Last week was a key week in Toe River Conference action as both the Avery Panthers and Cranberry Wildcats were in action.The
Late in the first half the Wildcats had the opportunity to cut a 14-0 East Yancey advantage, but were unable to convert on a long pass play that would have cut the lead in half.
The Wildcats scored all 14 of its points in the second half. A touchdown pass and an electrifying kickoff return for a touchdown by Tyler Pittman, his second return for a score during this season, accounted for the Cranberry scoring.
“We played one of our better games of the season. At halftime we were close, only down 14-0 and we moved the ball well. On defense we buckled down and kept them from scoring at times, but our turnovers hurt us,” Cranberry head coach Richard Sheppard said after the game. “We lost a couple of boys to injury in the game, but I think our kids will be ready for Avery next week. They’ll have their work cut out for them if we can stop them defensively.”
The same evening Avery traveled to Spruce Pine to take on Harris. Avery held a 6-0 lead at halftime but could not hold on as Harris took the 14-6 win.
Throughout the first half the teams battled in a defensive struggle for field position. Harris was able to use its running game, but Avery would shut the Blue Devil attack down once it reached the red zone. Avery had difficulty running the ball, but relied on its pass attack to loosen up the opposing defense.
Avery scored a touchdown on its opening possession with a 20-yard touchdown play, but the score was called back due to penalty.
Late in the first half Panthers defensive back Tre Jackson intercepted a Harris pass attempt. Avery then moved with its final drive on offense during the remainder of the first half, scoring on the half’s final play when quarterback Ty Polsgrove, subbing for injuring starting quarterback Chance Watson, found Chase Buchanan with a 12-yard touchdown pass to lead 6-0 at the break.
Harris scored on its first series of the second half to tie the contest, but Avery quelled the two-point conversion try to keep the contest tied. Avery punted on its first series of the third quarter, and Harris struck again for a 50-yard touchdown play on a third down and long play. The two-point conversion was good and Harris led by the 14-6 score.
In the final period Avery continued to succeed in its pass game, as well as used a defensive stand on fourth down on one series to help keep the Blue Devils scoreless for the remainder of the game. Unfortunately, the Panthers could not cross the goal line to tie the score, dropping the club to a 2-2 record for the season.
“Harris had a big quarterback that was hard to bring down, but for the most part we held them in check,” Avery head coach Donnie Johnson said after the game. “We moved the ball pretty well during the night, but we dropped a number of passes. We lost Chance in the second quarter for the rest of the game and Ty stepped in for us. Ty is great with using the option running plays, but it hurts us that he isn’t out at receiver to be able to throw to him”
Seven different players had receptions in the game for Avery, but the turnover bug bit the Panthers to hamper any chance for victory.
Avery will take on Cranberry in the 27th annual Brad King Bowl, to be played Tuesday, September 29th at MacDonald Stadium. Both teams are excited about the game and look forward to the matchup that ends regular season Toe River Conference play.
“I basically told our boys if they don’t just naturally get up for this game, I can’t motivate them any more than that,” Cranberry’s Coach Sheppard said. “We try to keep things in perspective as feeder schools for the high school, but we want to be competitive as possible, and whatever happens will happen.”
“Win or lose, we’re in the playoffs, so we’re just working on trying to get better,” Avery’s Coach Johnson stated. “We feel we can build on the good things we did last week. We’ll have to catch the football against Cranberry and move the football better, and we’ll have to be able to stop their running because Cranberry has some athletic kids on their side. It should be a good game as you can throw out the records when the teams play.”
Proceeds from the game will benefit the Chris Laws’ family, as funds raised will be deposited into a trust set up with the State Employees Credit Union for Laws' daughters.
A full report on the Brad King Bowl can be found in next week’s Avery Journal-Times.
