GR Christian 20 Hamilton 16
On the first game night that really felt like Fall, the Eagles and their loyal fans made the
trip to Hamilton HS to take on the Hawkeyes. Hamilton received the opening kickoff and
started effectively until they were forced off the field on fourth down by nice defensive
plays from Jacob Bierling and James Veldheer. On the first GRC possession, a 53-yard
sprint by Veldheer got the offense going. A 19-yard strike from Bradley Nuiver to Wyatt
Stuit moved the Eagles to first-and-goal then Nuiver found Cooper Brisbane in the
endzone for a 3-yard TD to make the score 6-0 Eagles. The Hawkeyes next possession
was stifled after just four plays behind nice tackling from Isaac James and Bierling,
giving the Eagles’ offense good field position. The passing game flourished on this drive
as Nuiver found Brisbane for a 30-yard gain and Stuit for 13 yards to convert fourth
down. Nuiver and Veldheer capped the drive with a 5-yard TD pass to extend the GRC
lead to 12-0. Hamilton responded by getting their own running game going with some
chunk runs to set up a first-and-goal. Josiah Gurley stuffed a play for a short gain and
then Sam Krosschell broke up two passes, including their fourth-down try! Looking to
add on before halftime, the Eagles’ offense started well, but penalties derailed the drive
and the half ended with no more scoring.
The Eagles took the second-half kickoff right down the field, ending with a 12-yard TD
connection from Nuiver to Brisbane. The conversion from Nuiver to Stuit extended the
GRC lead to 20-0. Hamilton forced the Eagles D to cede yardage, but a big tackle-for-
loss by Kingston Williams and a fourth-down stop by Isaac James once again forced the
Hawkeyes offense off the field! Zeke Sare and Veldheer carried the load on the next
Eagles drive, but the Eagles were stopped on fourth down. Hamilton surged in for their
first TD of the game to narrow the gap to 20-8 with 2:45 left. Sam Krosschell fielded the
Hawkeye onside kick attempt and GRC tried to use up the clock but couldn’t get traction
– giving the ball back to Hamilton on fourth down. Hamilton was able to drive and score
again but, with only 24 seconds left, Isaac James expertly fielded the onside kick. One
kneel down ended the game – Eagles 20, Hamilton 16.
A balanced offensive attack featured Nuiver throwing for 188 yards and 3 TDs with
three Eagle receivers catching four passes each: Stuit (71 yards), Veldheer (56 yards,
1TD), Brisbane (48 yards, 2 TD). Veldheer rushed 10 times for 88 yards and Sare had
10 carries for 51 yards. On the defensive side, the Eagles were led by Cole VanderBaan
who collected 6 tackles, Veldheer had 5, Jacob Burgess added 4 and a TFL, and Stuit
netted three tackles, all behind the Hawkeye line of scrimmage!
The Eagles improve their record to 4-3 (2-2 OK White) and look to continue their strong
play back at Eagles Stadium next week against the Wildcats of Wayland Union.
Go Eagles!