Grayson scored three touchdowns, including the first in stadium history, as Badin pulled away in the second half for a 32-18 victory over Edgewood.
“It was pretty stressful, a lot of emotions,” Badin coach Nick Yordy said. “I think we were just a little too fired up at the start, but we settled in. We’ll take it — a win’s a win.”
A few minutes after kickoff, Grayson powered in from 8 yards out to score the first touchdown at the Matandy SportsPlex.
Edgewood (0-3) quickly proved it wasn’t going to play the role of bystander.
The Cougars converted a fake punt and forced a Badin turnover before quarterback Carter Breedlove punched in a 3-yard run midway through the second quarter to cut the lead to 7-6.
Badin (3-0) answered with a 23-yard strike from Colt Emerson to Jordan Crider, but Edgewood came right back — Breedlove hitting Kyle Franke for a 28-yard score with 24 seconds left in the half.
Trent Owens then stepped in front of the two-point conversion pass, keeping Badin ahead 14-12 at the break despite being edged in total yardage, 135–130.
Grayson scored on a 20-yard run early in the third quarter, and kicker Gabe Miyahara later added a 27-yard field goal.
Edgewood stayed within striking distance when Breedlove found Landon Ballard for a 15-yard touchdown in the fourth, but the extra-point attempt hit the upright — which was one of two missed kicks on the night.
Badin sealed it with 2:32 remaining when Grayson barreled in from a yard out for his third touchdown. Emerson added a two-point conversion pass to James Brink to push the margin to 32-18.
For Owens, a senior linebacker, the night was about resilience as much as history.
“We got stunned a little in the first half, didn’t play great,” Owens said. “But this team responds. When things get hard, everybody steps up. We don’t back down.”
Owens was all over the field defensively, helping bottle up Edgewood’s late push.
Yordy said his halftime message was about settling down and sticking to Badin’s identity.
“In the second half, we just kind of lined up with a tight end and ran the football,” Yordy said.
Edgewood coach Trace Reynolds said his team showed it can line up with anybody.
“We controlled most of the game early,” Reynolds said. “We’ve just got to finish those middle six minutes — the end of the half and the start of the second half. We need to play complementary football for 48 minutes.”
Breedlove threw two touchdowns and earned praise from his coach.
“The thing about Carter is that kids gravitate toward him,” Reynolds said. “He makes plays when things aren’t going our way.”
The celebration, for Badin, extended beyond the scoreboard. Fans lined up before the gates even opened, and Yordy admitted there were moments when he had to stop and soak in the scene.
“There were two or three deep around the fence,” Yordy said. “It made me start thinking about Garfield back in the old days. It was a pretty neat experience.”
Owens echoed that sentiment.
“I came out for warm-ups and there were thousands of people here already,” he said. “It was crazy.”
Badin travels to St. Francis De Sales next Friday, while Edgewood visits Fenwick.
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