SOUTH FORK 2A: W. Lincoln grabs third straight series win at home over N-C

Bandys scores 52, rolls to first win under newest head coach

 

By CHRIS HOBBS

HobbsDailyReport.com

West Lincoln High won on its own field over Newton-Conover for the third straight time on Friday night, riding big games by Mason Huitt and Mason Avery to a 27-19 victory.

Huitt completed nine of 10 passes for 150 yards and three scores – all to Samuel Duncan — and their final connection of 24 yards in the fourth quarter gave the Rebels an eight-point lead.

West Lincoln (1-2 South Fork 2A, 1-2) rallied after the Red Devils (1-2, 1-2) had them down 13-0 in the first half and 13-6 at halftime.

Huitt hit Duncan for a 29-yard TD in the second quarter and gave the Rebels their first lead at 14-13 on a 20-yard throw to Duncan and Mason Avery’s two-point conversion run.

After Newton-Conover regained the lead at 19-14, Huitt ran 24 yards for a score. West Lincoln went for two points but failed, leading 20-19.

Huitt’s 24-yard throw to Duncan was the only score of the fourth quarter.

Avery had 20 carries for 37 rushing yards, three receptions for 38 yards and six tackles and two assists.

Huitt added eight rushes for 37 yards to his passing for West Lincoln, which rushed 33 times for 98 yards.

Duncan finished with five catches for 92 yards.

Defensively, Huitt also had five tackles and three assists and returned an interception 45 yards and Duncan had five tackles, one assist and an interception.

Luke Willis added two tackles, two assists and an interception for West Lincoln while Xandor Hedrick and Curtis Goins each provided five tackles and two assists for the Rebels.

Red Devils running back Allan Shade ran 30 times for 210 yards and three scoring, improving his season totals to 84 carries for 669 yards with eight rushing TDs.

Newton-Conover quarterback Justice Craig went seven of 13 for 94 yards and was intercepted three times. He threw three times for 78 yards to Quincey Spain.

Xavion Coulter led the Red Devils’ defense with 11 tackles – four for lost yardage – with Spain adding nine tackles and four assists and Ben Coulter making eight tackles.

West Lincoln beat Newton-Conover for only the fifth time in their 26 matchups since 1981.

The Red Devils were 16-0 in the series until West Lincoln won at West Lincoln in 2003. The Rebels have now posted home series wins in 2016, 2018 and 2020.

West Lincoln plays at Lincolnton in a league game on Friday at 7 p.m. while Newton-Conover’s next game is March 26 at North Lincoln.

Bandys 52, Lincolnton 8

The Trojans (1-2, 1-2) landed head coach Jason Barnes his first career victory, exploding offensively at home in a South Fork 2A game.

Parker DeHart and Isaiah Gilbert each ran for two scores and Trey Shearer, Terick Bumgarner, Jackson Spicer and Nolan Jones added a rushing TD each.

On Friday, running back Amontre Finger had eight carries for 90 of the Wolves’ 142 rushing yards and he scored their TD and ran in a two-point conversion.

Lincolnton quarterback Connor Williams went 4-for-15 for 34 yards passing.

Isaiah Bostic and Jacob Leonhardt each had eight tackles for the Wolves.

DeHart’s scoring runs were 16 and 89 yards as Bandys won its fourth straight game in their series (by margins of 20, 35 and 44 points). Those wins came after Lincolnton (1-2, 1-2) had a five-game win streak in the series.

Lincolnton still leads the all-time series 8-6-1, and the teams have split their last 12 battles.

Barnes was an assistant coach at his alma mater before taking over the program this season after previously serving as defensive coordinator. He joined the coaching staff in 2014 and is the seventh Trojans head football coach since 1964.

Barnes played on the 1996 Bandys team that battled for a state 2A title and then played linebacker at Winston-Salem State.

Bandys plays at home Friday at 7 p.m. against East Lincoln while the Wolves are at home (7 p.m.), facing West Lincoln.

East Lincoln 40, North Lincoln 30

The Mustangs (3-0, 2-0) moved into a tie for first place with idle Maiden by knocking off the Knights, defending South Fork 2A champions.

Quarterback Tyler Mizzell sparked East Lincoln, completing 10 of 14 passes for 173 yards and four scores and Paulie Menegay ran for two TDs and caught a TD pass.

After a fake punt by North Lincoln (2-1, 1-1) did not result in a first down, Menegay broke a 70-yard run with about nine minutes to play that extended the Mustangs’ lead to 40-23.

Daniel Carter’s 21-yard TD run with about 4 ½ minutes to play pulled the Knights within 40-30, but a late interception by Preston Clark helped East Lincoln remain in control.

Jack Carter threw for 156 yards for North Lincoln, which fell behind 12-0 early when Mizzell threw a 35-yard TD pass to Austin Smith and then hit Menegay on a 10-yard scoring pass.

North Lincoln had a 15-12 lead after Daniel Carter’s TD run but Mizzell answered that with a 13-yard scoring pass to Joe Dos Santos.

East Lincoln was up 26-15 after Mizzell threw a TD pass to Lewis McConnell.

Menega’s last two scores came after the Knights had closed within 26-23. He had 14 carries for 122 yards.

“I feel like the hump the last two years has been getting over North Lincoln so to have them early is scary for us because they are so good at what they do,” East Lincoln head coach David Lubowicz told The Gaston Gazette. “So I think it is a statement game, 100 percent.”

North Lincoln head coach Nick Bazzle told The Gazette: “We just ran into somebody tonight that was a little better than the two teams we played (earlier in the season).

“The ball bounced their way tonight and Coach Lubowicz had them prepared.

“I’m proud of their effort because they didn’t quit. That’s a good thing – they kept fighting until the end.”

East Lincoln’s next game is Friday at 7 p.m. at Bandys while North Lincoln meets Maiden on the road on Friday at 7 p.m.

— Contributing information to this roundup: West Lincoln coaching staff.