Forestview gets back on track, spoils Lake Norman Charter’s Homecoming

                After dropping two heartbreaking losses to Kings Mountain and East Lincoln, the Jaguars opened up conference play with a rout against Lake Norman Charter 41-7. The Jags led 27-0 at half-time. Moe Neal and John Crawford put on a show for the Jaguars.

                Neal amassed 125 yards and two touchdowns on the ground and 88 yards receiving and a touchdown reception. Crawford aired it out with 190 passing yards and three touchdowns. Two of them went to Isaiah Sanders (37 yards out and 40 yards out).

                Colton Guthrie replaced Crawford on the last drive and hit Caleb Mills for a 44 yard touchdown reception.

                The Knights got their only touchdown of the game in the third quarter with a 55 yard touchdown pass from quarterback Will Monti to Connor Noble. The pass was deflected off a Jaguar defender.

                Both teams had more chances to crack the scoreboard. But the Knights were stopped near Forestview’s goal line late in the first half and the Jaguars fumbled the ball into the end-zone from the one-yard line in third quarter.

                “Our kids played hard. Nobody really expects much out of us being a smaller school than everyone else in our conference and our kids fought till the end.” Knights head coach Mark Steele said “Forestview is a great team. They got some great athletes.”

                “We played well in spurts.” Forestview head coach Chris Medlin said “We played sloppy at times. We are 1-0 and won by five touchdowns. We just need to keep getting better. It’s for keeps now.”

                Forestview will be on the road for their third consecutive game as they travel to Stuart Cramer. Lake Norman Charter will travel to face East Gaston.

East Lincoln downs Forestview, remains undefeated

                Well Friday the rains came and so did the lightning. The game went through a lightning delay at half-time. The game resumed and then more lightning came and the game was called and postponed with East Lincoln leading 26-20.

                Then the game was made up. Even in just 15 minutes of football action, there was plenty of action. Both the Mustangs and the Jaguars got scores in just before all 2:56 of the remaining third quarter ended. A Chazz Surratt 49-yard touchdown pass to Damarius Valentine extended East Lincoln’s lead to 32-20, but the two-point conversion failed.

                Then the Jaguars went to work. Moe Neal’s 70-yard touchdown run cut the Mustangs lead to 32-27. After stopping the Mustangs on their next drive which included an intentional grounding call, the Jaguars took the lead with a John Crawford 28-yard touchdown pass to Caleb Mills. The two-point conversion failed, however.

                The Mustang offense would be too much for the Jaguars though as Surratt led the offense down the field and with less than a minute left. Surratt punched it in from the one-yard line. His pass to Chris Cox for the two-point conversion made the score 40-33. The Jaguars would not be able to answer as Crawford threw an interception to Sam Krehnbrink.

                Neal, despite the loss, led Forestview with 229 yards rushing and three touchdowns. Chazz Surratt led the Mustang offense with 250 yards passing and two touchdowns. He also had three rushing touchdowns on the night.

“We played hard. The effort was there. We played a good team to a seven-point game.” Forestview head coach Chris Medlin said “They’ve won 22, now 23 straight on this field I think. We just have to move on. Conference is coming up.”

                “I was proud of our kids for fighting for this game.” Mustang head coach Mike Byus said.

                “They both challenged us and they responded.” Byus said about the Forestview and North Lincoln games (they won 28-27 against North Lincoln) “They’re well-coached and athletic everywhere.”

                Both teams have a bye week next week before beginning conference play. Forestview will travel to Lake Norman Charter to begin Big South action and East Lincoln will be home against Bandys to start Southern District 7 Athletic play.

                “It’s a heck of a league.” Byus said about his conference “Every night we have to be ready. Every team will be different. Some will be physical and some will be athletic.”

Gaston, Lincoln and Cleveland Week 4 Picks

Game of the Week: Forestview (2-1) @ East Lincoln (3-0)

Will Forestview rebound with a win or does East Lincoln enter conference play undefeated? After losing for the first time last week, the Jaguars are hoping to rebound, but it won't be easy as they face an undefeated East Lincoln squad.

My pick: Forestview 34 – East Lincoln 28

Ashbrook (1-2) @ T.C. Roberson (2-1)

It’s been a struggle for the Green Wave the past two weeks, but they have been known to come back and surprise people.

My pick: Ashbrook 21 – T.C. Roberson 17

Hunter Huss (1-2) @ Rocky River (1-2)

Hunter Huss got a much needed win against Bessemer City, but it’s back to reality tonight.

My pick: Rocky River 31 – Hunter Huss 14

Cherryville (1-2) @ North Gaston (1-2)

Both teams started the season with a win, but have fallen on hard times. This one should be a win for the Wildcats.

My pick: North Gaston 28 – Cherryville 13

Lincolnton (2-1) @ East Gaston (0-2)

East Gaston has put up a fight in both of their losses, but the Wolves have been come up strong these past two weeks since their season opening loss.

My pick: Lincolnton 35 – East Gaston 14

Fred T. Foard (1-2) @ West Lincoln (2-1)

West Lincoln got back on track last week. Foard picked up their first win last week so this should be a shootout.

My pick: West Lincoln 31 – Fred T. Foard 24

Bessemer City (1-2) @ Stuart Cramer (0-2)

Bessemer City is hoping to get another win. Stuart Cramer is hoping to get a win, period.

My pick: Bessemer City 28 – Stuart Cramer 13

R-S Central (2-1) @ Shelby (2-1)

Shelby was shell-shocked last week as they ended up being South Point’s first win of the season. Look out R-S Central. Shelby doesn’t typically lose two in a row at home.

My pick: Shelby 42 – R-S Central 14

Chase (1-2) @ Burns (0-2)

Even with a struggling offense, the Bulldogs should be able to get their first win tonight against a struggling Chase team.

My pick: Burns 21 – Chase 7

Kings Mountain (3-0) @ East Rutherford (2-1)

Kings Mountain takes an undefeated record into conference play. Will the streak continue or will the Mountaineers be tripped up by the Cavaliers? Not very likely!

My pick: Kings Mountain 31 – East Rutherford 13

Crest (2-0) @ Draughn (0-3)

This looks like an accident waiting to happen here. This game should be over pretty quick.

My pick: Crest 42 – Draughn 7

Highland Tech (0-2) @ Lake Norman Charter (1-2)

Lake Norman Charter’s last chance at a win before beginning Big South conference play.

My pick: Lake Norman Charter 35 – Highland Tech 21

Mistakes doom Jaguars in lightning-delayed game

                The Kings Mountain Mountaineers and Forestview Jaguars were hoping to remain unbeaten to start the season off. But early on the game belonged to Kings Mountain. The Mountaineers took a 13-0 lead with two runs by Tico Crocker, one from the four-yard line and one from the nine-yard line. The Jaguars couldn’t seem to get anything going on their first two drives. One ended in a punt and the other ended in a turnover. Then the lightning came.

                After the game resumed nearly an hour later, the Jaguars were hoping to weather another storm, the storm of being down two scores in the first quarter. Well, in the second quarter, they started doing just that. Montavis Rodgers got the Jaguars on the board with a three-yard run into the end-zone. The kick was blocked though and the score remained 13-6.

                The Mountaineers, however, were relentless and would keep Forestview from coming back. Quarterback Brandon Bell hit Jake Merchant in the end-zone for an eight-yard touchdown pass. The extra point made it 20-6 Kings Mountain. The Jaguars would storm right back though. Quarterback John Crawford connected with Moe Neal for a 33-yard touchdown strike. A Rodgers run for a two-point conversion cut the lead to 20-14.

                The Jaguars defense would stiffen in the third quarter and the offense would have their chances to get the team back in it. But the Jaguars would literally drop their chances to pull ahead. Mistakes killed Forestview the rest of the game. An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and a roughing the passer play, both on fourth down late in the third quarter gave the Mountaineers new life. The Mountaineers went up two scores again as Brandon Bell ran one in from the one-yard line early in the fourth quarter. Bells pass to Xavier Johnson for the two-point conversion made it 28-14 Mountaineers.

                Forestview shot themselves in the foot on the ensuing kickoff as the ball bounced off a Jaguar player and was recovered by the Mountaineers and they would capitalize midway through the fourth quarter. Bell ran another in for a touchdown, this time from the two-yard line. The score was 35-14.

                The Jaguars would get another touchdown on the board with a John Crawford touchdown run from the six-yard line. Trey Heavner’s kick cut the lead to 35-21. The Jaguars attempted to put another score on the board, but their final drive ended in another turnover as the snap went past Crawford and the Mountaineers recovered and ran out the clock. That was four turnovers for the Jaguars on this night.

                “Give them credit, they played a heck of a game and had a great plan.” Forestview head coach Christ Medlin said about Kings Mountain “We just couldn’t get any rhythm early. When I thought we’d find that rhythm we just couldn’t get over that hump. We just got to regroup next week and get ready to play East Lincoln.”

                “We played well. Forestview’s got a great team but we played well. I’m proud of our team. We gave great effort and they deserve the win.” Kings Mountain head coach Greg Lloyd said.

                Kings Mountain will be on the road again as they face East Rutherford. Forestview will travel to East Lincoln.

 

               

Gaston, Lincoln and Cleveland Week 3 Picks

Game of the Week: Kings Mountain (2-0) @ Forestview (2-0): Both the Jaguars and the Mountaineers are off to a great start so far. Both have won their first two games by double-digit scores. Both teams feel like they have something to prove this year. Kings Mountain started 2-0 last year prior to this matchup but lost 41-14 to Forestview and did not taste another victory for the remainder of the year. Kings Mountain is out to show they are much different than last year’s team and with many starters back from last year, this game should be much more competitive. Forestview is looking for their first 3-0 start since 2003 and are off to show that last year’s fourth-round playoff team was no fluke. One thing to consider, this series has not favored the home team. In the last ten games between these two, the road team is 8-2. Will the trend continue or will the Jaguars break it tonight? This game should be a barnburner.

My pick: Forestview 42 – Kings Mountain 38

East Lincoln (2-0) @ North Lincoln (2-0): Is North Lincoln for real this year? It sure looks like it with their 2-0 start beating two county rivals, Lincolnton and West Lincoln. The Knights are hoping to make a clean sweep of their county rivals for the first time in school history. East Lincoln put up 34 points in the first half against the Q Foundation, but gave up 18 points in the third quarter alone. Defensively, the Knights have only given up 20 points in two contests. But they will be tested as they face the Surratt brothers. This game could go down to the wire.

My pick: East Lincoln 24 – North Lincoln 21

South Point (0-2) @ Shelby (2-0): South Point 0-3? Very likely! South Point has struggled this year so far, being routed 35-13 by Crest and came up one point short against Lincolnton in a 14-13 decision after the Red Raiders went for the win on the two-point conversion and failed. Now they have to face the top-ranked 2A team in the state in Shelby. The Golden Lions are coming off two lopsided wins over Polk County (50-20) and A.C. Reynolds (26-14, it was 26-7 at some point in the second half). One thing’s for sure though, one should never count South Point out. In 2001, the Red Raiders started 1-3 and still ended up with a share of the Big South 3A title and made it into the second round of the playoffs.

My pick: Shelby 31 – South Point 14

North Gaston (1-1) @ Lincolnton (1-1): Both teams are 1-1 on the year. But the odds favor Lincolnton in this game. The Wolves lost week one two county rival, North Lincoln. But they bounced back last week in their 14-13 win over South Point. North Gaston opened the season up with a 26-16 win over Bessemer City, but fell flat against East Rutherford last week 29-7. The Wildcats have struggled offensively so far and will need to solve their offensive woes in order to have a chance against the Wolves.

My pick: Lincolnton 28 – North Gaston 10

Bessemer City (1-1) @ Hunter Huss (0-2): After a 34-21 loss to Kings Mountain and a 53-7 thrashing by Vance, the Huskies are hungry for their first win of the season. The Yellow Jackets picked up their first win of the season with a 24-16 win over rival, Cherryville. The week prior, Bessemer City kept pace with North Gaston until the Wildcats pulled away with a 26-16 win. This time last year, Hunter Huss started 0-2 and got their first win against the Yellow Jackets with a 35-0 shutout. But this is a different year and anything could happen in this game. Of the two losses Huss suffered against Bessemer, none of them were at home.

My pick: Hunter Huss 28 – Bessemer City 14

Asheville (2-0) @ Ashbrook (1-1): This should be another intriguing matchup for area fans. For six quarters, Ashbrook’s offense has not been able to get much going. After scoring 20 first half points against Burns, the Bulldogs held them to only three and the Crest Chargers never let them get back on track the following week. In fact, their only score was on an interception return for a touchdown. Asheville has put up 49 points in both games so this will be another tough task for the Green Wave defense. History is on the Green Wave’s side as they have taken the last two from the Cougars, including a 22-19 win in the 2002 playoffs in route to Ashbrook’s 3AA state title and last year’s 23-14 win in Asheville.

My pick: Ashbrook 28 – Asheville 24

Freedom (2-0) @ Burns (0-1): Another tough task stands in front of the Bulldogs as they host the Freedom Patriots. Freedom has scored 126 points total these past two weeks and have allowed only seven. The Bulldogs are coming off a bye week, but they have to find some offense in order to compete with a hot Freedom team.

My pick: Freedom 42 – Burns 7

West Lincoln (1-1) @ Cherryville (1-1): Both teams started the season on the right foot with wins. Both teams are coming off losses now. The Rebels lost 20-7 last week to North Lincoln. Cherryville lost 24-16 to Bessemer City. Both are hoping to right the ship with a win.

My pick: West Lincoln 24 – Cherryville 20

First Assembly of Concord (0-2) @ Highland Tech (0-1): Both teams are winless on the season. Highland Tech was shut out last week and First Assembly only has 14 points on the year.

My pick: First Assembly 35 – Highland Tech 6