That latter didn’t happen in the opener Saturday at Mollenkopf Stadium, but the Raiders showed a lot of resilience and sparks of a big-play passing game in a 24-17 loss to Cleveland Benedictine.

Trailing most of the game, Harding gave itself a chance to tie the score or take a late lead down the stretch.

“We never quit and we were right there in it at the end, against what I believe is a very good football team,” WGH coach Steve Arnold said. “Truthfully, I think we’re going to be a pretty good team, too. So maybe we’ll see these guys again down the road a bit (in the playoffs).

“It was a hard-nosed, defensive battle and it came down to a few plays. We’ll be fine.”

Staff photo / R. Michael Semple
Harding quarterback Elijah Taylor, right, scrambles to get away from Benedictine’s Derell Bedingfield.

The Raiders missed a few opportunities. After trailing much of the contest and being down 17-3 entering the fourth quarter, they found some late life on offense.

Dom Foster hauled in a 21-yard touchdown pass from Elijah Taylor with 5:52 remaining to cap a 12-play, 77-yard drive and make it 17-10.

Harding then forced a three-and-out and Benedictine punter Christian Cora scooped a one-hop snap on fourth-and-10 and took off running. Harding safety Da’Mari Freeman stopped him for a 1-yard loss and the Raiders took possession at the Bengals’ 26 with 3:35 remaining.

The Raiders faced a fourth-and-8 after a run and two incomplete passes. Taylor, a left-handed quarterback, was pressured and rolled to his right and couldn’t get a pass off before being swarmed under.

Benedictine ran on first down trying to get Harding to use one of its two remaining timeouts. The Raiders elected not to stop the clock, so the Bengals ran down the play clock and called timeout. Sensing Harding was selling out to stop the run, Benedictine coach Jarritt Goode decided to go for the jugular.

Staff photo / R. Michael Semple
Harding’s Curt Dorsey rushes for yardage against Cleveland Benedictine Saturday at Mollenkopf Stadium in Warren. The Raiders lost, 24-17.

Quarterback Ronnie Schultz faked a handoff and waited for Marvin Conkle to break open on a post pattern. Schultz threw a perfect pass and Conkle outran defenders to the end zone to complete a 75-yard touchdown play and give the guests a 24-10 lead with 1:36 remaining.

“That took some guts because I’m sitting here with two timeouts and to throw deep … if they don’t connect there, we likely get the ball back with one timeout,” Arnold said. “So that gamble paid off for them. It was a great call and we had a young guy out there who’s going to be a good one. I don’t know what happened. We’ll have to watch the film.”

The Raiders weren’t deterred. They took the kickoff and covered 84 yards on 10 quick plays, with Taylor hooking up with Foster for a 7-yard touchdown pass with just five seconds left to account for the final score.

Freshman kicker Jake Daugherty then gave his team a chance to recover the on-side quick on a nice hop, but the Bengals eventually corralled the pigskin.

Daugherty gave Harding a 3-0 lead with a 21-yard field goal early in the second quarter and made both PATs, getting the aid from an upright on one of those.

But the Raiders were hoping for more rather than the field goal for the opening score, as Taylor and Foster hooked up on a 61-yard pass play that gave the hosts a first-and-goal from the Bengals’ 9-yard line.

“We had some opportunities both offensively and defensively, but just didn’t make the plays,” Arnold said. “Our secondary made great reads on four or five balls and we had our hands on the ball with a great chance of intercepting. We just didn’t pull the ball in and finish the play. We’ve got to do that.”

The biggest momentum shift in the game came just prior to halftime. With Harding trailing 7-3, Jabari Felton recovered a Benedictine fumble at midfield with 4:04 left. The Raiders eventually punted into the end zone and the Bengals took over at their 20 with 1:47 left.

Schultz threw a pass that a defender dropped on first down. An interception there could have tied the contest. Instead, Schultz found Conkle on a skinny post pattern and he split defenders and darted down the middle of the field for an 80-yard score that gave Benedictine a 17-3 halftime lead.

“(Those events) hurt pretty bad,” Arnold admitted. “But we always say ‘next play.’ We stayed calm and poised and came back and gave ourselves a chance. That’s what we ask of them after we make a mistake.”

Conkle was a thorn in Harding’s side all game, catching five passes for 184 yards. Schultz finished 10-for-22 for 230 yards.

The overall game statistics were as tight as the ballgame.

Foster had seven catches for 134 yards and Taylor finished 16-for-36 for 232 yards with one interception. That costly throw was tipped by a receiver and picked off by Andre’ Rogers Jr., who returned it 30 yards to the Harding 5. Gary Merrill scored on a 3-yard run two plays later to give the Bengals a 7-3 lead.

Both teams amassed 274 total yards and had one turnover. Benedictine had 11 first downs to Harding’s 10. Benedictine had 44 yards rushing, two more than Harding.