The Paul Laurence Dunbar Bulldogs pushed their score all the way to 42 on Friday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They fell to Eastern 48-42. Paul Laurence Dunbar lost against Eastern in their previous head to head back in September of 2016, too, but the margin this time around was much wider than the 33-20 score last time.
Eastern got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Joshua Shipley out in front who picked up 215 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Zane Wagner was another key contributor, throwing for 330 yards and four touchdowns.
Paul Laurence Dunbar's defeat was their sixth straight at home (dating back to last season), which dropped their overall record down to 3-7. Admittedly, the team was facing some tough opposition over that stretch, including 11-2 Scott County and 11-2 Woodford County (their opponents had an average overall winning percentage of 67.9% over those games). As for Eastern, their victory bumped their record up to 4-6.
Paul Laurence Dunbar will look to defend their home field on Friday against Madison Central at 7:30 p.m. As for Eastern, they will head out on the road to face off against DuPont Manual at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. DuPont Manual presents a significant challenge as they come into the match much higher ranked than Eastern in Kentucky (DuPont Manual is ranked 11th, while Eastern is ranked 93rd).
