Cros-Lex finds perspective in defeat as young players handle 'important minutes'

NORTH BRANCH — Make no mistake, the Croswell-Lexington football team is not one for moral victories. Those don't exist for a program that's 22-6 since 2020.

But the Pioneers are for perspective. Even if it comes the hard way.

Cros-Lex couldn't keep up with North Branch and fell, 35-21, at Krepps Field on Friday. The Pioneers dropped to 6-2 overall and missed out on a share of the BWAC championship.

"(Our kids) did what they had to do, it just got a little short on the scoreboard side," Cros-Lex coach Mike LeGrow said. "With a team like North Branch and their offense, sometimes it's death by 1,000 paper cuts. If you can't get stops ... it's tough. They're an exceptional football team."

Both sides exchanged blows in the opening half. After the Broncos struck first, the Pioneers answered 64 seconds later. Quarterback Gavin Espinoza scored on a 36-yard touchdown run at the 3:05 mark of the first quarter.

North Branch took the lead again on a touchdown run of its own. Espinoza responded for Cros-Lex with a 16-yard score on a keeper late in the second quarter. The junior finished with 57 rushing yards on six attempts.

"The two big touchdown runs that Gavin had were because he saw that they overcommitted to (running back Gabriel Groppi)," LeGrow said. "Gavin pulled it and took it to the house. Those are good reads on Gavin's part. He did exactly what he was supposed to do in that situation."

But the Broncos kept coming. They scored twice in less than three minutes midway through the third quarter to go up by 14.

Groppi (23 carries, 192 yards) momentarily stopped the bleeding on a 10-yard touchdown run with 1:03 remaining in the quarter.

Yet North Branch countered with a 65-yard rushing touchdown in the closing seconds of the third. Neither team scored in the fourth.

"Obviously, I told (our team) this hurts," LeGrow said. "It has every right to hurt."

Despite the pain, LeGrow was proud of his team's adaptability and willingness to battle. Especially from the underclassmen.

"We had a couple (junior varsity) call ups this week," LeGrow said. "Noah Jackson came in and gave us everything he had at defensive tackle ... on our last touchdown drive, we had Landon Burns snapping the ball — who's only a sophomore — and trying to figure it out. We're young. We had six or seven sophomores play important minutes for us tonight because we needed them too."

But it wasn't only the sophomores who answered the call. Junior offensive lineman Logan Welter also shined.

"We had kids step up and make some plays," LeGrow said. "Joey Ramsey injures his knee and we had (Welter) step up and not miss a beat at that left tackle position. We ran the ball really well.

"(Welter) is hobbling out there with two knee braces and he wants to gut it out. He battled his heart out and he did what he had to do. I'm proud of Logan Welter. He had a great game for us on the offensive line."

The Pioneers finished with 278 yards of total offense, 249 of which came on the ground. That's a plus for a front unit that had to be shuffled throughout the night.

"You don't get many championship-quality games," LeGrow said. "And trying to get that experience into (the younger players) is huge."

Like every team that's already clinched a playoff spot, Cros-Lex hopes to encounter more of those games. LeGrow reminded his players afterwards that while the loss might sting, their season is far from over.

"We still have goals we can accomplish," LeGrow said. "I think we'll be fine. We're still trying to get some things figured out. We've got kids playing in new spots because of (injuries). But we'll be okay."

The Pioneers will close the regular season next Friday when they host LeGrow's alma mater in Freeland. A week later, the postseason begins. There's even a possibility that Cros-Lex and North Branch could meet again.

"I told the boys when we were talking — odds are, we're going to see them in possibly two, three or four weeks," LeGrow said in reference to the playoffs. "So as long as we take care of our end, we have a chance to get back at it.

"One of the hardest things to do in football is to beat a good team twice. So hopefully we can live up to that standard of being a good football team. And if we have the opportunity (to play North Branch) again, have a little better shot at it."

Contact Brenden Welper at bwelper@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrendenWelper.