By Katie Barker
Carter County Times
The East Carter Raiders eighth grade team faced the Rowan County Vikings Thursday night in the EKC 8th grade championship; coming out on top with a 40-8 win.
The raiders started off strong receiving kickoff and making their way down the field with a strong offense. Levi Ruffin (#15) scored the first touchdown of the night putting the Raiders on the board making the score 8-0. The Vikings would counteract however, running in for a touchdown tying the game with two minutes left in the first quarter.
The Raiders weren’t done though, with quarterback Lawson Wilder throwing a pass to Ruffin who ran in for another touchdown. The kick from Julian Sanders was good making the score 16-8 with about two minutes left.
The Raiders defense were dominant throughout the whole game making stops and holding the Vikings at only 8 points. They came up on a huge play during the first quarter when they caused a fumble, recovered by #52 Conner Rogers. This gave the Raiders another shot at a touchdown which they capitalized on. A handoff to #21 Frankie Williams helped the Raiders extend their lead with another touchdown making the score 24-8 with about a minute left in the first quarter.
The Raiders came back out in the second quarter with the same momentum and extended their lead 32-8. This came from QB pass to #10 Izak Kitchen which resulted in an eight yard gain putting the Raiders at the one yard line for a first and goal. Ruffin ran it in for another touchdown bringing the game to halftime.
The Vikings received the second half kickoff, but the Raiders defense was strong enough to hold them off getting them the ball back which led to another touchdown. This came from #8 Bryson Matney who ran the ball in from about the 25 yard line making the score 40-8.
The Raiders would cause two more fumbles towards the end of the game, recovering both of them and winning the game 40-8.
The Raiders became the 8th grade EKC champions and ended the season 12-1, with 8th grader Levi Ruffin receiving recognition as offensive MVP.
“It’s all about the players, they work hard and got the job done,” said head coach Junior Salmons.  Contact the writer at news@cartercountytimes.com
Contact the writer at news@cartercountytimes.com
