LAFAYETTE — The concerns Justin-Siena football coach Rich Cotruvo had about his team’s lack of varsity experience were apparent even after the Braves had put the wraps on a 14-0 victory over Berean Christian on Friday night.

They were justified by four Braves turnovers — three of which came in the first half — and gave the host Eagles hope with a mere 7-0 halftime deficit.

“I think our youth was very apparent tonight,” Cotruvo said. “We had a lot of offsides (penalties) and fumbles. You try to do everything you can to avoid it, but until you’ve actually had experience playing varsity football, you don’t know what it’s like.”

Sophomore quarterback Kevin Reinell had a hot-and-cold night. He began Justin-Siena’s second possession by scampering 20 yards, thanks in part to a brilliant fake handoff. But two plays later, his fumbled handoff was recovered by Berean sophomore Brandon Essy at the Eagles’ 44-yard line.

Fortunately, the Braves’ defense continued to hold Berean without a first down, forcing a punt for the third straight possession. Joe Mariani returned it 42 yards to the Eagles’ 38 to give Justin-Siena good field position.

Two plays later, just as he was about to get hit in the backfield, Reinell fired a perfect pass to a wide-open Chris Meyer. The junior raced 43 yards up the Braves’ sideline to the end zone. Adam Eberwein added the extra point for a 7-0 lead with 1:18 remaining in the first quarter.

“For a sophomore, he stepped up and played excellent tonight,” Meyer said of Reinell, who finished 7-of-11 passing for 86 yards and one interception. “He made a few rookie mistakes, but he came out looking pretty good.”

But Berean, which had lost to the Braves 60-0 the year before, didn’t seemed fazed by the deficit. Junior wide receiver Simon Major caught a wobbly 30-yard pass from quarterback Sam James in triple coverage on the next play from scrimmage at the Braves’ 45.

Speedy running back Cody Barbee (13 carries, 79 yards) — one of only five seniors on the Eagles’ roster — followed with a 12-yard pickup. But the drive stalled on a pair of incomplete flea-flicker passes from Major, including one that Dylan Rosa broke up.

Berean recovered another fumble, gave it right back on a Vince Nola interception, then set up its best drive by intercepting a pressured Reinell with three minutes left in the second quarter. That drive ended at Justin-Siena’s 8 on an incomplete pass as time expired.

The Braves finally got the insurance score with 2:14 left in the third quarter. Facing a fourth-and-2 at the Eagles’ 9, Reinell burst up the middle to the 3, then scored on the next play through the right side untouched. Eberwein added his second PAT.

Berean never threatened after that, though it stopped a long Braves drive on the 15th play with a fumble recovery that Barbee returned 37 yards into Justin-Siena territory.

• Justin-Siena JV 29, Berean Christian 0

Braves quarterback Marcus Solis (seven carries, 90 yards) ran for a 14-yard touchdown and completed a 42-yard scoring pass to Craig Cybulski, and Justin-Siena’s defense held the Eagles to fewer than 50 total yards.

Daniel Pardini rushed for 89 yards on six carries for the Braves, including an 81-yard touchdown run.

Reid Francis (nine carries, 43 yards) put the Braves on the board with a seven-yard run in the first quarter. After Pardini’s touchdown, Eric Sweigert gave Justin-Siena a 16-0 halftime lead by tackling Berean’s quarterback for a safety. Nicholas Bellomy and Sweigert each had a fumble recovery and Quin Stanier had a tackle for a loss. Pardini was 3-for-4 on extra points and had two sacks.