GR Christian Eagles JV 16 Spring Lake Lakers JV 47
With an eagle’s nest perched on a stadium light pole and Spring Lake visible past the
goal posts, both teams were represented by nature. Spring Lake started quickly, and
drove for touchdowns on their first two possessions of the game. The Eagles were able
to get on the board as the first quarter was winding down. QB Bradley Nuiver lofted a
beautiful pass to Cooper Brisbane for the 65-yard TD connection. Brisbane caught the
two-point conversion pass from Nuiver making the score 14-8 after the one quarter. In
the second, the GRC defense, behind strong tackling of Kayden Buyck, Wyatt Stuit, and
Javi Cummings, forced a Laker field goal, which was missed. The Eagles couldn’t find
rhythm on offense, and were stopped on fourth down. The Lakers capitalized two plays
later to make the score 20-8, and neither team could put any more points on the board
before halftime.
The Eagle’s first two offensive drives in the second half ended in a fourth down and a
punt. Both times, the Lakers were able to maneuver the ball in for TDs. Early in the
fourth quarter, Nuiver was able to connect with RB James Veldheer on a throw-back
screen pass. Veldheer followed his blockers into the open around the edge of the
defense, and then sped away from the Laker defense for a 56-yard TD! The 2-point
conversion was successful on a pass from Nuiver to Cole VanderBaan to make the
score 33-16 Lakers. Spring Lake was able to dash in for two more scores, while the
Eagle offense just couldn’t string enough plays together to dent the Laker lead. Final
score, Spring Lake 47, GR Christian 14.
The Eagle offense couldn’t muster much success on the ground against a stout and
aggressive Laker defense. Through the air, Nuiver finished 13 for 25 for 197 yards, 2
TDs and 2 interceptions. Brisbane led the way with 5 catches for 104 yards and 1 TD.
Jacob Burgess had 3 catches, and Veldheer snagged 2 catches for 57 yards and 1 TD.
The Eagle defense was paced by Wyatt Stuit with 6 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, and 1
sack. Kayden Buyck added 6 tackles and 1 TFL while Jacob Bierling contributed 4 solo
tackles.
The Boys in Blue and Black will regroup, refocus, and get back to work after this tough
loss. The OK White conference schedule doesn’t let up, and the Eagles go on the road
to meet up with the Hawks of Forest Hills Eastern next week Thursday at 6pm.
Go Eagles!