A late-game surge was not enough to overcome a 42-0 halftime deficit, but the Talawanda Braves made the score respectable in their game at Carlisle last Friday and hope they can continue that effort in tonight’s home game with Eaton.

That may be a tall order, however, because the playoff-contending Eagles have had their number in recent years.

The Braves scored all 36 of their points in the second half — 28 in the fourth quarter — at Carlisle last Friday but fell 55-36.

Coach J.D. Vonderheide said he hopes the Braves can continue that late finish into this week’s game and get some points on the board early.

“We got down early and struggled in the first half. Carlisle did more things offensively. I told the players at halftime we had played six quarters this season but those quarters were behind us,” Vonderheide said. “We needed to go out and forget about the first half. Maurice (Thomas) ran a kickoff back for a score just like did in our first game.”

Eaton will provide some serious challenges tonight as well as a lot of history.

“I’m excited about the home game. The Eaton coach has been there a while,” the Talawanda coach said. “They are playing a lot younger kids than they have in recent years, but they are a good football team. They are a mix of what we’ve seen the last two weeks.”

Eaton comes to Oxford with a 1-1 record, having beaten Greenville 47-6 in Week 1 and losing to St. Henry 28-0 last week.

“Their quarterback is a young kid, but is doing a good job for them. Their tailback is returning. Offensively, their quarterback and tailback are a one-two punch. They do a nice job of running the offense,” Vonderheide said. “Defensively, they have good, active players.”

The first-year coach said Eaton and Oxford are close to each other but does not call the game a rivalry because of the long string of losses for the Braves.

“It’s been nine or 10 years since Talawanda has been able to beat Eaton,” he said. “It’s a very, very big game for us due to the proximity. We are improving. I hope we can give the home crowd something to get excited about.”

Thomas scored four of Talawanda’s five touchdowns in the Carlisle game and now has five on the season, including his 81-yard kickoff return to open the season Aug. 24. At Carlisle, he returned a third-quarter kickoff for a score, going 73 yards for the Braves’ first points of the night. The hosts already led 48-0, but Thomas, a sophomore, gave Talawanda fans something to cheer about. Talawanda made a two-point conversion after that score for a 48-8 score and Thomas ran wild in the fourth quarter.

Talawanda had a 28-6 advantage in the fourth quarter as Thomas scored on runs of 35, 53 and 4 yards for scores and junior Dakota Byrd added the final points on a 9-yard run.

Thomas finished with 135 yards on 12 carries against Carlisle to go along with 124 yards on three kickoff returns while Byrd ran for 57 yards on 17 carries and returned one kickoff for 13 yards.

“We are blessed to have two really good tailbacks,” Vonderheide said. “Maurice went in for the third and fourth quarters when we tried to give Dakota a break.”

Kickoff for tonight’s game with Eaton will be at 7:30, marking the Braves’ second game on the new Talawanda turf field.