Blue Devils denied first win by Cookeville

By JARED FELKINS

Director of Content

COOKEVILLE — Lebanon played Cookeville evenly for the first 1 1/2 quarters. But the winless Blue Devils missed a scoring opportunity late in the first half and the host Cavaliers punched in a third-quarter insurance score in a 26-13 victory Friday night.

Taye Davis' 1-yard run brought the Blue Devils into a 13-13 deadlock midway through the second quarter.

Cookeville quickly cracked the tie on a 44-yard quarterback sneak by Ryan Eberle.

Following an exchange of fumbles, the Blue Devils drove to the Cookeville 2-yard line from where freshman quarterback Christian Haffner was sacked for a 7-yard loss on fourth down in the final moments of the first half.

A 20-yard touchdown run by Cameron Germanis late in the third sealed Cookeville's third win in six starts.

"We competed," Lebanon coach Troy Crane said after his Blue Devils returned home 0-6. "We had our chances but we weren't able to cash in our opportunities.

"Everytime [Haffner] gets under center and takes a snap, he keeps getting better and better."

Cookeville scored first as tailback Alex Sklavenitis raced over from 13 yards out for a 7-0 lead.

Fullback Julien Crutchfield brought the Blue Devils within 7-6 on a 2-yard run, but the extra point was blocked.

Sklavenitis' 4-yard run early in the second quarter opened a 13-6 Cookeville lead.

Lebanon will return to Clifton Tribble Field/Danny Watkins Stadium to host District 9-AAA rival Station Camp at 7 p.m. next Friday.

"Anyone can find excuses, but our guys are really working hards at practice... They want to win. We're going to keep getting better and better."