By Stephen Henderson
The Patrick County High School football team spoiled North Stokes’ homecoming celebration by defeating the Vikings 13-6 Friday night. The win was led by a group of Cougar players who stepped up and “basically shut down the Viking offense” except for one scoring drive.
According to Coach David Morrison, the Cougars adjusted some positions to bring some new vigor into the Cougar offense as well as the defense. This was evident in Friday night’s performance with powerful performances by running backs Josh Baker and Frankie LaComa, both of whom scored touchdowns for Patrick County.
LaComa was leading rusher for the Cougars with 67 yards on eight carries. Baker had 32 yards on eight carries. Shemar Hill literally “ground out” 47 yards on 11 carries. Other rushers for the Cougars include Harvey Lee Edwards (25 yards) and Logan Hutchens (25 yards). The Cougars rushed a total of 204 yards on 45 carries.
On the defense, Bryson Fulcher led the way with 11 tackles, three sacks and a fumble recovery. Josh Baker added seven tackles with two sacks; Logan Justice had a blocked punt and a sack. Colby Vernon and Jared Lawson each had fumble recoveries. Garrett Worley had two punts of 46 and 63 yards.
Patrick County started the game by kicking off to the Vikings, who failed to move the ball and were forced to punt on fourth down. Justice blocked the punt and Fulcher recovered the ball on the Viking 12 yard line. On the second play of the series, Baker raced 12 yards down the right side to dive into the end zone for the TD. Ethan Harkey’s kick was good, giving the Cougars a 7-0 lead with 8:16 left in the first quarter.
The Vikings took advantage of an interception late in the first quarter and started a drive from their own 41 to find the end zone three plays later on a 15-yard run. The two-point attempt failed, tightening the game 7-6 with 9:08 left in the first half.
The first half ended on a last-second pass to Jacob McNulty that fell incomplete near the goal line.
The third quarter saw both teams in a defensive battle.
The fourth quarter opened with the Cougars in possession of the ball. Frankie LaComa had advanced to ball to the Viking seven on a couple of earlier runs; he then took a hand-off and juked left and right, avoiding several potential tackles and found the end zone with 11:49 left in the game. Harkey’s kick was blocked, leaving the score at 13-6 until the final whistle blew.
According to Coach Morrison, “We had a few mental lapses in some key situations where our personnel did not execute when we needed it most. We have to eliminate those types of mistakes before we will ever reach our potential,” he said.
“Poor alignment and missed assignments lead to points given up by your defense and kill your drives offensively. In order for us to be effective, we have to control the clock and pace of the game with sustained drives and having our defense force opposing offenses into making mistakes. That doesn’t happen with the types of mistakes we are making right now,” Morrison explained.
This week the Cougars face Magna Vista—a team that is highly athletic and very well coached. “They have already played some of the best teams around so their current record isn’t indicative of their ability,” Morrison said. “They are a really solid team—both offensively and defensively. They have a couple of really solid running backs with a well-coached offensive line, so they can hurt you with the run.
“Couple that with a QB that can move around and throw it downfield to a wide receiver group that is really great year in and year out, and you have a team that is well balanced and tough to defend,” Morrison said. “Against some teams, a missed assignment means giving up a big play, 20-30 yards, but with these guys, you are one missed assignment away from giving up a touchdown,” he said.
Patrick County travels to Magna Vista for a 7 p.m. kickoff Friday night.
