By Allen Hamrick
It was hot and muggy for the first Clay County High School home game against the Fayetteville Pirates. The field was packed with fanso n both sides to see the Panthers try and avenge last year’s loss.
This season is much anticipated because of the woes the Panthers have had to overcome. Those woes have been overcome, for the most part,with new equipment a new training room now it is time to get down to the business of football. With the bleachers loaded with screaming fans, the Panthers were fired up to get their first win of the season. Unfortunately, it did not happen this night.
The Pirates came into the game not making the mistake of underestimating the Panthers. However, early mistakes in the game by the Panthers led to the Pirates getting on the board fast with14 points in the first half. The Panther offense couldn’t seem to get the ball moving forward, and after punting deep in their own territory, they gave away some good field positions to the Pirates. The Pirates capitalized and racked up the points.
It is not to say that the defense wasn’t doing a good job, but mistakes against a team like Fayetteville will come back and bite you.The Pirate defense got to work, as well, holding the Panthers backand not allowing them to gain much real estate. At one point, the Panthers had the ball within 10 yards of a touchdown, but an off-balance throw, due to pressure on the quarterback, ended up in the hands of the Pirates, and they took it back 90 yards for the touchdown. That interception sealed the win for the Pirates.
The Panthers played hard on every down and didn’t give up. The final score in the game was Clay County 0, Fayetteville 28. The Panthers will be on the road this week in Braxton County. They will definitely have to work out the bugs in practice this week before their meeting with the Eagles.
Get out this week and support the Panthers against the Eagles; it promises to be a great game. The CCMS Mustangs will play their first game this week also against the Braxton Middle School Knights on Thursday evening. It promises to be a good rematch from last year.
