The West Lauderdale Knights (5-1) took on the Taylorsville Tartars (2-4) in their seventh game of the season, with a heart-hammering 24-35 win at the Tartars’ home field.
West and Taylorville went neck and neck in the first quarter with the Knights getting the first touchdown of the night with a successful PAT (point after touchdown), putting them in the lead with 7-0. Cooper Luke (#1) kicked off with the Tartars returning the ball to the 15-yard line before being tackled by Jake Rodgers (#12). After just a few plays, Taylorsville followed close behind West gaining one touchdown with a failed PAT that was blocked by our very own Knights. After Taylorsville’s kickoff, Travion Mosley (#6) returned the ball across midfield before running out of bounds.
With 4:34 left in the first frame, West loses the ball after four failed attempts at getting another first down. This consequently led Cobey Craft (#4) to pick the ball up to the 50-yard line with a well-earned first down. In the next play, Trey Barnes (#18) gets the ball only to be tackled by Carson Richardson (#18), losing them 3 yards. Resco Crosby (#3) successfully gets Taylorsville a touchdown with no gain of an extra point, ending the quarter with Knights losing 12-7.
The Knights start the second quarter with the ball as Kaden Peoples (#7) throws a pass which is completed by Altonio Radcliff (#3). In the next play, he was successful at running the ball in for a touchdown. He then ran onto the sidelines repeating “It was that easy” while celebrating with his fellow teammates as Cooper Luke kicked another victorious PAT pushing them into the lead 12-14.
After Taylorsville returned the ball, they threw a pass to complete a first down with Kendrick Brown (#2) getting a tackle. They then fumble the ball giving it to West with 8:42 left before the end of the first half. With West almost losing the ball after a few fumbles that were recovered by fellow teammates, they had a field goal attempt which was no good.
With an incomplete kick from the Knights, the Tartars get 1st & 10 with no gain in the next play, having been tackled by Tim Mcdonald (#33). They then threw an incomplete pass which was blocked by Javaion Wilson (#17) at 1:08 left in the second quarter. After the Knights gained the ball again, the Tartars finished off the half with a holding call while the Knights fumbled the ball.
In the third quarter, the Knights started the kickoff to the opposing team. The Tartars return the ball to their 33-yard line before getting tackled by Carson Richardson (#56) giving them a first down with 10 yards to go. After Taylorsville is triumphant in getting two first downs, both teams get a penalty for opposing reasons. The Knights get a call for being offsides while the Tartars get one for having a false start. This forces the referees to call for a replay of the down.
Taylorsville fakes a punt and runs the ball to the opposing 43-yard line before getting tackled by the Knights. They then have an opportunity to score a touchdown, and boy do they take it, but their 2-point conversion was no good. Although, this still nudged them into the lead 18-14.
Cobey Craft (#4) from Taylorsville kicks off with Chase Gathings (#5) returning the ball to just shy of the 35-yard line. Following this, Kaden Peoples (#7) rushes across midfield with the ball giving the Knights a first down. With 5:22 left in the third quarter West fumbles the ball, with a split second they are barely able to recover the ball before Taylorsville comes rushing over trying to recover it. After a fast break, Altonio Radcliff (#3) is tackled, narrowly missing the 2-yard line. This guides Kaden Peoples (#7) into another victorious touchdown and PAT putting them in the lead 18-21.
Then after just a few plays with many incomplete passes to their team, Taylorsville gains another touchdown with a kick that is no good, ending the third quarter 24-21.
Taylorsville gains the ball for the start of the fourth quarter, getting a first down and crossing through midfield before being run out of bounds. As they go to pass it to a fellow teammate, a player from the Knights, Tim Mcdonald (#33), goes in for the interception at the 45 yard line on their side. West Lauderdale fans hearts are racing as (#4) picks up a 1st down at the 32yard line. Then again he gets the ball just inside the 20 yard line. The fans begin to jump out of their seats at the revelation that their boys could win this battle. Then they are out of their seats as the Knights gain a well-fought touchdown and again PAT, throwing them ahead of the Tartars with a 4-point lead.
With a fighting spirit, West Lauderdale gets the ball back from Taylorsville after their failed attempts at getting a first down. With 3 minutes left in the game, the Knights get a flag on the play for holding, giving them a 10 yard penalty. This does not stop our boys though, because Kaden Peoples (#7) gains yet another touchdown and victorious PAT putting them another 7 points in the lead at 24-35.
As if luck were on their side, the Knights get the ball back from the Tartars almost ensuring their win with less than 1 minute left in the game, leaving the fans to praise the boys after another triumphant victory. After the game, Knights head coach, Coach Brock Clay had this to say about the game: “Anytime we get a W it’s a great night to be a Knight.” When asked if he believes the boys could have done better in any aspect of their game play, his response was “Oh, I mean anytime we play there’s mistakes out there — we thought we did a really good job of coming back from the mistakes we did make, we showed a lot of resiliency, and as far you know had a chance to probably lose the game a couple of times and we didn’t, so I’m very proud of the kids.” The boys earned their win tonight. Let’s hope for a grand rest of the season. GO KNIGHTS!
