FRUITPORT — Thursday night marked the start of a new era for Fruitport football, as the Trojans played their first game under new head coach John Shipley.

It looked like that new era was set to get off to a thrilling start, with the Trojans offense in position to score to break a tie with under a minute to play. But instead, it was the Hopkins defense that came through with a big play.

Hopkins defender Jackson Iciek intercepted a pass and returned it 76 yards for a touchdown with 49 seconds left, putting Hopkins ahead 34-28, which ended up as the final score

Shipley said it was a stinging way to end the first game of the year, but it’s something he’s confident the team will bounce back from.

“We’ll just get back to work and try to fix the mistakes that we made tonight,” he said. “Our kids are tough, they’re resilient. They want to be coached hard, they want to work hard. It’s going to sting, but it’s going to make us better in the long run.”

Despite the tough ending, Shipley saw many positives for the team’s first game.

“I thought we executed at a high level for a majority of that game,” he said. “I was proud of the way our kids showed up and fought. It was just one of those games where you have two teams going at it, and they just made a play there at the end. It was a good play and credit to Hopkins.”

Josh Eppard played a big role for the Trojans, leading the team with 71 rushing yards on 20 carries and totalling a team-high nine tackles on defense, including a sack.

“He’s one of our hardest workers in the weight room, he’s a captain,” Shipley said of Eppard, who he called a “hard-nosed” runner. “He’s one of those leaders that might not do it with his voice, but he’s going to do it with his work ethic and do it with his dedication to this team.”

Fruitport struck first in the opening quarter on a 65-yard punt return touchdown by Johnnie Kempker. Ethan Deephouse’s extra point made it 7-0.

Hopkins responded on the ensuing drive with a touchdown run by quarterback Merek Zapolnik to tie the game 7-7.

Fruitport retook the lead on the first play of the second quarter on a 3-yard TD run by Eppard, followed by a Deephouse PAT. The Vikings pulled even at 14-14 on a 1-yard run by Zapolnik with 6:11 to play in the half.

The Trojans scored before the half, benefiting from a brotherly connection. Brady Hanson found his younger sibling Jayce Hanson for a 33-yard touchdown pass, putting Fruitport up 21-14 heading into halftime.

Hopkins scored with 3:12 left in the third quarter on a pass from Zapolnik to Iciek, but the PAT was no good, leaving Fruitport with a 21-20 lead. The Trojans extended that lead on a 9-yard TD run by Alan Jackson with 6:46 left in the game, making it 28-20.

The Vikings tied the game with 3:30 to play on a six-yard run by Justin VanWagner and a two-point run by Blake Schwartz.

Fruitport started the next drive at its own 36-yard-line. At one point, the Trojans appeared to have a big gain deep into Hopkins territory on a run by Kempker, but a holding call negated the play.

With the help of a Hopkins pass interference, Fruitport got the ball to the Viking 29-yard-line with 1:04 left on the clock. On first down, however, Hanson’s pass was intercepted and returned for a score.

Fruitport got the ball back on its own 20-yard-line with 49 seconds left, but went four-and-out and Hopkins took a knee to end the game.

Brady Hanson finished 10-for-17 for 156 yards, a touchdown and an interception through the air. Jayce Hanson was his top target with five catches for 76 yards. Liam Campbell had two catches for 49 yards.

Brady Hanson added seven tackles on defense. Jackson had two tackles for losses, Colton Smith and Leland Brauer registered a half-sack each and Bryson Cena blocked a punt.