The four lost fumbles in the first half help Poteau to a 14-0 lead but it was a failed fourth-and-1 at the Pirate 13-yard line that cost the Bearcats a chance to make it a one score game with less than two minutes to play in the third quarter.
The Bearcats reached the Pirate 13 off the momentum of a Conner Droemer interception (shown).
Poteau then doubled their lead over the next 4:56 of game clock and led by the eventual final of 28-0 scoring their fourth touchdown after a failed fourth down by the Bearcats in their territory.
The Bearcats would respond by again driving into Pirate territory before a fifth lost fumble – of the 11 total times the ball was loose – would all but assure a shutout loss.
The first fumble came at the Pirate 21-yard line after Hunter Warren had accounted for what would be half of his game total with a 41-yard run.
Poteau marched 74 yards after the fumble, with 59 of it coming on a scoring run and led 7-0.
The second fumble gave the Pirates a short 38 yard field which they covered in seven plays and led 14-0 with 31.7 seconds left in the opening quarter.
Despite two more lost fumbles in the second quarter – the fourth straight possession ending in a turnover when the Bearcats were just 8 yards from the end zone – the Bearcat defense was able to keep the deficit manageable.
One Pirate drive ended with Callen Montalvo recovering a Pirate fumble and another ended on a fourth down incompletion.
The other story of the night was the injury count that forced several Bearcats out of the game for the night, some possibly for longer, joining the group of five players who were unavailable to play on Friday.
The result was also multiple players adapting to less familiar roles. For instance by the fourth quarter only one original backfield starter was in his original location.
For the night the Bearcats ran for 233 yards with Hayden Daniel logging 8 carries for 57 yards while playing both halfback and quarterback.
Warren led the defense with eight tackles and both Montalvo and Seth Wilson had six.
The Bearcats will be on the road again on Friday when they travel to Ozark. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.
FUMBLES, INJURIES TAKE A TOLL ON BEARCATS
