Stober throws for 5 scores as Hickory rumbles past
S. Caldwell; Bunker Hill starts 2-0 by beating St. Stephens
By CHRIS HOBBS
HobbsDailyReport.com
Watauga High wiped out an 11-point deficit on Friday night in Boone, rallying to defeat Maiden 23-19 with two fourth-quarter scores.
Maiden (1-1) led 19-8 after quarterback Wesley Thompson threw 74 yards to Chris Culliver (five catches, 162 yards, 2 TDs) for a TD and Carson Foard added a PAT.
Watauga quarterback Maddox Greene got the Pioneers within 19-16 when he ran 4 yards for a TD and Carlton Horine ran for a 2-point conversion.
The Pioneers scored the winning points on a 25-yard pass from Greene to Jackson Pryor and Grant Knight’s PAT. That TD came on a fourth-and-10 play.
Maiden had the ball one last time, starting at its 33, but Cole Horine quickly ended that possession with a first down interception of Thompson.
The Blue Devils are at home on Friday (7:30 p.m.) against St. Stephens while Watauga goes to Mitchell County for a 7:30 p.m. start.
Bunker Hill 33, St. Stephens 12
The Bears (2-0) overcame the Indians (1-1) for the second straight season, winning despite 12 penalties for 115 yards.
Bunker Hill led 21-0 through three quarters on the way to 364 yards of total offense.
Running back Jason Willis, who had 295 yards in the Bears’ first game of the season, left this one with an injury after collecting 143 yards and two scores. Running back Cole Lineberger added seven carries for 73 yards and one TD.
Bunker Hill limited the Indians to 10 rushing yards on 33 carries.
Quarterback Peyton Young, who ran for one TD and threw for another in the fourth quarter, went 13-22-1 for 190 yards for St. Stephens.
Each team scored twice in the final quarter.
Young’s 5-yard run just five seconds into the fourth quarter had the Indians within 20-6 but the Bears answered with a 32-yard fumble return TD by Jaylan Willis and led 27-6 after a PAT by Alan Bahena Soto.
The Indians, 8-12 at Bunker Hill since 1980, go to Maiden on Friday night (7:30 p.m.) while the Bears go to North Iredell for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff.
Bandys 24, Fred T. Foard 15
The Trojans (1-1) extended the Tigers’ losing streak to 16 straight games and improved to 27-9 against Foard since 1980.
Running back Elliot Spicer, who last season had a season-high 31 yards against Foard, ran 121 yards on 20 carries and for two TDs for Bandys.
Quarterback Wyatt Wesson completed five passes for 97 yards and ran for 22 yards and a TD for Bandys.
Logan Williams had three catches for 101 for the Trojans, who picked up career win No. 5 for head coach Jason Barnes.
Bandys is idle on Friday and at South Caldwell the following Friday.
Foard plays at West Lincoln on Friday (7:30 p.m.).
Hickory 53, South Caldwell 27
The Red Tornadoes (1-1) won their sixth straight in the series behind a huge night by quarterback Brady Stober, who threw for 276 yards and five scores.
Stover threw scoring passes to Dashawn Medley (60 yards), Damarion Lee (30 and 62), Tyquan Hill (26) and Tayshawn Wright (19) while completing 15 of 21 with one interception.
Hickory running back Isaiah Lackey had 17 carries for 93 yards and one score and Lee finished with six catches for 121 yards.
Suan Moore rushed for 136 yards on 19 carries for South Caldwell, 4-14 at home against HHS since 1982.
The victory made Hickory head coach Joe Glass 7-7 at HHS and Spartans head coach Casey Justice lost for just the third time as skipper at his alma mater (9-3).
Hickory plays at home (7:30 p.m.) on Friday night against Newton-Conover, and the Spartans face the Hickory Hawks at South Caldwell (7:30 p.m.).
Newton-Conover 44, West Iredell 6
Quarterback Aiden Luangkhot, returning from an injury in the opening game of the year, completed 17 of 21 passes for 230 yards and rushed for a TD and 35 yards to pace Newton-Conover (1-1) in a home victory.
The first meeting with the Warriors since 2000 spoiled a homecoming for West Iredell head coach Matt Wilson, the son of former Red Devils head coach Nick Bazzle.
Wilson played quarterback for Bazzle and was also an assistant coach for his alma mater. He left Alexander Central as an assistant to take the West Iredell job.
The 20th career win for Red Devils head coach Steven Pack (his 10th at N-C) also featured Caiden Rowe rushing for 62 yards and two scores and Trey Stinson’s 58 yards and a TD.
Red Devils receiver Ty’Marion Miller had three catches for 118 yards and a TD.
Newton-Conover plays Friday (7:30 p.m.) at Hickory and West Iredell is at home against South Iredell (7:30 p.m.).
Freedom 33, East Burke 20
The Patriots had 358 yards of total offense, sparked by Jaylen Barnett’s 166 yards rushing and three TDs, to win the 48th Fat Friday game.
Freedom (1-1) beat visiting East Burke (1-1) for the sixth straight time in Morganton and for the 12th straight time overall, increasing its series lead to 30-18.
Barnett scored on runs of 1, 36 and 19 yards.
The Patriots led 14-7 at the half after Freedom’s Mikey Cowling returned a fumble 2 yards for a TD.
Lcvi Coble ran 18 times for 126 yards and two scores and Jacob Dellinger had 23 carries for 90 yards for the Cavs, who fell to 8-9 in Derrick Minor’s stint as head coach.
Luke Wilson led the East Burke defense with 12 tackles (one for lost yardage) with Coble adding nine tackles (one for lost yardage), Hayden Parker had a sack and Dellinger and Avery Farley each had a fumble recovery.
Freedom extended its first-half lead to 21-7 when Curt Young returned an interception 15 yards for a TD and Jake Kota added a PAT.
When East Burke pulled within 21-14 on a 13-yard TD run by Coble, the Patriots answered with a 36-yard scoring run by Barnett.
East Burke plays Friday at Draughn (7:30 p.m.) and Freedom travels to Forestview (7:30 p.m.)
Alexander Central 17, North Gaston 8
Logan Shoemaker ran 23 times for 158 yards and a TD, leading the Cougars (2-0) past the Wildcats (0-2) in Taylorsville.
Shoemaker had the game’s opening score, a 1-yard run, with seven minutes, 50 seconds left in the first quarter.
Alexander Central’s Corey Lawson kicked a 22-yard field goal for a 10-0 halftime lead.
The Cougars had 291 yards of total offense and held the Wildcats to 100, which included 44 rushing yards on 27 carries.
Jonathan Specht had seven tackles (one for lost yardage) and Chad Lasher added six tackles (one sack, two hits for lost yardage) to spark Alexander Central’s defense.
Robert Young had two hits for lost yardage and four tackles and Tanner Moore had a hit for lost yardage among his four tackles for the Cougars.
North Gaston was within 10-8 with 1:33 to go in the third quarter after a 49-yard TD pass from T.J. Belton to Jurnee Lattimore and two-point run by Jayvain Knox.
The Cougars scored with 5:21 to play in the third quarter on an 8-yard pass from Moore to Garrison Millsaps.
The game was the first meeting since 2008 when the Cougars won 56-3 in Taylorsville.
Alexander Central is at home Friday (7:30 p.m.) against A.C. Reynolds.
Draughn 46, Patton 16
At Patton, the Wildcats’ Justice Cunningham ran for five TDs and 219 yards on 19 carries, sparking Draughn’s sixth win in the series.
Cunningham had runs of 11, 13, 50, 14 and 12 yards as Draughn rumbled for 464 yards of total offense. Draughn quarterback Eli Tillery rushed for 50 yards and completed seven of 14 passes for 178 yards.
Unofficially, Cunningham has 34 carries for 330 yards and seven TDs this season.
The Panthers’ Randan Clarke had 104 rushing yards on 22 carries that included a 15-yard scoring run.
Patton leads the series 7-6.
Draughn is at home Friday to face East Burke (7:30 p.m.), and the Panthers travel to Wilkes Central (7:30 p.m.).
West Lincoln 48, Cherryville 0
Mason Avery ran for three scores on nine carries and had 101 rushing yards as the Rebels (2-0) won at home.
Avery has cleared 100 yards in 11 of his last 14 games and had 200-plus in four of those. He has 318 rushing yards this season on 33 carries with seven TDs plus one defensive score.
West Lincoln quarterback Jordan Truesdale ran for 75 yards and one TD and passed for 71 yards and one TD.
The Rebels had 468 yards on offense, 373 on 33 rushes, as Cherryville dropped to 1-1.
Nathan Kester led West Lincoln’s defense with four tackles, three assists, a tackle for lost yardage and one sack with Evan Hartsoe adding an interception and Avery recovering a fumble. Ben Sain had five total hits, one sack and forced a fumble.
The victory moved Rebels head coach Darren Ponder to 26-10 in that position.
West Lincoln is at home Friday (7:30 p.m.) against Fred T. Foard.
East Lincoln 53, Forestview 0
The Mustangs (2-0-) rode a 26-point first quarter to a home victory, giving head coach David Lubowicz 35 wins in five-plus seasons.
Quarterback Tyler Mizzell had two TD runs and also threw a late 5-yard scoring pass to Jackson Beam. The Mustangs’ final points came on a 50-yard interception return by Parker Davis.
East Lincoln has outscored opponents 89-8 to start the season and plays Friday (7:30 p.m.) at Lincolnton.
Lincolnton 20, North Lincoln 17
The Wolves (1-1) drove 85 yards for a go-ahead TD on the road and closed it out with an interception by Anthony Odum.
Odum caught an 18-yard scoring pass to move the Wolves within 17-13.
With less than five minutes to play, the Wolves had possession at their 15 and went the distance for a score by Kahomoni Heath. A PAT by Peyton Ranglel had Lincolnton up 20-17.
The loss leaves North Lincoln head coach Nick Bazzle at 34-15 (fifth year) and his next win will be career No. 164.
Lincolnton is at home Friday night (7:30 p.m.) to face East Lincoln while the Knights go to Northwest Cabarrus (7:30 p.m.).
R-S Central 43, West Caldwell 37
The Hilltoppers (1-1) won in Lenoir, dropping the Warriors to 0-2 and their 13 straight loss.
The loss leaves West Caldwell head coach Monte Simmons at 22-43 career and 3-16 since leaving West Iredell to coach West Caldwell three years ago.
No other game information was available.
West Caldwell travels to archrival Hibriten on Friday (7:30 p.m.) for Black and Blue Friday.
Hunter Huss 49, Hibriten 42
The Huskies snapped a 10-game losing streak by beating the Panthers in a game that started late because of a lightning delay.
Huss improved to 1-1 and Hibriten fell to 0-2.
Hibriten is at home Friday at 7:30 p.m. for Black and Blue Friday against West Caldwell.
South Iredell 29, Statesville 13
Sparked by Jaylen Neal and J’quan Dobbins’ running, the Vikings (2-0) won at home.
Neal had the first and last scores for South Iredell, both 4-yard runs, and Dobbins had a 48-yard scoring run about two minutes before halftime for a 12-0 Vikings lead.
Statesville (1-1) had less than 100 yards of total offense with one of its TDs a 90-yard kickoff return by Steven Smith.
Statesville head coach Rydell Cowan, in his first year, made a return visit to his alma mater. He played for the Vikings and spent 12 years there as an assistant before landing the Statesville job.
The Greyhounds’ next game is Friday (7:30 p.m.) at Lake Norman.
Lake Norman 42, North Iredell 0
The Wildcats (2-0) won for the 14th straight time over the host Raiders as quarterback Jackson Garlick had a big night.
Garlic had 193 yards of total offense that included 176 yards passing (9-for-9) and three TDs in the first half.
Jackson Miller had three receptions for 84 yards and one score while Antonio Griffin added a scoring catch and ran for another TD.
North Iredell is at home Friday, facing Bunker Hill at 7:30 p.m.
North Wilkes 35, Ashe County 30
No game information was available from North Wilkes’ home win that dropped Ashe County to 1-1.
Ashe County plays at West Wilkes on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
Contributions to this roundup were made by reports from these individuals: Darren Ponder, West Lincoln head coach; Fred Brown, East Burke assistant; Jonathan Watts, Alexander Central SID; Will Bryne, Maiden head coach.
