Mental mistakes, penalties, and untimely turnovers. Those are what coach Brennan Claas said were why his Harrisburg Bulldogs coughed up an early two-touchdown lead to fall 30-20 Saturday evening against Ash Grove.

The kickoff was moved to 6 p.m. on Saturday at Versailles High School to accommodate the long distance between both teams.

Despite some mental letdowns and penalties, the Bulldogs were also more shorthanded than usual. After starting the season with 19 players, they dressed only 16 on Saturday. 

“We only had about five guys on the sideline, so we were pretty thin. We started out pretty good, but there’s not much you can do to prepare to play like that,” Claas said.

The Bulldogs took a two-score lead early in the second quarter but trailed by two points at halftime.

“Untimely turnovers, a couple of big penalties that kept us out of the endzone, and we just ran out of juice,” Claas said.

The Bulldogs are now 1-5 overall on the season, having lost their last three games. All of those games were close, two of which were decided by just one or two points.

“I wanted to see us getting back to playing the way we did those first four weeks. And we did that,” Claas said. “We executed about as well as we have all year. Unfortunately, our mistakes were in the biggest moments. We’re getting there. We have to ramp it up, though. It’s getting too close to the end for us to be making these kinds of mistakes and hurting ourselves.”

After both teams felt out one another throughout most of the opening quarter, Harrisburg found its way to the endzone with 1:22 on the clock in the first period. The Bulldogs worked their way downfield, running and passing, before sophomore Caleb Sager finally punched the ball across the line for six.

Sager would do it again four minutes later, this time from 12 yards out, to put Harrisburg ahead 12-0 with 9:18 left in the second quarter.

The Bulldogs had a chance to go up by three touchdowns on their next drive, but Ash Grove recovered a Harrisburg fumble just outside of the red zone to set up excellent field position. The Pirates took full advantage and ran the ball in for their first score midway through the second period. The two-point conversion was good to cut the lead to just four points.

The Pirates scored another rushing touchdown with 1:04 left in the second quarter to take a 14-12 lead into halftime.

Harrisburg held Ash Grove on the first possession of the second half. Then, quarterback Trace Combs found his favorite target, wide receiver Hunter Cole, for what would turn into a 73-yard touchdown on their first offensive play of the half.

“Trace hit Hunter, and he stuck his foot in the ground and reversed field and outran everybody. It’s not exactly what we drew up, but sometimes athletes just make plays,” Claas said.

The Bulldogs finished off the drive with a successful two-point conversion, which the team has struggled with all season. Missed extra points cost the Bulldogs the win on Homecoming against Milan on September 15.

“We have got to get better at that. Those are hurting us a lot right now,” Claas said.

Harrisburg had a chance to go up by two scores, but the Pirates intercepted a pass and returned the ball to Bulldog territory. After that, it was all Ash Grove.

“We just couldn’t recover from it. We couldn’t get going again,” Claas said.

Moments later, Ash Grove converted a fourth-and-goal situation into a touchdown and a two-point conversion to retake the lead 22-20.

The Pirates made it a two-score game late in the fourth quarter after scoring a final touchdown with another successful two-point conversion to lead 30-20.

The fumble and interception, combined with a touchdown that was called back due to a penalty, cost the Bulldogs dearly in what eventually became their third straight loss.

“The turnovers were momentum swingers. We had two opportunities to put them on their heels and get them out of their comfort zone,” Claas said. “They were untimely turnovers. They capitalized, which is what good teams do. That’s the reason they’re 5-1.”

Combs finished the day with 17 completions on 31 passing attempts for 230 yards, one touchdown, and an interception. Cole had four catches for 111 yards, including the 73-yard touchdown.

Rylee Robinson made four grabs for 42 yards. Senior Hayven Samuels made three catches for 31 yards.

Sager finished the day with five catches for 42 yards. But the majority of his production came on the ground. He rushed 29 times for 108 yards and two touchdowns.

Despite the loss, Claas said his young team is progressing. The goal from day one has been to improve over the season to be in peak form in time for the district playoffs. “I think they understand how close we are. A lot of it is just our own mental mistakes that are hurting us. We just have to put it all together for four quarters,” he said.

The Bulldogs return to Lewis & Clark Conference play on Friday at Westran. The Hornets are 5-1 on the season. Westran has won its last four games and leads the race for the conference title with two wins and no losses.

“We’ll stick to our bread and butter, what we do well. We’ll probably try to keep running the ball and keep it out of their hands,” Claas said. “They’ve got some explosive guys in the backfield. If they’re on the sideline, not on offense, and not touching the ball, that can help us out tremendously. They’re going to be a tough challenge.”

Harrisburg returns home for the final two games of the regular season. On October 13, the Bulldogs host Fayette. A week later, they play Scotland County in the regular-season finale.