FRANKFORT — For three quarters Crawfordsville struggled on the road at winless Frankfort. The Athenians trailed 14-7 going into the third quarter, but quarterback Braeden Schlote put his team on his back and refused to lose propelling his team to a 21-14 overtime victory.
Athenian coach Brad Clark said the fact his team played so poorly and still pulled out a win is a sign of growth for the program.
“In years past we probably would have lost that game,” Clark said. “Braeden made big plays with his arms and legs and it was like he refused to lose. I am very proud our guys found a way to win.”
Crawfordsville had a rough half with six fumbles in the first two quarters. The Athenians recovered each fumble but it forced Crawfordsville to constantly play behind the sticks.
Frankfort held Crawfordsville to just 30 yards rushing in the first half and 99 yards passing.
The third quarter was much the same. Frankfort took a 14-7 lead going into the final quarter when the Hot Dogs finally recovered an Athenian fumble and marched down the field to take the lead. The drive included 10 plays that covered 75 yards.
Schlote took his team down the field and scored from 22 yards out with a run up the middle. The drive went 78 yards in just six plays to tie the score.
In overtime Crawfordsville got the ball first and scored when Schlote scored from 1-yard out.
The Crawfordsville defense turned back the Hot Dogs in overtime.
The Athenians totaled 60 yards rushing and a season best 313 passing yards.
Schlote rushed the ball 23 times for 69 yards. The junior completed 13-of-20 passes for 184 yards.
Crawfordsville’s Ryder Cummings caught five passes for 72 yards to lead his team.
The Athenian defense only allowed a total of 35 yards rushing and 126 passing yards for a total of 171 total yards.
Crawfordsville (3-6, 1-6 MAC) will travel Friday to Tri-West (7-2) for a sectional game.
