Calhoun County, AL – Ross, Valley Cubs turn back Golden Bears for first win of season; Handley blanks White Plains, Oneonta rallies to edge Cherokee County
By Mark Everett Kelly
Antonio Ross scored on a 7-yard run with 1:13 remaining in the game to cap an intense second half and lift Alexandria to a 28-21 region win over Lincoln for its first win of the season. Ross scored three touchdowns in the game and his third came after Bears quarterback Montavius Weed tied the game on a 55-yard run with 8:34 to play. Ross rushed for 178 yards on 32 carries. Weed accounted for all three Lincoln touchdowns. In addition to his long touchdown run, he also scored on a 2-yard run and threw a 10-yard pass to Camera Hampton. Weed completed 16 of 27 passes for 332 yards and rushed for 77 yards on 12 carries.
Lincoln dominated the first half in yards (127-76) and the number of plays (29-20). However, their longest drive into Valley Cubs territory failed when Jaylon George (10 carries, 28 yds in 1st half) gained just one yard on fourth-and-2 at the 6. George had 28 yards on 10 carries in the first half. The momentum turned after the Golden Bears’ defense forced their third three and out, forcing Alexandria to punt the ball from deep in their territory with just under four minutes remaining in the second quarter.
On first-and-10 from his own 44, Weed lost the football, falling right into the hands of Alexandria defensive end Da’markus Williams, who sprinted 46 yards for a TD. An illegal block negated the return but gave the Valley Cubs a first down at the 35. On the next play, Ty Barker connected with Takoreion Downie for a 35-yard touchdown, which shocked the crowd. Despite holding the Valley Cubs to just one first down and 41 yards behind some outstanding play from linebacker Hunter Delaney, the Golden Bears trailed 7-0. Both teams put on memorable second-half performances, filled with inspirational efforts, clutch plays, and character that can only be defined when playing with your back against the wall.
Antonio Ross gained 140 of his rushing yards and scored all three touchdowns for the Valley Cubs in a bruising second-half performance. “We used technology to make halftime adjustments so we could see what they were doing to us,” said Alexandria head coach Todd Ginn, avoiding the Valley Cubs’ first 0-3 start since 2010. Weed and WR Brandon Estelle Jr (10 receptions, 264 yards) rallied the home team from down 14 points late in the third quarter with big play after big play, leaving fans of both teams in awe of their talent. Weed finished 16-of-27 passing for 332 yards and a touchdown. Receiver Brandon Estelle Jr. had 10 catches for 264 yards. [*** read more]
Handley 48, White Plains 0
ROANOKE — Jay Haynes followed up his near-record setting night the week before with 119 yards rushing and another long touchdown run and all three of quarterback Cannon Kyles’ completions went for long touchdowns giving Larry Strain another victory over the team he coached before taking the Handley head coaching job.
Strain coached the Wildcats in 2014 and has beaten his former team all three times they have met since.
Haynes had the second-best rushing night in the history of the state last week at Jacksonville, 476 yards with five touchdowns runs of more than 50 yards. His biggest run of the night against White Plains went for 77 yards and a touchdown late in the first quarter.
Kyles completed only three passes in the game, but all three went for scores — 19 yards to Haynes, and 61 and 37 yards to Jamerqui Lewis.
The second-ranked Tigers (4-0) scored three touchdowns in each of the first two quarters to open a 42-0 halftime lead, then Taevion Houston returned the second-half kickoff 72 yards for the final score of the game.
Quarterback Dylan Barksdale completed six of 17 passes for 52 yards and rushed for 39 more for White Plains. Montez Burns was the Wildcats’ leading rusher with 62 yards on 21 carries.
