Normally, West Henderson fans have to turn on their televisions to watch NFL players compete on Monday night. Something was different last night, Oct. 15, though. The lights were turned on around Johnson Field for a Monday night makeup game against North Henderson due to Hurricane Michael forcing game cancellations in Henderson County last Thursday, Oct. 11.
The first half of the game was a back and forth between West and North with the two teams trading touchdowns, but after the first half, West led the visitors 16-12. West was fortunate to be in the driver’s seat after fumbling the ball four times and losing three of them.
Sophomores Trey Gilliland and Will Parker kept the JV Falcons in the game. Gilliland finished the half with eight attempts for 59 yards and one touchdown. Parker connected on three of five attempts for 61 yards and one touchdown.
North Henderson quarterback Braden Corn threw a touchdown pass to Noah King and he ran in the endzone for a go-ahead touchdown just before the end of the half.
West Henderson receiver Josh Jones answered with a catch at the edge of the endzone for 25 yards and the touchdown.
“I was happy, excited, and pumped up,” Jones said. “It was my first catch of the season and it went for a touchdown. My teammates were thrilled for me, and the feeling of having them support me was great. Will Parker and I have been friends since eighth grade and he saw me open and he threw it perfectly, so it was just up to me to make the catch and I was glad I could share that experience with him.”
In the third quarter, Gilliland continued to dominate the running attack with five more attempts, 56 yards and another touchdown, and, with running back Lucas London securing the 2 point conversion, the Falcons were up 24-12 against the Knights.
“Since we moved the game, I feel like we were all underprepared, but I knew what I had to do to come out on top and it felt great,” Gilliland said.
In the fourth quarter, it was London’s turn to shine with a run that went for 89 yards and the touchdown. Gilliland added the two point conversion to put the Falcons up 32-12. In the middle of the fourth quarter, North’s Corn scrambled for his second touchdown of the night but the Falcon defense stepped up and kept the Knights from getting the two point conversion. The score now being 32-18, running back Lane Johnson kept the lead with a 24 yard run straight to the endzone. West finished off the Knights with a 38-30 victory, even after facing the adversity due to a schedule change.
“The schedule change messed with us and probably North too because you’re just out of routine and you could see that in the first half with all of our fumbles in the first two quarters of play which was definitely a challenge but we found a way to win. I knew if we were able to take control of the ball then they wouldn’t be able to stop us and they didn’t,” Head JV coach Jay Young said. “The rest of the season could be difficult. We’ve got undefeated Tuscola to prepare for in only two days, but if we practice hard and watch film there’s no doubt in my mind we can beat them.”
By: Stone Hogan, Feature Writer
