The Pine Tree Pirates hit the road last Friday night and took on the Van Vandals, looking to bounce back from their season-opening loss to Gilmer. Despite some spirited play and moments of promise, the Pirates ultimately fell short once again, dropping another loss 38-21 to the Vandals.
From the outset, Van set the tone with a quick, balanced offensive attack that kept the Pirate defense on its heels. The Vandals struck early and often, using a combination of speed on the outside edge with the run game and power up the middle with short, effective passing plays to move the chains and find the end zone methodically. Pine Tree’s defense had a few strong series, including a stop in the red zone, but struggled to contain Van’s playmakers throughout all four quarters.
Offensively, the Pirates showed sure signs of growth compared to their opening matchup, particularly in the second half. The passing game connected on a handful of big plays, and the ground game managed to pick up tough yards against Van’s consistently strong front seven. The Pirates put together a couple of promising drives that resulted in touchdowns, but the inconsistency that plagued the Pirates last week reared its head once again. Costly turnovers halted the offense’s momentum, preventing Pine Tree from closing the gap when opportunities presented themselves before the game got out of reach.
However, the traveling fans kept the energy high throughout the night, and the Pirates responded with flashes of the grit and determination that has defined Pine Tree football under Coach Jason Bachman. Still, Van’s experience, execution, and sheer size made up the difference and more, especially in the first half, where the Vandals secured a commanding 24-7 lead to put Van comfortably ahead for the rest of the night.
The 38-21 loss leaves Pine Tree with an 0-2 record to start the season. While back-to-back defeats sting, both contests have provided valuable lessons for this young and relatively inexperienced Pine Tree squad. The Pirates have shown potential in certain stretches, but the challenge moving forward will be putting together those pieces of potential consistently in all four quarters and displaying disciplined, consistent football throughout. The Pirate defense must find a way to work around their lack of size to hold back strong, consistent run-heavy offenses, especially before district play, where they will have to face such methodically powerful teams such as Chapel Hill and Kilgore.
But the Pirates won’t have long to dwell on the loss, as they return home this week to face Dallas Carter, which is also Pine Tree’s homecoming. With the increased support of the Pine Tree faithful, the team will look to regroup, correct the miscues and mental mistakes, and chase their first victory of the season on the 12th at 7:30 p.m. at Pirate Stadium.