By Jeremy D. Wells
Carter County Times
West Carter started off strong, going into halftime with an 8 point lead over the Pike Central Hawks on Friday, and starting the second half with another touchdown to take the score to 14-0. But in the final quarter the fatigue of playing both defense and offense, and Pike Central’s deep bench, got to be too much for the Comets, who ended up losing the game by a single touchdown after a big Pike County comeback in the last 15 minutes of play.
Senior Dwaylon Dean (RB,LB) scored the Comets’ first touchdown, dodging and weaving through the Pike Central defensive line for a total of 132 rushing yards on the evening. With a third down and five to go, and two minutes left in the first quarter, Dean bulldogged his way through the Hawks’ defense to put the Comets on the board. Junior Hayden Hall’s (QB,DB) successful two-point conversion took the score to 8-0, where it would stay until the second half when junior Kadin Thompson (WR,DB) gave the Comets their second touchdown on a long reception, taking the score to 14-0.
Pike Central’s frustration with the strong Comets defense nearly helped West Carter add more points to the board, as penalties – including a brief on-field scuffle – led to penalties and yardage gains for the home team.
But the Hawks’ deeper bench helped them stage a comeback in the final quarter. A touchdown four minutes into the fourth quarter took the score to 14-6, and another touchdown and successful two-point conversion tied the game up. On Pike Central’s next possession, they put another six points on the board, with less than two minutes left in play, taking the score to 14-20. That’s where it would stay, despite West Carter’s best attempts to pull ahead.
West Carter already has a small team, with most of their roster playing both offensive and defensive positions. But injuries whittled that number down even further, contributing to the team’s fatigue.
“We ended up with a pretty small roster over the course of the game injury wise,” coach Daniel Barker said. “I think our guys played to exhaustion. They gave everything they had. We just ran out of gas.”
Barker said the team has a bye-week coming up.
“So, we’re going to focus on getting healthy,” he said, and come back strong for Estill County on September 6.
Estill County took on East Carter last week, losing to the Raiders in a 36-0 game.
East Carter plays again this Friday, at Rowan County. You can tune into that game on WGOH 1370 AM and 100.9 FM, at 7:35 p.m. Or listen live on the Go Radio Grayson app.
Contact the writer at editor@cartercountytimes.com
