The Cardinals unfortunately lost 34–12 on Nov. 10 to the Washington Eagles in the annual Battle of the Birds. Nonetheless, they beat the Burton Pumas 30–12 on Nov. 18, ending their season in fifth place, with a 2–5 record.
Before the Battle of the Birds game, many players showed confidence that they could beat Washington. However, the Cards faced many setbacks. Junior fullback, kicker and outside linebacker Treyvor Turmon could not play because he had previously sustained a concussion. “Not having Treyvor in this game was a big deal,” head coach Danny Chan said. Even if the Cards weren’t missing players due to injuries, they were still be at a disadvantage because the team is comprised of mostly sophomores with only five seniors and four juniors.
This loss prevented the Cardinals from competing in the playoffs.
At the beginning of the game, Washington received the kickoff, eventually scoring a touchdown with four minutes left in the first quarter. In the last minute of the first quarter, sophomore wide receiver and running back Brennan Nguy scored a 50-yard rushing touchdown, bringing the score up to 6–6.
During the first drive of the second quarter, the Eagles put 8 on the board. They scored a touchdown and a two-point conversion. At the end of the first half, Lowell trailed 14–6.
“It kinda deflated the whole team,” Chan said. ”To see your captain on the floor and then hobbling out.”
In the third quarter, senior defensive tackle and right tackle Jacob Weiss completely tore his medial collateral ligament. This injury affected the Cards considerably. Multiple members of the team described Weiss’ injury as the turning point in the game. “It kinda deflated the whole team,” Chan said. ”To see your captain on the floor and then hobbling out.” Senior tight end and defensive back Nnachetam Okorie also said that Weiss’ injury had a big effect on the team because they didn’t really have a backup.
In addition to the injured roster, another problem in this game was staying consistent. “The biggest problem was staying with our technique and believing in it, rather than making things up sometimes,” Chan said.
The Eagles scored two touchdowns in the 3rd quarter, widening the score gap to 26–6.
In the fourth quarter, the Eagles brought the score up to 34–6. They scored a touchdown and a two-point conversion. Nguy stopped their momentum, scoring a touchdown with six minutes of the game left. Despite his efforts, the Cards lost 34–12.
