It took the full four quarters to get the job done, but Goodrich’s varsity football team earned its first win of the season Sept. 8.
The Martians built a 20-0 halftime lead and held on for a 20-14 win against visiting Durand in a Genesee Area Conference Red Division contest.
All three of Goodrich’s touchdowns came as a result of Durand turnovers. Jake Bourassa scored the first Goodrich touchdown on a three-yard run with 6:18 left in the first quarter, giving Goodrich a 6-0 lead after the point-after attempt missed.
Bourassa, who compiled 120 yards rushing on the evening, then scored another touchdown, this one from five yards out, at the beginning of the second quarter. Quarterback Tyler Moncrieff threw a successful two-point conversion pass to Joe Zito to put the Martians up 14-0.
On the ensuing drive by Durand, the Martians? Jeremy Nord intercepted a Railroaders? pass and returned it to the Durand two-yard line. An illegal block penalty against Goodrich brought the ball back to the Durand 12-yard line.
However, the Martians still cashed in for the score when Moncrieff threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Zito with 11:33 left in the second. The point-after attempt failed, leaving Goodrich ahead 20-0 at halftime.
The Railroaders would not go away quietly, though. Durand’s Josh Blackburn broke free for a 53-yard touchdown run with 5:03 left in the third quarter, leaving Goodrich ahead 20-6 after the point-after attempt failed.
In the fourth quarter, Jarrod Champman caught a 45-yard touchdown pass from Durand quarterback Jason Johnson with 4:03 left. Blackburn then ran for the two-point conversion to cut the Goodrich lead to 20-14.
However, that was as close as Durand would get.
After a scheduled Sept. 15 game against Montrose, the Martians are slated for a second straight road game when they travel to Lake Fenton for a Sept. 22 contest.
The Blue Devils are off to a 3-0 start, including a 1-0 mark in league play. Their most recent win came Sept. 8 with a 36-0 win against Clawson.