HORNELL —In a battle of undefeated teams from Section V, the Hornell Red Raiders earned a win over the Livonia Bulldogs Friday night at Maple City Park by a score of 35-22.
Despite jumping out to an early 10 point lead via a Connor Pierce touchdown pass to Josh Wester and a 35-yard field goal by Dustin Ayers, the Livonia defense allowed the Red Raiders to come back.
“I would say whether we lose by one or by 58, losing stinks,” said head coach Steve Girolmo.
The Red Raiders rallied to take a 14-10 lead at halftime, led by two touchdown passes by quarterback Richie Harkenrider. Hornell kept its foot on the gas after halftime, scoring on touchdown runs by Harkenrider and Luke Morgan.
Despite a number of penalties, Livonia finished the game strong, scoring on a goal line plunge by Wester and a 69-yard pass from Pierce to Derek Bishopp to cut the final deficit to 35-22.
“We played well enough to win, had we not made those mistakes. For us to be able to compete with a team like Hornell, though, bodes well for our future.”
With the win, Hornell (4-0) secured its 43rd straight Section V victory. The Red Raiders play at Batavia next week. Livonia (3-1) lost its first game of the year. They look to rebound at home against Attica next Friday.