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A season that started so strong ended early for Memorial student-athletes, as the Titans lost on the road Friday night, 44-7, to the Forney High Jackrabbits.

The final score is not indicative of how close the battle was, with both teams finding it hard to muster early offense.

In fact, when the first quarter was over, the two teams were scoreless.

Forney (10-1, 6-1 in District 7-5A-I) was the only team to score in the second quarter, notching a lone touchdown and taking a 7-0 lead into halftime.

To make the game possible (8-3, 6-2 in District 8-5A Division I), the Titans took a four-and-a-half-hour road trip north for the contest.

Last year’s realignment paired Memorial’s district with the Dallas-area district.

Memorial Head Coach Brian Morgan had said his team would stop halfway to eat and find ways to keep the student-athlete’s legs fresh and not just sitting still for that long.

That disadvantage and a dominant Jackrabbits squad ended up being too much to overcome.

Forney erupted in the third quarter for 30 points, while adding another touchdown in the fourth quarter.

The Titans were able to manage a touchdown in the third quarter but ultimately couldn’t keep pace.

Memorial opened the season extremely well, winning its first eight games before a three-game losing streak to Barbers Hill, Kingwood Park and Forney ended a strong run on a somewhat sour note.