Jefferson High School defensive back Tarance Williams dives too late to catch Marshfield’s Levi Meline as the wide receiver slips into the end zone during the second quarter at MHS Friday. World Photo by Alex Powers

For the second week in a row, the Marshfield football team fell to a team with a blazing running back. Last week it was Grants Pass, and Friday the Pirates lost their homecoming game 43-27 to the Class 5A Portland Interscholastic League’s Jefferson Democrats.

Jefferson running back Marlon Miles burned the Pirates for a whopping 302 yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries, and Marshfield was again hurt by big plays and key turnovers.

“We gave up big plays. We can’t afford to do that,” said Marshfield coach Kent Wigle after the game.

Marshfield was playing the game shorthanded, a problem that grew as the night went on. The Pirates were without starting running back Kyle Brown, lineman Jordan Chaplin and others. Quarterback Kyle Tedder and lineman Chris Cordova were both ejected from the game. Defensive back Dallas Milburn went down late in the fourth quarter with a shoulder injury.

“It seemed like they were just dropping like flies,” said Wigle after the game.

Marshfield played a solid first half, going into the break up 20-6 after Tedder threw for two touchdowns and ran for a third.

The Pirates took the opening kickoff and marched 62 yards on a 15-play drive, culminating with a 1-yard touchdown run by Tedder.

But the Democrats struck back quickly on a 52-yard touchdown scramble from Miles, a smooth-running back with good patience in waiting for blocks.

The rest of the opening half was all Pirates, though, as Marshfield scored with 11 minutes, 2 seconds remaining in the second quarter when Tedder connected with Shane Daly on the left sideline for a 63-yard touchdown pass.

With 32 seconds remaining in the half, Tedder found Levi Meline all alone on the 5 yard line. Meline hauled in the ball and stumbled into the end zone, and the Pirates hit the locker room with a seemingly comfortable margin.

But Marshfield came out flat in the third quarter and Jefferson took advantage. The Democrats drove 59 yards on their opening possession of the half and found pay dirt on a 4-yard touchdown run from Peni Mohulamu.

Marshfield then drove to the Jefferson 26 but turned the ball over on downs.

On the ensuing Jefferson drive, the Democrats broke another big play, as quarterback Elisonoa Aluesi — who was intercepted by Marshfield’s Travis Bettin in the second quarter and didn’t complete a pass in the first half — chucked a wobbly pass down the sideline to Mitchell Todd for a 78-yard touchdown to pull within 20-18.

Jefferson then blocked Tedder’s punt, took the ball on the Marshfield 30 and drove to the goal line, where Aluesi practically walked the ball into the end zone to take the Democrats’ first lead of the game at 24-20.

But the Pirates showed some heart. After taking the kickoff, Marshfield drove 67 yards and Tedder scored his fourth touchdown on a 1-yard quarterback keeper. The extra point put Marshfield up by a field goal at 27-24 with 10:03 remaining in the game.

Then things fell apart for the Pirates. Jefferson scored on a 20-yard run from Miles, and on the ensuing drive Marshfield’s Tedder and Meline bobbled a handoff on a reverse and Tarrance Williams recovered the ball on the Pirate 22. Ian Perkins found the end zone on a 5-yard run and Marshfield was suddenly trailing 36-27.

The Pirates would get no closer. Aluesi threw another ugly, 31-yard touchdown pass — he was 5-10 for 167 yards with 2 touchdowns and an interception — to Todd to put the final score at 43-27 with 2:45 left in the game.

Wigle said now he’s going to focus on the regular season, after two frustrating losses in a row.

“When you have negative things happen, it’s not fun,” said Wigle. “You have to grow from it, learn from it. This was a lesson that’s tough to swallow though. It’ll be interesting to watch film later and see what happened tonight.”