It's hard to turn regular season success into postseason wins, a fact Derby can now relate to. They took a 31-21 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Manhattan Indians on Friday. The defensive woes were uncharacteristic for the Panthers, who until this match were averaging 10.33 points allowed.
Derby's loss came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Drew Kemp, who rushed for 90 yards and a touchdown, and also threw for 159 yards and a touchdown. The dominant performance gave Kemp a new career-high in rushing yards. A healthy portion of Kemp's aerial production (106 yards to be exact) went to Daylen Bledsoe, who also brought in a receiving touchdown.
Carter Aslin continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines for Manhattan, rushing for 194 yards and three touchdowns, while also throwing for 164 yards and a touchdown. Aslin's rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his third straight game with at least 112 rushing yards. Another player making a difference was Jaydin Hudley, who gained 105 total yards and a touchdown.
With the defeat, Derby broke their 11-game winning streak and moved their record to 11-1. As for Manhattan, the victory for them keeps them at an undefeated 12-0.
Derby does not have any more games scheduled as of now. As for Manhattan, they will square off against Gardner-Edgerton at 2:00 p.m. on Friday. One thing working in Manhattan's favor is that they have posted at least 31 points every time they've taken the field this season.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
