Win sets up showdown with East Lincoln
for first place on Friday on the road
By CHRIS HOBBS
HobbsDailyReport.com
Maiden High — playing on the turf where a large portion of its football history was created — rolled to another key varsity victory on Saturday afternoon.
The Blue Devils rolled past visiting North Lincoln 40-21 at the Maiden Middle School Field, which was previously the varsity field before a new MHS was built.
The South Fork 2A game started at 3 p.m. It was moved to the old Thomas E. Brown Stadium when playing conditions at the Brown Stadium at the new school were determined unplayable because of significant rains.
On Friday night, Maiden High will pursue its 40th win under Will Byrne, who is in his fifth year as head coach at his alma mater (39-13 record).
Maiden (3-0, 3-0), in its fifth season under head coach Will Byrne, won to set up a showdown on Friday for the conference lead against East Lincoln (4-0, 4-0) in Denver, N.C.
Blue Devils quarterback Ethan Rhodes completed 13 of 31 passes for 343 yards and four scores. He hit Brennan James eight times for 139 yards and for three TDs while running back Amarion Craig added 26 carries for 117 yards and two TDs.
North Lincoln (1-2, 1-2), last year’s South Fork 2A champ, got 106 rushing yards and a TD from Brenne Rogers but could not keep up with Maiden in the second half after trailing 21-14 the half.
Maiden closed the opening half with an 80-yard TD pass from Rhodes to Chris Culliver with 26 seconds left in the half. Carson Foard’s PAT put the Blue Devils in front 21-14.
Rhodes threw 11 yards to James for the only third quarter score, and Maiden led 33-14 with just under 10 minutes to play after Rhodes hit James with a 19-yard scoring throw and another PAT by Foard.
Maiden outgained North Lincoln 480-241 and snapped the Knights’ two-game win streak in the series.
The Blue Devils have won the first 10 games in the series before North Lincoln won by two at Maiden in 2018 and by 42 a year ago at North Lincoln.
While Maiden plays at East Lincoln on Friday (7 p.m.) for first place, North Lincoln faces Newton-Conover – also Friday at 7 p.m. – at North Lincoln.
East Lincoln 24, Bandys 20
BEST BATTLES
The closest games between East Lincoln and Bandys in their varsity football series since 1979:
Year Score Margin
1979 EL 20-18 2
2020 EL 24-20 4
1995 EL 28-24 4
2011 Bandys 26-21 5
2002 Bandys 21-16 5
SOURCE: HobbsDailyReport.com research and files.
Held to only four first downs, the Mustangs (4-0, 3-0) made timely passing plays to hold off Bandys (1-1, 1-3) in a South Fork 2A game on Friday night.
The Trojans lost three fumbles and East Lincoln quarterback Tyler Mizzell completed nine of 18 passes for 119 yards and two TDs as the Mustangs ran their win streak in the series to two straight.
East Lincoln has won five of six in the series and 11 of 13 but trails in the all-time series 25-26-1.
Bandys had the early lead via 29-yard TD run by Parker DeHart and a PAT by Neftaly Rivera with less than two minutes to play in the first quarter.
Mizzell found Lucas McConnell (27 yards) and Paulie Menegay (15 yards) for TDs in the second quarter.
Up 14-7 at the half, East Lincoln extended its lead with a 27-yard field goal by Jaxon Sellers early in the third quarter.
The Trojans’ Isaiah Gilchrist, who ran 18 times for 76 yards, scored on a 9-yard run with 4:02 left in the third quarter. Rivera’s kick had Bandys within 17-14.
In the opening minute of the fourth quarter, McConnell caught a 37-yard scoring pass from Mizzell and Sellers’ PAT had the Mustangs ahead 24-14.
Bandys closed within four points the final 80 seconds, scoring on a 9-yard pass from quarterback Trey Shearer to Parker Stybroski.
Shearer went nine for 18 for 119 yards and rushed for 18 yards while McConnell had three catches for 73 yards for East Lincoln and DeHart had five catches for 74 yards.
East Lincoln is at home Friday at 7 p.m., facing Maiden, while Bandys goes to West Lincoln (7 p.m.) having won their last nine trips to West Lincoln.
The Rebels’ only home win over the Trojans was in 1992 (28-24) and Bandys leads the all-time series 39-11-1.
West Lincoln 21, Lincolnton 0
OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS
On Friday, West Lincoln will be trying to snap a nine-game losing streak against Bandys in their games played at West Lincoln, where the Rebels last won in 1992. Results from those nine games:
Year Score
2018 Bandys 36-22
2015 Bandys 16-6
2013 Bandys 34-7
2004 Bandys 38-7
2002 Bandys 40-0
1999 Bandys 51-28
1997 Bandys 43-0
1996 Bandys 32-0
1994 Bandys 27-7
Note: West Lincoln won at home over Bandys in 1992 (28-24) … Bandys won three straight at West Lincoln prior to that.
SOURCE: HobbsDailyReport.com research and files.
On Saturday afternoon, the Rebels (2-2, 2-2) rode solid rushing games by Grayson Barkley and Mason Avery and an eight-tackle game by Curtis Goins to home win in a South Fork 2A game.
West Lincoln is in third place in the conference heading into a home game Friday (7 p.m.) against Bandys.
Lincolnton (1-3, 1-3), the only conference team to have allowed more than 100 points, is idle until April 2, facing North Lincoln in Lincolnton.
Hunter Leonhardt had a 15-yard TD run for the Rebels for the only score on the first quarter.
Avery a yard for a TD and added a two-point conversion in the third quarter to make it 14-0.
Mason Huitt’s 1-yard run and a PAT by RoRo Serafin in the fourth quarter closed the scoring.
Barkley carried 18 times for 138 yards and Avery added 14 carries for 85 yards.
In addition to his eight tackles, Goins had three assists and one sack to lead West Lincoln’s defense. Avery had six tackles (one for lost yardage) and one assist and Leonhardt and Samuel Duncan each made five tackles.
Xandor Hedrick and Huitt each had an interception for West Lincoln and Hedrick had four tackles and three assists.
Contributing to this article: West Lincoln coaching staff.
