It wasn’t easy reflecting on a 35-12 loss to Muskegon Catholic Central in the Division 8 state title game. But running back and defensive back Ty Rollin had to admit it was a pretty good season and career at Beal City.
“It’s tough going down in the state championship two years in a row,” he said. “When we look back at the season, especially this season, we broke a lot of records. Everybody came so far and worked so hard in the off-season both seasons. No one has to hold their heads. Everybody worked their butts off in the off-season, and it showed, until this game I guess,” he continued. “We broke a lot of records at our school for a longstanding football program. Nobody has anything to hang their heads about.
“We gave ourselves a shot to win it all, and that’s what we’re looking to do,” he said. “[MCC’s] just a good team.”
The game plan for victory was simple, Rollin said.
“We knew we’d have to stop [quarterback Nick Holt and running back Alex Lewandoski],” Rollin said. “Offensively, we knew we’d have to stay on our blocks until the whistle and give what we’ve got 200 percent.”
Lewandoski ran for 218 yards and Holt rushed for 123 yards.
Lewandoski took the first play from scrimmage 78 yards for a touchdown. That play set the stage for the rest of the game, foreshadowing the Crusaders’ big plays.
“I thought we could still win, and none of us gave up,” Rollin said.
Rollin also plays for the basketball team that was regional champion last year and for the baseball squad that was runner-up in the state. Therefore, he still has a shot at that elusive state crown.
“It’s hard to lose,” he said. “It’s my third loss in a state championship game. It’s a [bad] feeling, but we still have a couple of shots. We’ll still do everything we can.”
The Aggies powered their way to an impressive 13-0 record to get to the title game, a fact the players won’t soon forget.
“It was an amazing season,” Rollin said. “Right off the get go, we scored 60 points and 70 a couple of times.”
They opened 61-0 over Sacred Heart Academy, beat Clare 48-0, Pine River 64-13, Manton 77-0, Pinconning 74-0, and Marion 70-0 during the regular season and topped Mio 68-15 and St. Ignace 55-0 during their playoff run.
MCC “is a good team. They came at us hard. We went 100 percent but didn’t come out on top,” Rollin said. “We had good initial blocks, but they move so hard to the ball, it’s tough to break one.”