Mendota’s Ben Bokus is wrapped up by Rock Falls’ Alec Akerman while Kiandre Morris (No. 4) tries to help his Trojan teammate on Sept. 1 at Rock Falls. (Reporter photo)

ROCK FALLS – One of the main objectives Mendota had coming into the new season was to take better care of the football and thus sustain potential scoring drives or give the opposition fewer opportunities to cash in on its mistakes. Two games into the season, there has yet to be any progress in fixing that problem.

The Trojans (0-2, 0-2) fumbled eight times in the season-opener and matched that number again in the second game of the year against Rock Falls. Include two interceptions thrown by Mendota passers and it all added up to a disappointing 22-18 loss to the Rockets in a Big Northern Conference contest on Sept. 1 at Rock Falls.

While only two of Mendota’s eight fumbles were recovered by Rock Falls, one of the giveaways happened when the Trojans were knocking on the door at a touchdown late in the third quarter. And one of Mendota’s interceptions was followed up by a Rocket touchdown on their subsequent drive, negating a takeaway the Trojans got when Rock Falls was inside the Mendota 30-yard line.

The Trojans outgained Rock Falls on offense by 31 yards (286-255), but the Rockets only gave up the ball once compared to Mendota’s four turnovers, which ultimately resulted in the four-point difference on the scoreboard.

Mendota actually led on two occasions, the first time coming on its second offensive series of the game when it took advantage of an 18-yard Rock Falls punt to score the game’s first touchdown. Punting from their own 10-yard line, the Rocket boot only traveled to the 28. From there, the Trojans only needed three plays to score, the final one being a 5-yard touchdown run by quarterback Jake Eutis at the 6:07 mark of the first quarter. Edwin Angulo’s extra-point kick was good.

On the ensuing possession, Mendota’s defense forced Rock Falls into another punt, but the Trojans were called for a roughing-the-kicker penalty, which gave the Rockets a first down on the Mendota 33-yard line. After a 2-yard run, Rock Falls quarterback Zacary McKinzie hooked up with Michael Austin on a 31-yard touchdown strike with 2:54 left in the opening stanza. Logan Wickens bulled his way into the end zone on the two-point conversion to give Rock Falls an 8-7 lead.

A Mendota failed conversion on fourth-and-three from the Rocket 23-yard line and a series of turnovers by each team was the story in the second period. Rock Falls recovered a Eutis fumble at the Trojan 29-yard line, but on the next play, the Rockets gave it right back to Mendota when Preston Lewis pounced on a Rock Falls fumble at the 25.

The Trojans couldn’t take advantage of their takeaway as Rock Falls’ Nicholas Ebersole picked off a Eutis pass at the Mendota 38-yard line, which the Rockets subsequently turned into the go-ahead touchdown. Xzaviar Epps culminated the short drive when he scampered into the end zone from 10 yards out with 1:20 left in the half. The two-point run failed, and the Rockets took a 14-7 halftime lead when they intercepted a Ben Bokus aerial to end the half.

The Trojans did all of the scoring in the third quarter, but their failure to cap off a long drive with a touchdown midway through the frame came back to bite them. Mendota started its first drive of the second half at its own 26, and the offense managed to drive all the way to the Rock Falls 3-yard line. But Angulo had the ball knocked loose on a run and it was recovered by the Rockets’ Nathaniel Wiles at the 3-yard line.

The thwarted drive was not a total waste, however, as the Trojans were awarded a safety when McKinzie was called for intentional grounding while in the end zone to make it a 14-9 score.

Rock Falls had to kick the ball back to Mendota after the safety, and the Trojans started with excellent field position at their own 48. Mendota got its ground game going, led by runs of 26 and 9 yards by Kiandre Morris. Eutis then capped off the 52-yard drive with a 1-yard TD plunge to put Mendota on top, 15-14, with 1:44 left in the third quarter. The Trojans’ two-point conversion run was stopped.

Rock Falls went back to its passing attack and hit on two big ones late in the third quarter and early in the fourth that led to its game-winning score. McKinzie delivered a pair of 32-yard missiles, the first to Scott Spears and the next one to Austin Sandrock on a fourth-and-15 play from the Mendota 35-yard line. On the next play, McKinzie plowed into the end zone from the 3-yard line, followed by a successful two-point pass from McKinzie to Dylan Leaf to put the Rockets on top, 22-15, with 11:09 left.

On Mendota’s ensuing possession, it had an excellent shot to tie the game or take the lead, but it had to settle for a 34-yard field goal by Angulo at the 8:38 mark. During the series, Eutis sprinted 49 yards to the Rocket 22-yard line, and a block-from-behind penalty on Rock Falls moved the ball to the 14, where the drive stalled.

Mendota’s defense managed to force a Rock Falls punt, but the Trojans’ final drive ended at the 50-yard line and the Rockets were able to run out the clock.

All but three of Mendota’s yards came on the ground, led by Morris and Eutis with 86 yards apiece. Bokus added 70 yards.