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The Huntland Middle School Hornets lost to the Moore County Raiders 24-16 on the road Tuesday in their first game of the season.

All of the scoring for the game was done in the first half as the Hornets were not able to find a tying score late in the contest.

Huntland Middle head football coach Mike Jernigan praised the play of eighth-grader Bryant Mooney in a 184-yard, two-touchdown performance, but he added that more will be needed for the Hornets to improve.

“We have to have several other players step up and fill their roles to be more successful,” he said. “We are a young team, and our guys are working hard to get better each day. We expect to see improvements this week.”

The Hornets turned the ball over on downs to open the game with the Raiders then scoring immediately afterward on a 42-yard touchdown run. The Raiders added a two-point conversion to make it an 8-0 game about three minutes into the contest.

A long run by Mooney brought the Hornets inside of the opposing 8-yard line on their next drive, and Mooney carried the ball into the end zone a few plays later and also scored on the ensuing two-point conversion to tie the score at 8-8.

However, the tie wouldn’t last for long as the Raiders scored on a 61-yard touchdown pass on the next play from scrimmage to immediately retake the lead at 16-8.

The Hornets steadily worked down the field on their next possession before Mooney scored another rushing touchdown and added a two-point conversion to put the score at 16-16 midway through the second quarter.

The Raiders then scored for their third drive in a row as they tallied a rushing touchdown just before the end of the half to put the Hornets behind once more.

Huntland trailed 24-16 at halftime.

The Raiders started the second half with the ball and seemed poised to score again after moving the ball to Huntland’s 20-yard line, but the Hornets pushed them back and forced a turnover on downs.

The Hornets entered enemy territory on their ensuing possession before another turnover on downs gave the ball back to the Raiders.

Huntland’s defense continued to keep the Hornets in the game as a sack by Armando Avalos pushed the Raiders back and ultimately led to the Hornets getting the ball back on downs at Moore County’s 42-yard line.

The Hornets got all the way down to the opposing 20-yard line late in the fourth quarter, but a loss of a few yards on third down and a false start pushed them back to the 30-yard line before an incomplete pass on fourth down ended the possession.

The Raiders were able to run out the clock from there as Huntland lost by eight.

With the loss, the Hornets started the season with a record of 0-1.

They will next play Tuesday at home against Highland Rim Middle School. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.