SOAP LAKE — The Soap Lake Eagles (0-4) played their home opener Friday night against Manson (3-2). The Eagles battled hard, but Manson kept ahead throughout the game and Soap Lake fell 48-8. 

“First quarter was great, we just weren’t executing on some things,” said Eagles Head Coach Tony O’Neel. “This one was on the coaches; we take full responsibility. We need to make practices harder, sharpen a few things on the offense and work on our tackling.” 

The Eagles had a tough first half against Manson as the Trojans gained the lead with a touchdown in the first quarter. Manson extended their lead through the second quarter with two additional touchdowns.

Soap Lake stayed competitive even after being down early and got close to getting on the board late in the first half. The Eagles were about five yards away from the endzone with a minute left on the clock and a passing play almost became a touchdown, but the Soap Lake player was ruled out of bounds. 

Following this play was a turnover on downs before the clock ran out with Manson leading 22-0 over Soap Lake. 

Returning from the half, the Eagles worked hard to get themselves on the board. Soap Lake marched down the field a few times in the third quarter and came close to scoring on a trick play deep in Manson territory, but untimely errors kept the Eagles out of the endzone once again in the third quarter. 

Manson extended their lead in the third quarter with an additional two touchdowns to lead 36-0 heading into the final quarter. 

In the fourth quarter Manson created opportunities to march down field and once again scored two more touchdowns to increase their lead 48-0. The Eagles scored their first touchdown of the game late in the fourth with a rush from their quarterback and a following two-point conversion made the final score 48-8. 

With the first month of their season being on the road, the Eagles were excited to play on their own field. O’Neel said the first home game of the season also brings its share of challenges as well.  

“Everyone loves home games for sure, but the first home game, it’s a little stressful on the kids because their families are here. Other families are here watching them, so emotions get a little higher,” said the coach. “When you’re on the road, not many (families) are travelling, not many are watching, so you can go make a mistake. When you’re at home, especially the first home game, emotions can get high when you make a mistake and it starts (affecting) the next teammate.” 

He said Soap Lake’s body language on the field was an example of how they were struggling on the field and that Manson took advantage of that. Making sure they can mentally work through mistakes on the field and not letting their frustrations show is something the coach feels is a necessary next step for the team. 

The next week of practice is looking to be more physical and faster for the Eagles as they look to battle their mental struggles. Overall, O’Neel said he wants everything to be sharper on the field as they head into the second half of their season. 

“We need to work on more individual position group stuff,” he said. “We’ve been really hammering a lot of team and defense and I’m getting into my own player’s heads sometimes, so we need to work on more positional stuff.” 

Even with the hardship faced in Friday’s home opener, there was still a lot that O’Neel said he was proud of. The offensive line did a great job blocking throughout each quarter which allowed the team to march downfield, and the tight ends were running their plays right each time. 

O’Neel also commended his quarterback, Tyler Hart, for his performance Friday. 

“Shout out to Tyler Hart, because that guy is a dude,” said the coach. “He took some hits today, but he got right back up, next play type mentality and he was awesome.” 

As Soap Lake heads into the midpoint of the season, he said there is a lot to be excited about with the team and expects them to continue getting better each day. Both the players and coaches are still learning their weaknesses and strengths, but he feels with every game and practice the team finds more strengths. 

The coach said what’s most important to him that the players take from every day is that they are still enjoying what they’re doing. 

“I just hope they enjoy this game because it was a bad loss, but (you’re) playing Friday night lights with the guys you grew up with every day,” said O’Neel. “Everybody’s got problems when you walk on the field, but in between the lines, they all go away, so I just hope they had fun.” 

The Eagles head on the road again Friday to face Davenport at 7 p.m. 

BOX SCORE 

MNSN: 8-14-14-12: 48 

SPLK: 0-0-0-8: 8

    Chris Heaps from the Eagles rushes with the ball toward an opening in the Manson defense.
  

    The Eagles team gathers to discuss their next play during a time out Friday night.
  

    Eagles center Trenton Barnes holds the ball ahead of a play during Friday’s game against Manson.
  

    Albiero Reyes for Soap Lake gains possession of the ball from a Manson kick Friday night at home.
  

    Tyler Hart and Brodie Maharajan stand ready for the oncoming snap during Friday’s game against Manson.