Hilltoppers Hold On for Homecoming Win

In front of a Homecoming crowd, the Hopkins Hilltoppers hosted the King School Vikings for a 4:00pm kickoff.  It was a lively day as Hopkins students, alums, and families returned to campus to cheer on all of our varsity teams who were hosting home games, and the day ended with a nail biting 19-18 victory over King to secure the Homecoming and Senior Day victory!

Hopkins started the game on offense and put together an impressive first drive, highlighted by a 36 yard run by Maurice E. ‘27 to set the Hilltoppers up deep in King’s territory.  After getting the ball to the 1 yard line, Tommy C. ‘27 snuck it in for the first score of the game to make it 6-0.  The score remained at 6-0 well into the 2nd quarter before King would respond and tie the game with a 19-yard passing touchdown.  Chris L ‘26 and Holden S ‘27 combined for stop on the 2-point try to keep the score tied and give Hopkins another possession before halftime.  With 25 seconds left on the clock, Maurice E. crowd surfed into the endzone from 3 yards out to put Hopkins ahead, and the Dylan G. ‘27 extra point made it 13-6 Hopkins at halftime.  In the second half, Hopkins forced a quick stop on King’s first possession thanks to a timely sack from Dillon C. ‘28.  Hopkins ate up much of the 3rd quarter as they drove down the field, only to be intercepted deep in King territory and give the ball back to the opponents.  After forcing a 3 and out with King backed up deep in their own territory, Hopkins took over at King’s 28 yard line and 3 plays later connected on a 33-yard strike from Tommy C to Dylan G to set the score at 19-6.  From this point on, heart rates were elevated as King methodically drove down the field and cut the score to 19-12 with 5:30 remaining in the 4th quarter.  After stopping another Hilltoppers drive, King hit a big 52 yard pass to set the ball up at Hopkins’ 1 yard line.  1 play later, King was in the endzone and the score was 19-18.  Hopkins needed a stop on King’s 2-point play and found it as Dylan G and 9 other Hilltoppers wrapped up the ballcarrier at the line of scrimmage and pushed the pile back to thwart the Vikings.  King was down to their final chance to get the ball back, as they faced a 4th and 20 onsides kick opportunity from their own 40 yard line (a MIFL rule since there are no kickoffs), but thankfully the ball was overthrown and possession was given back to the Hilltoppers.  As the clock ran out, Hopkins celebrated their 19-18 Homecoming win!

This was certainly an exciting win for the Hilltoppers, and we thank our family, friends, and alumni who made it to the game.  Hopkins will host the Dalton School Tigers this upcoming Saturday at 2:30pm for a home kickoff, and we hope to see you there!

Go Hop!