Golden Knights Stung by Hornets in Semi-Pro Football Action

With the first non-forfeit win in franchise history the previous week against the Burlington Bulldogs, the Carolina Golden Knights looked for two wins in a row against a familiar foe in the Catawba Hornets. The clubs met last season with the Hornets picking up a lopsided victory. This year’s matchup proved to be no different, as the seasoned and experienced Catawba club shut out the Golden Knights 56-0 at Historic Cranberry High School field Saturday night.

Neither team was able to score with their first possession of the contest. A long Hornets punt return set up a short field, which Catawba transformed into its first score when quarterback Lynch found a receiver in the right corner of the end zone for a touchdown. The two-point conversion failed, but Catawba held the 6-0 at the 7:25 mark in the first period.

Carolina’s next possession was disastrous as a fumbled snap was picked up by a Catawba linebacker, who scurried 30 yards for a defensive touchdown. Another two-point try was no good, but the lead was doubled at 12-0 with 6:19 remaining in the opening stanza.

The Hornets defense was strong throughout the contest, as the Knights found little running room and struggled to offset the team speed of Catawba.

Another three-and-out from Carolina resulted in a punt and Hornets drive on the Knights side of the 50-yard line. The Knights defense showed the ability to stop the run on plays inside the tackles, but Catawba quickly utilized its quickness on the edges to get inside the Carolina 10-yard line as the first quarter expired.

Catawba scored on an off-tackle run on the first play of the second period, and converted on a two-point attempt to up its lead to 20-0.

On Carolina’s ensuing possession, the Knights moved the football with its greatest success, marching to near midfield. Former Avery football players Samson Jennings and Chase Arrowood operated out of the backfield for the Knights and saw plenty of action. Carolina’s drive stalled as a snap over quarterback Jennings’ head resulted in a large yardage loss, and Arrowood was stopped on a carry for loss, forcing another Golden Knights punt.

Catawba struck quickly as a halfback run almost resulted in a touchdown, but another former Avery gridder, linebacker Zach Johnson, ran the speedy back down before he could score. The Knights held Catawba on three plays from the ten-yard line to force a fourth and goal at the 11. The Hornets scored on a pass play to the left corner of the end zone with 6:15 left in the first half. Catawba’s conversion attempt was successful to push the Hornets to a commanding 28-0 advantage.

Carolina turned the ball over for a second time on a fumble inside its own 30-yard line to set up Catawba with another scoring opportunity. Two plays later Catawba scored on a 21-yard halfback run. The two-point conversion failed but the Hornets led 34-0, a score which remained unchanged until halftime.

In the second half Carolina’s offense continued to battle hard, but was unable to find an answer to the Catawba defense. Quarterback Jennings gave way to Deke Cooper, who moved from receiver to quarterback. With Jennings at wide receiver, the pair connected on a couple of occasions with wide receiver, once for a first down.

The Knights made one serious attempt to score, moving the football inside the Hornets 30, but the Catawba club was intent to keep the Golden Knights off the scoreboard and turned them away.

Catawba added 22 second-half points to put an exclamation mark on a hard fought contest by both clubs. The teams played through sweltering temperatures in the mid-80s at game time and gathered together at midfield at the game’s conclusion in an admirable display of sportsmanship.

The Golden Knights look to get back on the winning track when it returns to the gridiron next Saturday.