All Three Phases Shine Early On For Shelby

                When two defending state champions get together for a playoff matchup, it is usually one for the books. It also comes down to who makes the fewest mistakes. Things took off early for Shelby. Special teams set the tone early when Monroe was forced to punt. Jayden Borders received the punt and he took it 57 yards for a touchdown.

                Monroe seemed poised to respond to the early the score as they made it to the Shelby 23-yard line. But penalties would back the Red Hawks up. Quarterback Trey Shephard was sacked on consecutive plays. The second one was deadly as Shelby’s Michael Carson forced a fumble and Tre Ross returned the fumbled 51 yards for a Shelby touchdown.

                Before you could blink, it was 14-0. The Golden Lions’ offense finally got in on the action as Jwan “Truck” Sims punched one in for three yards. Ethan Triplett’s kick for the extra point made it 21-0. Then came a bright spot for Monroe. Ty’Quavious Brewer received the ensuing kickoff and returned it 90 yards for a touchdown. Bryan Diaz-Ryes’s extra point cut the lead to 21-7 and that’s what it would be going into half-time.

                Neither team could get much going offensively in the second half. Both defenses were stingy for the entire third quarter. Mistakes hurt both teams as both were plagued by penalties in this game. In the fourth quarter, the Golden Lions were able to completely pull away. After being backed up by a holding penalty to Monroe’s 18-yard line, quarterback Malik Surratt found Darius Fuller wide open in the end zone for an 18-yard touchdown pass. Triplett was 4-for-4 on extra points.

                After giving up a season high 33 points last week to Hunter Huss, Shelby’s defense limited Monroe to 32 yards total offense.

                “I’m happy for our kids. They put in a lot of work this week and all season to get to this point.” said Shelby head coach Lance Ware “This is a goal that each team sets every year. Going into next Saturday, there will be 16 teams and we are happy to be one of them.”

                “They’re all a little bit different.” Ware said of each state title “But they all still come down to defense this time of year. Defense and having to make a drive in the fourth quarter to seal the game and that’s what our guys did tonight.”

                “It sounds cliché but we’re just enjoying the ride. This group is so special in what they have accomplished this season. We’ve said from day 1 that this group has not won a state championship. They’ve bought into that and they want to leave their own mark.”

                “It was two good teams, two state champions playing each other.” said Monroe head coach Johnny Sowell “You can’t spot a state champion 14 points. Mistakes hurt us. The biggest was penalties. We make a big play and see the yellow flag. We can’t be in 2^nd and long or 3^rd and long situations. Defense played great. The ball on the ground at times and just couldn’t get on it.”

                Shelby will play Northside-Jacksonville in the 2AA State Championship game. That game will be played at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, Saturday at 11:00 a.m.

Shelby Gives Up Season High 33 Points, But Pulls Away For Win

                Last week, both Shelby and Hunter Huss defeated their playoff opponents 41-0. The Huskies have scored 32 or more points in nine out of the previous ten weeks. The Huskies only gave up double digit scored twice in that timespan. Shelby has been held below 30 points only twice this year and have only had four games where they gave up double digit points to their opponents. Something had to give.

                Early on, it was Hunter Huss that was doing the giving. Jwan “Truck” Sims got Shelby on the board early with a 20-yard touchdown run. The extra point was no good however. Things got worse before they got better for the Huskies. Zo Wallace was intercepted by C.J. Ross. Ross took it 60 yards for another Shelby touchdown. Ethan Triplett’s extra point was good.

                The Huskies, however, would not roll over. After running some wildcat plays, the Huskies put Crawford Chandler in at quarterback. He hit Antwanez Barnett for a 37-yard touchdown pass. Trevor Hargett’s kick made it 13-7. The Golden Lions responded with a Malik Surratt 55-yard touchdown pass to Jayden Borders. The extra point was good. The Huskies threw a 55-yard touchdown pass of their own. It was another Chandler to Barnett connection. The two-point conversion try was no good however.

                After stopping Shelby, Chandler and Barnett connected for another touchdown pass. This time it was from 56 yards. That would be 148 reception yards for Barnett with three touchdowns off of three receptions in the first half. Things soured for the Huskies again late in the second quarter. Two special teams gaffes by Huss (a muffed punt and a fumble on a kickoff return) put Shelby in position to pull away. Two touchdown passed from Surratt to Darius Fuller (36 yards and 22 yards) put Shelby on top 34-19 at half-time.

                In the second half, the Huskies came out with a vengeance. Crawford Chandler cut Shelby’s lead with a 14-yard touchdown run. The Huskies’ onside kick was successful and they got another chance. They took advantage. Chandler threw his fourth touchdown pass of the night. This time, it was a 25-yard pass to Anthony Davis. The Huskies opted to just go for the kick instead of the two-point conversion. Hargett’s kick was good and Shelby’s lead was once again cut to just one-point at 34-33. Hargett was 3-for-4 on extra point kicks on the night.

                The Golden Lions would pull away in the fourth quarter. Two touchdown runs by Jwan “Truck” Sims (5 yards and 23 yards) put the game away for Shelby. Ethan Triplett was 5-for-6 on extra point kicks. That made the final 48-33. That is the most points Shelby has given up on the year. Their previous high was 19 in a 21-19 over county and conference rival, Crest.

                “The only way we can look at it is we survived and advanced.” said Shelby head coach Lance Ware “Hunter Huss gave us everything. It was a great game. I thought it was back and forth with a lot of momentum changes.”

“They made some plays. They had three completions in the first half, all for touchdowns. They had a great plan for what they did. They moved the ball on us more than anyone else has. We did not have one of our best defensive games. We give a lot of credit to Hunter Huss. Coach (Jamar) McCoy had his team prepared and gave us the best shot we’ve had all year. Our defense still found a way to make plays when they had to with a pick-six and causing a few fumbles. I thought special teams was going to be a big deal coming in and it was. It was more of the turnovers on special teams.”

“I know Monroe is an excellent football team.” Ware said of his next opponent “They’re very good on defense and very fast. They’ve played right after us last year (in the state championship games). I have a ton of respect for Coach Sowell and what he’s done. It should be a heck of a ball game.”

Shelby will host Monroe next week in the battle of the defending state champs. Shelby won the 2A last year while Monroe won the 2AA. The Red Hawks defeated East Lincoln 27-0.

“We knew all along, scouting them and looking at film all week, we wanted to attack their secondary and that’s what we did.” said Hunter Huss head coach Jamar McCoy “Major turnovers killed us. There’s not much you can say after a loss like this to play such a great team and great program so close. You look at it and you know that you really gave it away with the turnovers so these kids are hurting. At the end of the day, it’s football, it’s life. It happens. When you play a football club like this, you have to play perfect football. We didn’t do that tonight. Too many penalties, too many turnovers.”

Malik Surratt led Shelby’s offense with 187 yards passing and three touchdowns. Jwan “Truck” Sims amassed 113 yards and three touchdowns. Crawford Chandler led the Huskies with 219 yards passing, 61 yards rushing, and five touchdowns (four passing, one rushing). Shelby’s C.J. Ross and Damien Key each had an interception. Shelby also recovered three fumbles on the night. Hunter Huss recovered two.

Gaston, Lincoln and Cleveland Round 3 Playoff Picks

Hunter Huss 7 @ Shelby 24

Pisgah 7 @ South Point 49

Hendersonville 14 @ Lincolnton 42

East Lincoln 10 @ Monroe 24

Mountain Island Charter 31 @ Murphy 27

Powerful Rushing Attack Propels Raptors Past Gryphons

The second round of the NCHSAA 1A West playoff bracket featured two teams from the same conference. The Mountain Island Charter Raptors hosted conference rival, Thomas Jefferson. The Raptors initially beat the Gryphons 31-13 in the third week of the regular season. However, that would be one of the games the Raptors had to forfeit later. Thomas Jefferson was hoping to earn an on-the-field victory tonight. That would be a tall task.

The Raptors struck first. On fourth down, the Raptors went for it and scored with a 38-yard touchdown pass from Kyle Holcomb to Eric Gallman II. Carson Pledger’s kick for the extra point gave the home team an early 7-0 lead. The Gryphons would strike back. They too went for it on fourth down and scored on the play. Nomi McMullens hit Maxx Robbins for a 17-yard touchdown pass. The extra point kick by Grant Hernandez tied the game.

The Gryphons forced the Raptors to punt on the ensuing drive. But they, themselves, had their drive stall. Aapri Washington stopped the Thomas Jefferson drive with an interception and the Raptors would capitalize. Freshman Elijah Burris put the Raptors back on top with a two-yard touchdown run. Pledger’s extra point was good. The Gryphons responded again with another McMullens pass to Robbins. This time it was from 15 yards out. The extra point would fail however.

It got worse before it got better for Jefferson as Burris would answer the score on the first play on the ensuing drive. He took it 66 yards for a touchdown. The extra point kick made it 21-13. Thomas Jefferson would not go away. Quarterback McMullens took it in himself for a two-yard touchdown run with just around a minute to go before half-time. The two-point conversion try failed and the score remained 21-19.

Thomas Jefferson got the ball to start the second half and they went to work. The Gryphons took the lead with another Nomi McMullens touchdown pass to Maxx Robbins. The 29-yard touchdown pass and Hernandez’s extra point kick put the Gryphons on top 26-21. But that would be the end of their fun.

It would be a Raptor onslaught from there. Aapri Washinton’s 51-yard touchdown run put Mountain Island Charter back on top 28-26. Thomas Jefferson came up empty on the next drive and had to put. They pinned the Raptors deep but it didn’t seem to matter. Terrell Hager extended the lead with a 95-yard touchdown run. The PAT failed, however. It would still be a one-score game. But not for long. Washington put the Raptors up by two scores with a 23-yard touchdown run. Pledger’s kick made it 41-26.

The Gryphons were not down for the count yet. Early in the fourth quarter, McMullens hit Robbins for a ten-yard touchdown pass. That was their fourth touchdown connection. Hernandez’s kick would cut the lead to eight points. That would be as close as the visiting team would get as the host Raptors shut the door on any comeback hopes.

Touchdown runs by Hager (57 yards) and Washington (72 yards) ended any comeback hopes. The Gryphons did put another touchdown on the board with a four-yard run by Miller Outten with less than five minutes to go. The onside kick was recovered by Mountain Island Charter and they would be able to run out the clock and seal the 54-40 victory.

Terrell Hager led the Raptors rushing attack with 275 yards and two touchdowns. Aapri Washington amassed 213 yards and three touchdowns. Elijah Burris rushed for 120 yards and two touchdowns. Nomi McMullens led the Gryphons with 300 all-purpose yards (179 passing and 121 rushing), four passing touchdowns and one rushing touchdown. Running-back Bill Lay amassed 89 yards rushing. Maxx Robbins hauled in all four of McMullens's touchdown passes. He and Tucker Greene combined for 154 of the receiving yardage.

"I think we got a lot of stuff to clean up defensively. I think offensively, we are clicking at the right time. I think if you key on one player on any situation, others will step up." said Raptors head coach Robert Washington "Our motto is next man up. We made it harder than it was supposed to be. Our guys came out with surprisingly low energy so we had to fire the boys up. The biggest thing is that we made adjustments. Our defensive staff was constantly challenging our defense."

"We were working on putting Aapri back at quarterback. It worked so we didn't go away from it. We tried to stay with the hot hand at the time." Washington said of his strategy "It was kind of like chess because we were moving some players around because we had to figure out what was the best matchup because watching film, I thought they would do one thing but they came out and did something totally different. Once we knew they were trying to get (Robbins) in the game, we put Aapri on him and he couldn't do anything else after that."

"Tonight the best team won." said Gryphons head coach Jerry Cash "Don't know if we can change a whole lot. Our kids played hard. We had a really good year. There will be another day. (McMullen) is just a sophomore. He's going to be a good player for us. (Bill Lay) is a junior. We have 20-something kids that are juniors that are coming back next year. We only lose six seniors on this team so we will be looking for a good year next year."

Mountain Island Charter will travel to Murphy next week. The Bulldogs beat Winston-Salem Prep 42-18. Thomas Jefferson finishes with a 10-3 record.

Fourth Quarter Burst Gives Patton First Ever Playoff Win

                The Patton Panthers in their short history have not won a playoff game. But that changed Friday night as they traveled to take on Forestview. The Panthers left Joe Alala Stadium with a 35-17 win, ending the Jaguars’ season. Things looked bleak for the Panthers early on when the center snapped the ball over quarterback Joe Eakin’s head. Forestview recovered inside the 10 and the Jaguars would score two plays later. Chapperal Smith’s two yard touchdown run gave the Jaguars the early 7-0 lead.

                The Panthers tied the game up early in the second quarter with a six-yard run by Ty Causby. The Panthers were primed to take the lead later in the second quarter, but were stopped on 4^th-and-1. The score would remain 7-7 at half-time.

                The Jaguars retook the lead in the third quarter with a 47-yard run by Jayveon Love. Patton would counter that with a long run of their own. Joe Eakin’s 46-yard run tied the game at 14-14. That would be the score going into the fourth quarter.

                After being stopped inside their own 20, the Jaguars settled for a 36-yard field goal by Holt Cloninger. But things would come apart for Forestview after that. William Brawley gave Patton the lead with a 56-yard touchdown run. The Jaguars tried to get something going on their ensuing drive, but a fumble by Jayveon Love gave Patton the ball back. Eakin took it in on the next play for a 50-yard touchdown run.

A fumble by Jalen McCree on the kickoff put the Panthers back in business. Brawley put the exclamation point on the game with a 45-yard touchdown run. An interception thrown by Mac England would allow Patton to just run the clock out.

Brawley led the Panthers offense with 231 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Eakin amassed 226 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Jayveon Love led Forestview with 133 yards and a touchdown.

Patton will travel to take on Pisgah, a 20-13 winner over Carson.

Gaston, Lincoln and Cleveland Round 1 Playoff Picks

Patton 20 @ Forestview 27

Franklin 31 @ Stuart Cramer 21

West Henderson 7 @ South Point 55

Ashbrook 14 @ Jay M. Robinson 41

Parkwood 13 @ Hunter Huss 37

Ledford 13 @ Kings Mountain 20

North Surry 7 @ Shelby 48

East Rowan 7 @ Crest 28

Burns 34 @ North Forsyth 17

North Moore 13 @ Bessemer City 20

Cherryville 7 @ Whiteville 27

Andrews 7 @ Mountain Island Charter 51

Bishop McGuiness 13 @ Thomas Jefferson 45

 

I’ve Seen You Before: Hunter Huss will be hosting a first round playoff game for the third time in four years. The last time the Huskies hosted a playoff game, they faced Parkwood. The Rebels whipped the Huskies 37-7. The Rebels and the Huskies also met in the third round in the previous year. The Rebels also won that one. The score was 24-14. The Huskies are looking for some payback in this game and with the way they have been playing, they are very likely to get it. Third time is a charm.

Long Travel: The Cherryville Ironmen will probably have the longest travel in the first round of anybody in the area as they travel to Whiteville. The travel time is estimated at around 3 hours and 45 minutes.

Most Favorable Match-up: Nobody could have gotten a more favorable draw than the Mountain Island Charter Raptors (8-3). They draw a 2-9 Andrews squad. The Raptors have scored 49 points or more points the past 7 weeks and should continue to put up numbers against the Wildcats.

Most Challenging Match-up: Ashbrook will have to travel to take on a top-seed in Jay M. Robinson at 9-2. The Green Wave just barely squeezed into the playoffs with a 4-7 record. The Bulldogs have scored 42 or more points in 6 of their games. The Green Wave could keep it close early, but look for Robinson to pull away in the second half.

Forestview Sticks To Ground Game, Grinds East Gaston 48-6

                With it being Senior Night, the Forestview Jaguars wanted to make sure they gave their seniors a strong home finale and they didn’t disappoint. It was junior running-back Jayveon Love that got the night started with a one-yard touchdown run. Love also scored a 39-yard touchdown run to give Forestview the 14-0 advantage in the first quarter.

                In the second quarter, more players got in on the scoring. Senior Nate Whitaker gave Forestview a 21-0 lead with a one-yard touchdown run. Fellow senior Chapperal Smith added to the Jaguars’ lead with a 26-yard touchdown run. The Jaguars were in position to go up 35-0 toward the end of the third quarter, but Love fumbled before going into the end zone. The Warriors got the ball back at the 20. But they wouI didn’ld not capitalize and the score remained 28-0 at half-time.

                Things kept getting better for Forestview and getting worse for East Gaston in the second half. Chapperal Smith’s 22-yard touchdown run put the Jaguars up 35-0. Dylan Disarro was 5-for-5 on extra point kicks on the night. Jayveon Love got back in action midway through the third quarter. One fourth-and-two at their own 34 yard line, he stormed through the Warriors defense with a 66-yard touchdown run. The extra point was missed however.

                The Warriors tried to get something going offensively, but disaster struck. Quarterback Nick Ferens fumbled the ball at the 44-yard line. Jaguars’ outside linebacker Jacob Ashe returned it 44-yards for the touchdown. Dawson Armstrong’s extra point kick made it 48-0. The clock ran continuously from that point forward.

                East Gaston was able to get on the scoreboard at the end of the game with a four-yard run by Nick Ferens. The two-point conversion try was thwarted, though.

                Jayveon Love led the Jaguars rushing attack with 219 yards and three touchdowns. Chapperal Smith Amassed 166 yards and two touchdowns. Nick Ferens led East Gaston with 114 all-purpose yards (55 rushing and 59 passing).

                “Forestview’s not a bad team. They were well coached tonight. Even though we’re still thin, I thought our guys fought hard. I didn’t do a good job making adjustments early. That’s on me. I got to do a better job to put our guys in better situations to make plays.” said East Gaston head coach Sean Joyce “Nick (Ferens) is one of the best, if not the best, players in the conference. He’s got a bright future. He’s definitely played well for us.”

                “There were some big holes. All the backs made some good runs. We come close to shutting them out so our defense played really well. I thought we were aggressive.” said Forestview head coach Chris Medlin “I’m just proud of our seniors ending their regular season on a positive note.”

                “It will be good to have a week off. It gives us some time to get some rest and get back at it. We should be full tilt next week and have everybody back.”

                Forestview finishes regular season play at 7-4 overall and 5-2 in conference play. East Gaston finishes 3-8 overall and 2-5 in the conference.

Gaston, Lincoln and Cleveland Week 12 Best to Last

1.       Shelby (10-0)(7-0)

2.       Lincolnton (10-0)(6-0)

3.       Hunter Huss (7-3)(6-0)

4.       South Point (6-4)(5-1)

5.       East Lincoln (8-2)(4-2)

6.       Crest (8-2)(6-1)

7.       Burns (8-2)(5-2)

8.       Kings Mountain (7-3)(5-2)

9.       Mountain Island Charter (9-1)(4-1)

10.   Forestview (6-4)(4-2)

11.   Stuart Cramer (7-3)(4-2)

12.   Ashbrook (4-6)(3-3)

13.   Thomas Jefferson (7-3)(3-2)

14.   Bessemer City (7-3)(4-1)

15.   West Lincoln (5-5)(2-4)

16.   East Gaston (3-7)(2-4)

17.   Cherryville (3-7)(3-1)

18.   North Lincoln (2-8)(2-4)

19.   North Gaston (1-9)(0-6)

20.   Highland Tech (1-9)(0-5)

Gaston, Lincoln and Cleveland County Week 12 Picks

Shelby 35 @ Crest 14

South Point 42 @ Stuart Cramer 7

East Gaston 7 @ Forestview 38

Hunter Huss 38 @ Ashbrook 14

North Gaston 24 @ Lake Norman Charter 14

Burns 31 @ R-S Central 14

East Burke 7 @ Kings Mountain 41

West Lincoln 21 @ East Lincoln 52

Lincolnton 45 @ Maiden 21

North Lincoln 14 @ Lake Norman 54

Bessemer City 20 @ Cherryville 14

Thomas Jefferson 63 @ Highland Tech 0

Carolina Pride 7 @ Mountain Island Charter 55

Huskies Slaughter Jaguars, Claim Share of Conference Title

                The message was sent and it was sent early and often. The Hunter Huss Huskies in the driver’s seat for the Big South 3A/2A conference title had no intentions of sharing it. The Huskies did something earlier this year that they have not done in ten years and that is beat South Point. Another thing they haven’t done is beat Forestview at Huss. They decided that also was ten years too many as they blistered the visiting Jaguars 39-6 and it wasn’t even that close.

                The Huskies drove deep into Forestview territory on their first drive, but would stall. That would not be the case on their next drive as Jaquavious Butler put the Huskies on the board with a five-yard touchdown run.  The kick was blocked. But it was only the beginning. Freshman quarterback Zo Wallace extended the Huskies’ lead with a 70-yard touchdown pass to Antwanez Barnett. The run for the two-point conversion failed, however.

                The scoring slowed down for the Huskies until Forestview’s quarterback Mac England was sacked deep in Forestview territory by Devin Harrell. The sack caused a fumble that was recovered by Amari Torrence. Wallace and Barnett would connect for another touchdown pass. This time it was for 13 yards out. The extra point kick by Trevor Hargett was good. With the Jaguars’ offense stuck in neutral and having to punt on fourth down, the special teams went into their bag of tricks as kicker Holt Cloninger faked the punt and hit Tramone Duncan on a short pass route. Duncan took it 35 yards to the Huskies’ 30-yard line. But the Jaguars would fumble any chance to put points on the board.

                The Huskies would fumble it back right before half-time, but it wouldn’t matter. The Huskies got the ball back in the second half. They did not have a hard time moving the ball, but penalties would keep them from putting more points on the board. The third quarter would remain a scoreless stalemate.

                But in the fourth quarter, the onslaught continued. Backup quarterback Crawford Chandler got in on the fun and dashed out for a 54-yard touchdown run. Hargett’s kick was good and the score was 26-0. The Jaguars were able to get on the scoreboard with a 27-yard run by Jayveon Love. The kick was no good, however.

                Xavier Holmes scorched the worn-out Forestview defense with another long touchdown run. This time it was from 53 yards out. Chandler’s 57-yard touchdown run and Hargett’s extra point put the Huskies up 39-6. The Huskies’ offense put on a great show and the defense tormented the Jaguars’ offense all night. Devin Harrell led the Huskies defense with five sacks, including a forced fumble. Amari Torrence recovered two fumbles for the Huskies and Tony Davis intercepted a Mac England pass early in the game. Crawford Chandler led the Huskies offense with 134 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Jaquavious Butler amassed 112 yards rushing and a touchdown. Zo Wallace had 146 yards passing and two touchdowns.

                The Huskies win their first conference title since 1996. They can win it outright with a win at Ashbrook next week.

                “It feels good to get us back to the conference title and playing the way we are.” said Hunter Huss head coach Jamar McCoy “The help paved the way. We’ve got a great coaching staff and the kids are buying in to what got going and it’s an extremely fun time to be a Husky.”

                “The kids understood how good they could be.” McCoy said after overcoming an 0-3 start “We lost those games by a combined nine points and we just kept telling them ‘we are better than these one point losses, five point losses’ and it has gotten to the point where they’ve bought totally in and they understand the concepts.”

                “Devin Harrell is a monster out there. He’s a talent on defense and I’m happy I don’t have to play against him.” McCoy said on Harrell’s five sack performance “I’m super proud of him. This is something we will celebrate next week. He had a career type night with five sacks.”

                “We’re blessed here to be able to go two, sometimes three, deep at different positions.” McCoy said of his depth and his backups “We are stocked full with athletes. Xavier Holmes is listed as our third string back but he could be a starter anywhere else. He’s a humble kid and he’s super aggressive when he gets the ball. I’m super proud of him. Even our back quarterback, Crawford Chandler, came in and had two long touchdown runs. He’s a ball player.”

                “The deal is not done yet.” McCoy said on the conference title “Next week is even bigger than this week. Our next opponent is our best opponent. Right now, it’s a one game season. You get in the playoffs and you lose, you go home. You don’t come this far just to come this far. You come this far to win titles.”

                “They’re a good team. They played good. Give them a lot of credit.” Said Forestview head coach Chris Medlin of Hunter Huss “They’ve made a little run. They’ve won seven in a row. They got good speed, good size and they’re physical. It’s a good combination to have. They got a good defense. All you can do is come to work Monday. We got one more left and we’ll see what happens after that.”

                Hunter Huss travels to face traditional cross-town rival, Ashbrook, next week. Forestview will have their home finale against East Gaston.

Gaston, Lincoln and Cleveland Week 11 Best To Last

1. Shelby (9-0)(6-0)
2. Lincolnton (9-0)(5-0)
3. Burns (8-1)(5-1)
4. Hunter Huss (6-3)(5-0)
5. South Point (5-4)(4-1)
6. East Lincoln (7-2)(3-2)
7. Forestview (6-3)(4-1)
8. Kings Mountain (7-3)(5-2)
9. Crest (7-2)(5-1)
10. Stuart Cramer (6-3)(3-2)
11. Mountain Island Charter (8-1)(4-1)
12. West Lincoln (5-4)(2-3)
13. Ashbrook (3-6)(2-3)
14. Thomas Jefferson (6-3)(2-2)
15. Bessemer City (6-3)(3-1)\
16. East Gaston (3-6)(2-3)
17. Cherryville (2-7)(2-1)
18. North Lincoln (1-8)(1-4)
19. North Gaston (1-8)(0-5)
20. Highland Tech (1-8)(0-4)

 

Gaston, Lincoln and Cleveland Week 11 Picks

Forestview 21 @ Hunter Huss 28

Lake Norman Charter 7 @ Ashbrook 42

Stuart Cramer 42 @ East Gaston 14

North Gaston 7 @ South Point 48

Crest 21 @ Burns 17

Draughn 7 @ Shelby 45

West Caldwell 14 @ Lincolnton 41

West Lincoln 28 @ Bandys 13

Maiden 21 @ East Lincoln 35

Highland Tech 6 @ Bessemer City 48

Cherryville 28 @ Community School of Davidson 6

Thomas Jefferson 35 @ Pine Lake Prep 19

West Iredell 21 @ North Lincoln 28

Mountain Island Charter 41 @ Cannon School 14

　

Who Wants This Conference? If you have been following the Southern Piedmont 1A conference, you know just how crazy things got last week. One of the biggest shockers of last week was Thomas Jefferson's 42-8 win over Bessemer City. The Yellow Jackets have so far dominated that conference and the Gryphons have stumbled with losses to Cherryville and Mountain Island Charter. The Ironmen have a shot at winning a share of the conference title if they win out. They would split it with Mountain Island Charter whom they don't play this year. The Raptors are done in conference play and currently stand at 4-1. Right now, Thomas Jefferson, Community School of Davidson, Pine Lake Prep and Highland Tech are out of the running but as shown last week, they each can play spoiler.

Big South Conference Still Up For Grabs: Right now, the Hunter Huss Huskies still retain sole possession of first place in the conference. But behind them in the race is Forestview at 4-1. The Jaguars' only loss in conference play was to South Point. If Forestview knocks off Hunter Huss, that would force a three-way tie. In order to do that, the Jaguars will have to take care of the football and to take advantage of opportunities. They will have to also avoid kicking to kickoff/punt return specialists, Akeythio Carson and Tony Davis.

Critical Games In The District 7 2A: Some games to keep an eye on in the SD 2A are West Caldwell @ Lincolnton and Maiden @ East Lincoln. Both West Caldwell and Lincolnton are undefeated in conference play. The Warriors are coming off a 42-32 win against East Lincoln. The winner of this game locks up a share of the conference title given that everyone else has at least one loss. Maiden has one loss in conference play, but could get back in the race if Lincolnton knocks off West Caldwell and if the Blue Devils knock off East Lincoln. The Mustangs are out of the running with two losses in conference play, but are looking to spoil the night for Maiden.

Top 3A Spot On The Line In The South Mountain Athletic Conference: Burns and Crest currently have only one loss in conference play and they play each other this week. The Bulldogs are hoping to cement the top 3A spot in conference play, but the Chargers have been improving each week and their defense continues to keep other teams' offenses on lock down. A Chargers victory gives Crest the top 3A spot. That would also set up a big matchup against Shelby next week for the Chargers. Though nobody has been able to stay close to the Golden Lions this year. Should the Chargers win this week and lose to Shelby next week, that would set up a three-way tie for the top 3A spot between Crest, Burns and Kings Mountain.

Forestview Forces Five Turnovers, Tops Ashbrook 27-13

                If you wondered how Forestview would respond after a devastating loss from last week, their 27-13 win over Ashbrook on Friday probably answered your question in a positive way. He Jaguars used their ground and pound running game, an opportunistic defense that had five takeaways and a blocked punt for a touchdown to down their cross-town rival.

                After a scoreless first quarter, the Jaguars finally broke through. Chapperal Smith got them on the board with a 25-yard run. Dylan Disarro’s extra point kick made it 7-0. Special teams got in on the action for the Jaguars when Tremayne Booker blocked a Green Wave punt and Tramone Duncan recovered it in the end zone for a touchdown. The Green Wave special teams would respond by blocking the PAT kick. The score would remain 13-0 going into half-time.

                Ashbrook got the ball to start the second half and they would score on their first drive. Under pressure from a Forestview blitz, Chabien Rodriguez hit British Brooks for a screen pass at the 23-yard line. Brooks was able to take it the distance for the Green Wave’s first touchdown of the night. The PAT was good.

                But the Jaguars would respond later in the third with a six-yard touchdown run by Jayveon Love and 28-yard touchdown run Chapperal Smith. Both PATs were good and Forestview took a 27-7 lead going into the final quarter. The Green Wave would get a drive going early in the fourth quarter. They made it all the way to the Forestview one-yard line, but a procedure penalty backed them up and Chabien Rodriguez was intercepted by Tramone Duncan on the next play.

Ashbrook was able to get another touchdown later in the fourth quarter when Rodriguez hit Cameron June for a 53-yard touchdown pass. The extra point kick bounced off the upright however. That would be all the highlights for Ashbrook as Forestview recovered the onside kick and ran the clock out.

Forestview’s defense forced three fumbles and two interceptions, one by Duncan and the other by Jared Carter. Forestview only lost one fumble and had no interceptions. The Jaguars also registered five sacks. Xavier Worthy led the Jaguars with three. Nate Whitaker and Jacob Ash each had one. For Ashbrook, Antwan McClee led the way with two sacks and Josh Long had one.

Rodriguez led Ashbrook with 155 yards passing, 65 yards rushing and two passing touchdowns. Chapperal Smith led Forestview with 82 yards and two touchdowns.

“I thought we played as a complete team in all three phases and did some great things and that’s what you have to do against a great team. I couldn’t be more proud.” said Forestview head coach Chris Medlin “(The blocked punt for touchdown) gave us some momentum. Our defense as a whole is playing great. We have a lot of senior leadership over there. Tramone (Duncan) is one of them. He’s doing well and had a big night for us in some key plays.”

Medlin said when asked about involving more players on offense “We threw one to the tight-end there. It was a big play that got us a first down early in the game. We got to add some stuff. We can’t just run the base plays. You got to add some wrinkles to it when teams are overloading you.”

“We got to win two more. It’s simple as that. If we do, there is nothing less we can have than a conference championship. That’s our goal. We got to take it one at a time.”

“When you have a special teams situation where they get points out of it, that’s hard to overcome.” said Ashbrook head coach Greg Hill “Turnovers, I don’t know how many we had but it’s hard to win a game when you have that many turnovers.”

“That drive (early in the second half) was our best drive of the night. We made some plays there and got in the end zone. We felt like we got it going again and then I think the thing that really hurt us after that is that we played half the field the majority of the third quarter and we weren’t able to flip the field at all and you can’t do that especially when you got a team that’s going to power the ball down at you.”

Hill said about the next two games against Lake Norman Charter and Hunter Huss “There’s no ifs, ands and buts about it. These next two weeks are going to define what happens to the rest of the season. Our kids got to come to work Monday and find a way to get ourselves back on track.”

Forestview (6-3)(4-1) travels to take on Hunter Huss (6-3)(5-0). Ashbrook (3-6)(2-3) will host Lake Norman Charter (4-5)(0-5).

Gaston, Lincoln and Cleveland Week 10 Best to Last

1. Shelby (9-0)(6-0)

2. Lincolnton (8-0)(4-0)

3. East Lincoln (7-1)(3-1)

4. Burns (7-1)(4-1)

5. Hunter Huss (5-3)(4-0)

6. South Point (4-4)(3-1)

7. Forestview (5-3)(3-1)

8. Stuart Cramer (6-2)(3-1)

9. Kings Mountain (6-3)(4-2)

10. Crest (6-2)(4-1)

11. Bessemer City (6-2)(3-0)

12. Mountain Island Charter (7-1)(4-1)

13. West Lincoln (5-3)(2-2)

14. Ashbrook (3-5)(2-2)

15. Thomas Jefferson (5-3)(1-2)

16. Cherryville (2-6)(2-0)

17. East Gaston (2-6)(1-3)

18. North Lincoln (1-7)(1-3)

19. North Gaston (1-7)(0-4)

20. Highland Tech (1-7)(0-3)

Gaston, Lincoln and Cleveland Week 10 Picks

Hunter Huss 21 @ Stuart Cramer 14

Ashbrook 21 @ Forestview 35

South Point 55 @ Lake Norman Charter 0

East Gaston 48 @ North Gaston 38

Lincolnton 48 @ Newton-Conover 21

Maiden 42 @ West Lincoln 20

East Lincoln 31 @ West Caldwell 28

Burns 42 @ Draughn 7

East Rutherford 14 @ Crest 35

Kings Mountain 42 @ Chase 13

Bessemer City 48 @ Thomas Jefferson 24

Pine Lake Prep 14 @ Cherryville 20

Community School of Davidson 38 @ Highland Tech 12

South Iredell 45 @ North Lincoln 7

Victory Christian 0 @ Mountain Island Charter 55

 

Big South 3A/2A Still Anybody’s To Claim: A key matchup in the Big South 3A/2A take place at Stuart Cramer where the Storm hosts the Huskies of Hunter Huss. The Huskies are in the driver’s seat with a 4-0 conference record. Cramer is just one of three teams behind the Huskies in conference play. Both teams are also in the 2A portion of the conference so the winner of this game edges closer to the top 2A seed for playoffs. Forestview is another team that is behind the Huskies in the conference. The Jaguars were hammered 45-3 at South Point last week. But with the Red Raiders already having a loss in conference play, all hope is not lost. The Jaguars will have to win out and that would include getting a win at Hunter Huss next week. But their focus is against Ashbrook. The Green Wave stands at a 2-2 record in conference play and are in danger of missing the playoffs. They are also dangerous enough to play spoiler for the teams left on their schedule. No doubt there will be some hard fought games in Gaston County this week.

Key Battle Takes Place In Lenoir: The West Caldwell Warriors and the East Lincoln Mustangs are facing off in a key Southern District 2A matchup tonight. The Warriors are 4-0 in conference play while the Mustangs are 3-1. East Lincoln lost to the other front-runner, Lincolnton, earlier this year. But there is some hope for them to potentially get a piece of the conference title. The Warriors have not lost at home this year, but the Mustangs will be the biggest test they faced there all year. Look for this to be a tight match-up.

South Point Continues Improvement, Rocks Forestview

A game that was billed by many to be a classic Big South shootout turned out to be anything but. South Point set the tone in the first quarter and the Red Raiders were unstoppable. South Point usually does their dirty work on the ground, but it was a big passing play by quarterback Scottie Lee that got the offense going. Lee connected with Ray Grier for a 66-yard touchdown pass. Thomas Lempereur’s extra point kick was good.

Forestview would contribute to their own demise on the ensuing kickoff. Jared Carter fumbled the ball near the Forestview 30-yard line. Two plays later, Jake Alexander ran it in from the five-yard line. Lempereur’s extra point kick gave South Point an early 14-0 lead. The second quarter wasn’t much kinder to Forestview. Lee called his own number and took it in for a 14-yard touchdown run. Lempereur would kick a 29-yard field goal to give South Point a 24-0 half-time lead.

The second half was more of the same. Ty Tinker gave South Point a 31-0 lead with a 30-yard touchdown run. The Jaguars were able to avoid the shutout with a 33-yard field goal by Holt Cloninger. But the night belonged to South Point. Jake Alexander put another touchdown on the board for the Red Raiders with a nine-yard touchdown run. Scottie Lee closed it out with a three-yard touchdown run. Kicker Lempereur was 6-for-6 on extra points.

"It got away from us. That happens sometimes." said Forestview head coach Chris Medlin "They're a good team. They played well. We didn't play well. They're close to being 7-1 instead of whatever they are (4-4)."

"Big, physical football game. Our bunch has had some adversity this year. We've gone through some hard times." said South Point head coach Mickey Lineberger "We had to almost totally rebuild our offense. We had one starter coming back. You can't rush that. You have to get reps at fullback and reps at quarterback. They have to learn to play together and we're steadily getting better. We're geting some people healthy. We're getting some people back. I'm real pleased at how we responded and how we competed."

"They have a great football team. We just came out here and imposed our will. We made a lot of good things happen. We had a great game plan. Our coaches just do a great job offensively and defensively. Our kids executed the game plan to perfection. We're playing like we got a chip on our shoulder right now because we got something to prove. We gave one away against Hunter Huss right here on this same field."

South Point (4-4)(3-1) will travel to take on Lake Norman Charter. Forestview (5-3)(3-1) will host Ashbrook.

Gaston, Lincoln and Cleveland Week 9 Picks

South Point 21 – Forestview 17

Ashbrook 42 – East Gaston 13

Stuart Cramer 35 – North Gaston 10

Hunter Huss 42 – Lake Norman Charter 7

Shelby 24 – Burns 14

East Lincoln 35 – Newton-Conover 21

Lincolnton 52 – Bunker Hill 7

West Caldwell 28 – West Lincoln 14

Statesville 34 – North Lincoln 7

Crest 28 – East Burke 6

Kings Mountain 35 – R-S Central 13

Cherryville 48 – Highland Tech 6

Bessemer City 42 – Pine Lake Prep 14

Thomas Jefferson 35 – Community School of Davidson 14

Mountain Island Charter 58 – Carolina Gladiators 12

 

Game of the Week: South Point’s hopes for another conference championship took a dent a couple of weeks ago as they fell 21-16 to Hunter Huss. But a win over Forestview will keep them in the running if the Huskies happen to lose one down the line. The Jaguars are looking for their second conference championship in three years. A win for Forestview could set them up for a big game against Hunter Huss in a couple of weeks if both teams stay unbeaten in conference play. This is one for many local fans to watch.

Love, Smith, Defense Carry Jaguars In Win Over North Gaston

It was probably a much slower start than the Jaguars wanted but they did just enough to cruise past North Gaston on a homecoming night that was postponed due to Hurricane Matthew. Forestview led 16-6 at half-time, but found just enough offense for a 30-6 win.

Chapperal Smith got Forestview on the board with a one-yard touchdown run midway through the first quarter. The kick was blocked however. Smith would score again on a four-yard run to extend the Jaguars’ lead. Dylan Disarro’s extra point kick was good this time. The Jaguars were in position to extend their lead late in the first half, but a fumble by Smith prior to the goal line proved disastrous. Isaiah McNeil scooped up the loose ball and took it 99 yards for a Wildcat touchdown. The two point conversion try was stopped, though. That would be all the scoring the Wildcats would get as the Jaguars' defense kept the Wildcats' offense out of the end zone.

The Jaguars were able to mount a drive to get some more points on the board at half-time. Kicker Holt Cloninger hit a 40-yard field goal just before half-time to put Forestview up 16-6. The Jaguars got the ball to start the second half, but would stall on the drive.

Jayveon Love would get Forestview their first touchdown of the second half on the next drive with a one-yard run. The Wildcats drove the ball deep into Forestview territory, but would stall at the Jaguar 20 after being stopped on 4th and 1. The Jaguars put the game away midway through the fourth quarter with a seven-yard touchdown run by Nathan Whitaker. Disarro’s kick for the extra point made the final 30-6. Disarro was 3-for-4 on extra point kicks.

Forestview will travel to take on South Point (3-4)(2-1). North Gaston will be home against Stuart Cramer (5-2)(2-1).

Early Special Teams Gaffe Sets Up South Point As The Red Raiders Hammer Ashbrook

                After losing a close one to Hunter Huss last week in a game that the Red Raiders were plagued by turnovers, South Point stormed back with a vengeance. South Point blew out Ashbrook tonight 45-12 sending the Red Raiders to 2-1 in conference play and 3-4 overall.

                Both offenses were stopped on the first series. But it was a mistake by Ashbrook’s special teams unit that set the tone for this game. Jacquez Armstrong muffed a punt deep in Ashbrook territory. Matthew Robinson of South Point recovered the fumble. Jake Alexander took it in from six yards out to put South Point on the board. Thomas Lempereur’s kick made it 7-0.

                The Red Raiders extended their lead with an eight-yard touchdown pass from Scottie Lee to Nathan Silver. Lempereur’s kick made it 14-0. The Green Wave offense would come to life in the second quarter. British Brooks scored on a one-yard touchdown run to cut the Red Raiders lead to 14-6. The extra point kick failed, however.

                South Point just kept pouring it on in the first half. Ty Tinker’s 49-yard touchdown run and Lee’s seven-yard touchdown pass to Nick Muse gave the Red Raiders a dominant 28-6 lead at half-time.

                Things started off good for the Green Wave in the second half. They stopped South Point on their first drive. After that, Brooks gave Ashbrook another touchdown with a 57-yard run. The two-point conversion would fail, though. That would be all the fun Ashbrook would have.

                Tinker would score two more touchdowns for South Point, one from one-yard out and the last one from 12-yards out. Lempereur also kicked a 28-yard field goal. He was 6-for-6 on extra point kicks.

                “We needed a big win and we got a big win.” said South Point head coach Mickey Lineberger “I was proud of the way our young men competed. I am proud of the way when we had a lot of people injured and hurt, we handled adversity tonight. We felt like we gave one away last week against Huss. We did a good job of making something good happen.”

                “I think everybody played in all three phases of the game (kicking game, defense and offense). I think that’s what set us up.” Lineberger said when asked about the fumble that set up South Point’s first score “It’s great to get a break in special teams like that in that kind of thing. I thought the effort was there tonight.”

                “We beat ourselves last week. We had too many turnovers and that was the difference this week. The way we competed was better. We had a little chip on our shoulders.” Lineberger said.

                “You can’t make the mistakes we made and have a chance to win against a team like that.” said Ashbrook head coach Greg Hill “We make too many mistakes and we can’t stop the bleeding once it starts. We cannot regroup at all. We got to get better. Our kids have to understand how to win.”

                “It was a tale of two different teams.” Hill said about their win last week at North Gaston and his team’s loss this week “Last week, we were able to get stops, defense was rested and our offense was able to stay on the field. This week, it’s just the opposite. We couldn’t make first downs when we needed to make them and defensively, we didn’t get off the field when we needed to get off the field. We had some drops and some special teams blunders. It’s very frustrating. I really thought we would give them a run for their money.”

                Ty Tinker led South Point with 150 yards rushing and three touchdowns. British Brooks led Ashbrook with 96 yards and two touchdowns. South Point (3-4)(2-1) will host Forestview (4-2)(2-0) next Friday. Ashbrook (2-5)(1-2) will travel to East Gaston (2-4)(1-1).

Gaston, Lincoln and Cleveland Best to Last Week 8

 

1.       Shelby (7-0)(4-0)

2.       Lincolnton (6-0)(2-0)

3.       Burns (7-0)(4-0)

4.       East Lincoln (5-1)(1-1)

5.       Crest (5-1)(3-0)

6.       Forestview (4-2)(2-0)

7.       Stuart Cramer (4-2)(1-1)

8.       Hunter Huss (3-3)(2-0)

9.       Kings Mountain (4-3)(2-2)

10.   South Point (2-4)(1-1)

11.   Bessemer City (4-2)(1-0)

12.   Mountain Island Charter (5-1)(4-1)

13.   Ashbrook (2-4)(1-1)

14.   Thomas Jefferson (4-2)(0-1)

15.   West Lincoln (4-2)(1-1)

16.   North Lincoln (1-5)(1-1)

17.   East Gaston (2-4)(1-1)

18.   North Gaston (1-5)(0-2)

19.   Cherryville (0-6)(0-0)

20.   Highland Tech (1-5)(0-1)