of Field Goal range, with just under 2 minutes to play. On a throw up the middle, Wolf found Senior Running Back Semaj Venson, who broke free from a pair of Pointer defenders and found paydirt. Wolf tacked on the PAT, and Lancaster came away with the 21-6 victory.
    Tomorrow night, the Pointers will host the Platteville Hillmen in the second week of non-conference play. Both teams entered the game 0-1, as Platteville dropped their week one contest to Darlington. Tomorrow night is also Hall of Fame night for the Pointer Football Team; all Hall of Fame members, their families, and MPHS Football alumni are invited to a pregame tailgate at Soldiers Memorial Park from 4:30-6:30 pm. Food and drinks will be available courtesy of the Gridiron Club. There will also be a reception at Dodge-Point Country Club after the game.