Penalties and mistakes proved costly and in the end spoiled the season-opening game for the Miami Trace Panthers as they fell to the visiting Waverly Tigers Friday, 28-23.

“The penalties and the mistakes that we made in this game just summarized what we did,” Miami Trace head coach Jerry Williams said. “I take nothing away from Waverly; they’re a good football team.

“But, we clearly beat ourselves with mistakes, fumbles and turnovers,” Williams said. “We just did not come together. We fought until the end. My kids didn’t give up. It’s just the mental mistakes that killed us.”

Both teams punted on their first possession.

The Panthers had to punt on their second possession and this turn on offense for the Tigers resulted in a 56-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Mason Kelly to senior Mason Pollard.

The point-after kick by senior Hunter Hauck gave the Tigers a 7-0 lead with 5:18 remaining in the first quarter.

On the next possession the Panthers moved the ball 70 yards down the field, converting one fourth and one situation and maintaining possession after a fumble.

Senior Evan Colegrove scored on a two-yard run and senior Levi Morrison’s extra-point kick tied the game at the end of the first quarter.

Waverly countered with a 22-yard touchdown pass from Kelly to senior Kody Swords. The conversion was good, putting the Tigers back on top, 14-7 with 11 minutes to play in the first half.

Miami Trace took the ball at its own 29-yard line. This possession stalled just inside Waverly territory, forcing a punt.

The bounce and roll was kind to the Panthers as they pinned Waverly back at its own 2-yard line.

Miami Trace’s defense had a nice series here, forcing a three and out by Waverly.

The Panthers took over at the Waverly 43-yard line.

Miami Trace’s drive was slowed by back-to-back illegal procedure penalties.

From the Waverly 39, senior quarterback Trey Robinette found a leaping junior Cooper Enochs who made the catch and was tackled at the 4-yard line.

It was sophomore Julian Baker who ran the ball in for a two-yard touchdown. Morrison’s kick tied the game, 14-14 with 2:51 left in the half.

Waverly hurt the Panthers a couple of times on special teams, including a nice kick return that soon found the Tigers deep in Miami Trace territory.

A 6-yard pass from Kelly to sophomore Sawyer Myers and the point-after kick by Hauck gave Waverly a 21-14 lead with 48 seconds until the break.

At the half, Waverly had accumulated just one yard rushing, but Kelly was 5 of 11 passing for 119 yards and three touchdowns.

Miami Trace was much more balanced, with 104 rushing yards, including 14 carries by Baker for 91 yards and one touchdown.

Robinette was 9 of 12 passing for 96 yards in the first half.

The Panthers kicked off to Waverly to start the second half.

Swords, who was not the deep man on the return team, leapt into the air and fielded the kick high above his head. Having secured the ball, he promptly returned it 78 yards for a touchdown and just 12 seconds into the third quarter, the Panthers were down, 28-14.

The teams then exchanged punts and Miami Trace turned the ball over on downs at the Waverly 24-yard line.

The Miami Trace defense showed its resolve and, aided by two penalties on Waverly, the visitors were backed up in a fourth down and 28 scenario from the 6-yard line.

Punting from their own end zone, the ball was bobbled and a Panther defender then collided with the punter, the ball bouncing out the back of the end zone for a safety with 1:34 to play in the third quarter.

This made it a 28-16 score and Miami Trace got the ball right back after Waverly’s free kick.

The Panthers had the ball at their own 38-yard line moved it down to Waverly’s 4-yard line as the quarter ended.

With a fourth and goal at the four, Robinette ran the ball in for a touchdown.

However, the score was nullified by a holding call against the Panthers.

Now in a fourth and 14 situation, Robinette’s pass was incomplete, giving the ball back to Waverly at its own 14-yard line.

Waverly went four and out, however and Miami Trace had the ball at its 38-yard line with 9:16 to play in the game trailing by 12 points.

On the very first play, the Panthers fumbled, and Waverly recovered at the 42.

Waverly soon found itself in a fourth down and 20 predicament and an incomplete pass gave the Panthers the ball with 4:20 to go at the Miami Trace 23.

A Robinette pass to Enochs and one to Austin Brown and the Panthers were moving, down to the Waverly 20.

The Panthers were soon in a first down and goal to go at the Waverly 9.

First there was an incomplete pass, then a run by Baker to the four. The Panthers tried another pass, leaving them with fourth and goal from the four.

Baker then slammed through the line and scored and after Morrison’s kick, it was 28-23 with 2:38 to go in the game.

The Panthers attempted an onside kick, but Waverly recovered at their own 43.

As one might expect, Waverly took their time before lining up to snap the ball. It was third down and 12 and Waverly called time out with 1:07 left.

After a quarterback sack by the Panthers, Miami Trace used its final time out with 1:01 to go in the game and Waverly with a fourth down and 21 at its own 32.

Waverly set up to punt and did so. However, there was a roughing the kicker call on the Panthers that gave the Tigers a fresh set of downs.

The Tigers had only to take a knee twice to run out the clock and get ready to return to Pike County with the 28-23 victory.

“We will rebound,” coach Williams said. “We’ll see who we are next week. I told them, ‘we are a very talented football team. But talent doesn’t win it alone. We have to execute and we have to be better.’

“We will look in the mirror as coaches and I challenged my players to look in the mirror,” Williams said. “We’ll watch film (on Saturday) and we’ll come back on Monday and start getting ready for Wilmington.”

The Panthers visit Wilmington next Friday. The Hurricane began its season Friday with a 30-0 win in Cincinnati over the Northwest Knights.

In other games involving Frontier Athletic Conference teams Friday, the Washington Blue Lions fell 51-6 at London; the McClain Tigers lost at Adena, 24-8; the Hillsboro Indians lost at Western Brown, 42-39; the Chillicothe Cavaliers were shut out at home by Bloom-Carroll, 38-0 and the Jackson Ironmen won big at Logan, 42-7.

Next week, Washington hosts Western Brown (1-0), McClain hosts Cincinnati Northwest (0-1), Hillsboro plays at Goshen (0-1), Chillicothe hosts London (1-0) and Jackson hosts Ironton (1-0).