By John William Gallagher
On a windy Friday Night, the Clay-Chalkville Cougars defeated the Mountain Brook Spartans at their home field with a final score of 30-9.
The game was a collective effort in the Cougar victory. The Cougars were able to keep Mountain Brook at bay most of the game. Late in the game, the Spartans had big drives but were not able to mount the comeback.
Clay scored late in the first quarter, with a 38-yard field goal by senior kicker Robert Greene. A 3-and-out by Mountain Brook gave the Cougars the ball at their own 36. They were able to drive the ball and scored on a 20-yard pass from junior quarterback Hayden Moore to senior wide receiver DeAndre Woods.
“It’s great to be able to work both sides of the football,” said Moore. “There’s not that one person they overload. We take advantage of using both of them at the same time and that really works.”
Mountain Brook had a big play to start the second quarter. They were able to get on the board with a 32-yd. field goal. The Cougars turned around and scored on a 57-yd run from Moore.
An interception by senior linebacker Hunter Patterson on the Spartan’s next drive gave the Cougars great field position. Unfortunately, Greene missed a 40-yard field goal attempt short. Clay-Chalkville was able to keep the Spartans off the field. The Spartans pinned the Cougars deep for the rest of the quarter. The half ended with the Cougars leading 17-3.
In the second half, the Cougars only gained momentum, as Clay moved the ball 65-yards and scored on a 2-yard run from junior defensive back Christopher Marshall halfway through the third. The wind began to kick up in the stadium
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After a Mountain Brook 3-and-out, Clay-Chalkville got the ball back to begin the fourth quarter. They fumbled on the 40 yard line and Mountain Brook began to march toward the goal line. An interception gave the Cougars the ball at their own 8-yard line.
The teams traded bad series and Clay began to march again. Kenterrius Gray, the junior running back, got through the line and scored on a 57-yard run.
“We are just getting our blocks,” said Moore. “Everyone did their job. We came in knowing that the run was going to work. We started running and kept on going.”
The wind kicked up more and brought leaves down on the field. The Spartans made a hard charge to midfield. A personal foul against the Cougars brought Mountain Brook into the red zone. They scored on a 7-yard run with 1:49 left in the game. The Spartans recovered their onside kick, but an interception gave the Cougars the ball back and the victory.
“I’m very, very proud of them,” Clay-Chalkville Head Coach Jerry Hood said. “I think our focus is right and I think we’re peaking in the right way. We just want to get better for next week. We got to forget about this right now and just go on and get to work.”
The Clay-Chalkville Cougars head to Hoover next Friday night for the Semi-finals against the Hoover Buccaneers. Hoover is undefeated this season and considered one of the best teams in the state.