Gleason leads The Meadows by Needles

Junior quarterback Jacob Gleason passed for 128 yards and two touchdowns to lead The Meadows' football team to a 23-7 win over visiting Needles.

The Meadows (7-2, 6-1 Division III Southern) drove 46 yards in seven plays on its first possession, scoring on a 13-yard pass from Gleason to Thayne Carlson. Gleason then hit senior R.J. Haskins with a 7-yard strike to take an early 13-0 lead.

Just before halftime, sophomore Max Hisatake broke open the game by returning a blocked punt 33 yards for a touchdown, giving The Meadows a 20-0 halftime lead.

Needles (5-4, 4-3) only managed to run six plays from scrimmage in the third quarter, and its only score came on a 67-yard fumble return by senior defensive lineman J.D. Lucas late in the fourth quarter.