Down eight points after United Township scored with 7:19 left Saturday, La Salle-Peru responded.

The Cavaliers marched 83 yards in 12 plays and sophomore quarterback Marion Persich capped the drive with an 8-yard touchdown run with 2:09 remaining.

However, Persich’s two-point conversion pass was broken up in the end zone and the Cavaliers couldn’t stop the Panthers on their ensuing drive as United Township ran out the clock to defeat L-P 23-21 in East Moline in JJ Raffelson’s debut as L-P coach.

It was the Cavs’ first season-opening loss since 2019, and the loss snapped a 14-game winning streak against United Township.

“I thought the boys rallied together,” Raffelson said. “They made plays and they drove the ball down the field. What we need to do now is fix everything that happened

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