Everything was in place for a perfect grand opening to the newly remodeled Angelo Novi Stadium, but an untimely mishap left the Riverbank High Bruins reeling with a heart-wrenching overtime loss in their season opener.
The Bruins put together a valiant effort in front of a noisy home crowd, yet even their best effort came up just short as the Gustine Redskins outlasted Riverbank 12-6 in bonus play.
The Redskins jumped out on top with a first quarter touchdown and held on to walk into the halftime intermission with a 6-0 lead. Gustine pounded it in from one yard out and failed on the PAT, keeping the Bruins within striking range for the second half.
Bruin running back Shane Gaynor pulled the Bruins back into the contest with his 4-yard touchdown run in the third quarter to tie things up at six apiece. Riverbank would flounder its opportunity to take the lead, matching Gustine's failed PAT attempt, keeping the score locked and laying the foundation for the overtime heroics by the visitors.
The Bruins kept Gustine out of the end zone for the duration of the second half, but they were unable to push their way into the end zone forcing the bonus period.
Each squad would get a possession from their opponents' 10-yard-line, giving them four opportunities to push a score in during the OT. Gustine took every bit of their four chances, but the table was set in Riverbank's first try.
The Bruins fumbled on their first carry in overtime, practically sealing the deal moments into the extra period. Gustine chose the tough route, needing a miracle fourth and goal conversion to escape with a 12-6 win.
The loss was still a vast improvement over Gustine's 38-12 shellacking they laid on the Bruins in last year's season opener and hopefully Riverbank will be able to use the loss as motivation as they head into the remaining portion of their non-league schedule.
Riverbank will make their first road trip of the young season, making the trek to Livingston to take on the Wolves on Friday, Sept. 18, with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
The Bruins put together a valiant effort in front of a noisy home crowd, yet even their best effort came up just short as the Gustine Redskins outlasted Riverbank 12-6 in bonus play.
The Redskins jumped out on top with a first quarter touchdown and held on to walk into the halftime intermission with a 6-0 lead. Gustine pounded it in from one yard out and failed on the PAT, keeping the Bruins within striking range for the second half.
Bruin running back Shane Gaynor pulled the Bruins back into the contest with his 4-yard touchdown run in the third quarter to tie things up at six apiece. Riverbank would flounder its opportunity to take the lead, matching Gustine's failed PAT attempt, keeping the score locked and laying the foundation for the overtime heroics by the visitors.
The Bruins kept Gustine out of the end zone for the duration of the second half, but they were unable to push their way into the end zone forcing the bonus period.
Each squad would get a possession from their opponents' 10-yard-line, giving them four opportunities to push a score in during the OT. Gustine took every bit of their four chances, but the table was set in Riverbank's first try.
The Bruins fumbled on their first carry in overtime, practically sealing the deal moments into the extra period. Gustine chose the tough route, needing a miracle fourth and goal conversion to escape with a 12-6 win.
The loss was still a vast improvement over Gustine's 38-12 shellacking they laid on the Bruins in last year's season opener and hopefully Riverbank will be able to use the loss as motivation as they head into the remaining portion of their non-league schedule.
Riverbank will make their first road trip of the young season, making the trek to Livingston to take on the Wolves on Friday, Sept. 18, with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
