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Geneva County scored three touchdowns in the second quarter and pulled away from a close game for a 54-12 win at Pleasant Home in the season opener for both schools Friday night.

Kevin Bond made his head-coaching debut for the Eagles who begin the year 0-1, while the Bulldogs start 1-0.

Pleasant Home opened on offense from the 34-yard line and quickly picked up a first down with a 10-yard run by Jacob Bryan on second down. Two plays later, Bryan pushed his way through the defense with a 14-yard scamper to the opposing 37. The Geneva County defense forced a turnover on downs when Bryan came up just short of a first down.

The Bulldogs took over and went in reverse on back-to-back false start penalties. Following a stop for negative yardage, Brendan Hall took the ball 81 yards to the end zone. The point after failed, leaving the score 6-0 with 6:40 to go in the first quarter.

The Eagles took over at their own 47-yard line and went to Bryan again for seven yards. Jack Wiggins had a 5-yard run on third-and-8 and set up a 43-yard scamper from Bryan. From there, Bryan capped the drive with a 3-yard touchdown run. The two-point try was unsuccessful and kept the game tied at the 3:45 mark.

Geneva County started in decent field position following a good return before consecutive penalties pushed the ball back to the 28-yard line. On the third play from scrimmage, Jamarion Williams found an opening and scored from 45 yards out. Hall ran in the two-point conversion for a 14-6 lead.

Bryan needed only one play, a run for 58 yards out, to cut into the lead on the next possession as Pleasant Home pulled with 14-12 near the end of the first quarter.

Caden Hutchings threw a 23-yard pass to Williams for a first down at the Eagles’ 39. Hall had a 19-yard run on the final play of the stanza. Hall scored a 19-yard touchdown run with 11:14 left in the first half and added the conversion for a 22-12 lead. The Bulldogs forced a three-and-out on defense and took back over.

Hall scored on the initial play of the next series with a 47-yard touchdown run. The point after was no good but extended the margin to 28-12.

Chris Law started Pleasant Home’s next possession with a 6-yard run. Bryan then earned back-to-back first down carries of eight and 12 yards across midfield. The defense came up with another stand and forced a turnover on downs.

Hutchings went to the air on the first play of the next drive and hit Earl Rogers on a 48-yard touchdown. Rogers then booted the PAT and gave Geneva County a 35-12 lead with 3:42 until halftime.

As the Eagles opened their next drive, Wiggins earned a 7-yard run on first down. Tyler Purifoy moved the chains with his own 7-yard gain and tallied 13 yards on four carries. The Bulldogs continued to stymie the offense as the first half came to a close.

Rogers started the scoring in the second half with a 22-yard run for a touchdown. The extra point was true and pushed the lead to 42-12. Following a fumble on the kickoff, Bruce Sconiers took a handoff and went 47 yards to the end zone on the first play of the next drive. The point after failed and kept the score 48-12.

Geneva County appeared to take advantage of another turnover and turned an interception into more points. However, a holding call negated another touchdown before Pleasant Home forced its first turnover on downs of the night.

The Eagles were unable to move the ball against the defense and had to punt. Hall found an opening at the Bulldogs’ 42-yard line and found the end zone from 58 yards out, increasing the lead to 54-12 at the end of the third quarter.

Neither side scored in the fourth quarter as the game came to an end. Pleasant Home looks to get in the win column and remains home to take on the Fruitdale Pirates (0-0) on Friday, August 30.