Dayton football falls to Quincy

Big plays and big hits helped wear down Dayton as the Quincy Trojans scored a go ahead touchdown late in the fourth quarter to beat the Dust Devils 21-14.

"They were real physical," Dayton Coach Rick Walker said. "They hit us in the mouth and roughed us up. Hopefully, that'll wake us up."

Quincy used its passing game to great effect with senior QB Tra Ross throwing for 142 yards and two scores, including a 26-yard strike to set up the Trojans first score and a 48-yard touchdown that gave Quincy a lead. Wide receiver Cody Anderson was a threat all night as he roamed free behind the secondary. Ross missed him several times for what would have been easy scores.

"That's my fault, I take full credit for that," said Walker. "We've got to do a better job of teaching these guys. When you say, 'Don't let anyone get behind you,' they've got to know what that means."

The Dust Devils looked good early, getting the first score. The defense gave the team good field position at the Dayton 42.

Sophomore Dayton tailback Conner Oliver rushed three time for 40 yards, including a 25 yard burst through the left side to set up with first and goal at the six. Senior fullback Nick Bircheff blasted through the middle on the next play for the score. Oliver's kick gave Dayton a 7-0 lead eight minutes into the game.

Dayton's 'D' held through the 18 minutes before the Quincy offense started to get its rhythm. Ross missed on his first four passes, but hit on his next three attempts, including a 26 yard dagger to Anderson at the Dayton 10. Three plays later, Ross hit Cody Cline on a route across the middle for a score. The point after was no good, but Quincy was on the board with five minutes left in the half.

The Dust Devils opened the second half with the ball, and moved crisply down to Quincy's 20 yard line before bogging down. Oliver started the half with a 20 yard carry, and Tannar Wood caught a 21 yard pass from Conroy, but Dayton would turn the ball over on downs.

Quincy's Ross found Anderson for 21 on a third and five and then hit Sam Ruttschow for a 48 yard touchdown on fourth and five, marching down the field for the score and a 14-7 lead.

Oliver broke free for a 61 yard romp to start the fourth quarter, setting up a Conroy-Woods connection in the form of a 16 yard TD pass at 9:45 of the fourth to tie the score.

Dayton's defense held Quincy to a three and out, but the offense could do no better, and Quincy's quickness took over.

Ross opened the drive with a 26 yard burst around the left side. Two plays later, Ross found fullback Grant Ozanich over the middle for 30 more. Four plays later, Ross dove over the goal line from the one and the go-ahead score at 2:14 left.

The Dust Devils could manage just four plays for minus 18 yards to end the game.

"No doubt, big plays hurt us, but you've got to give them credit," Walker said of the Trojan squad. "They came at us from the start and they never stopped. They were hitting harder at the end than they were at the beginning."

Oliver ended with 20 carries for 148 yards while Bircheff carried eight times, gaining 37 for Dayton. Ross carried the ball 12 times for 68 yards and a touchdown and was 10 of 18 passing for 142 yards and two scores. He also scored a two-point conversion. Alex Easley got 47 yards on 8 carries, while Ozanich carried the ball 4 time for 65 yards.

The Dayton JV beat Quincy 20-6.

Contact Rob Renaud at rrenaud@nevadaappeal.com