BAINBRIDGE – After hosting their first two home games in Sidney, the Bainbridge-Guilford Bobcats finally returned to their own field Friday night, debuting a brand-new turf surface against Newark Valley. What began as a promising evening ended in heartbreak, as the Cardinals scored in the final minutes to hand B-G a 35-34 loss.

The Bobcats, now 1-2, came in with momentum after a narrow win over Whitney Point, and they controlled the early going. Chris Moyer recovered a fumble on Newark Valley’s opening drive, setting up a scoring run by Isaiah Hampton. On the next series, Ryan Larsen’s interception gave quarterback Connor Davy the chance to punch in another touchdown. Davy then connected with Brayden Swartwout on the two-point conversion for a 14-0 lead after the first quarter.

B-G stretched the margin to 20-0 in the second quarter as Davy found the end zone again. Newark Valley rallied before halftime, cutting the deficit to 20-13.

The Cardinals tied it up early in the third quarter, but B-G answered back with some good fortune. Facing 4th-and-20, Davy—under heavy pressure—heaved a pass that deflected off a defender and landed in the hands of Jaxson McGraw for a touchdown. He later hit Zane Mumbulo on the two-point try to put the Bobcats up 28-20 heading into the fourth.