By Craig Brown
The Dillon Christian School Warriors ran for 240 yards with three touchdowns and added 146 yards and three touchdowns from the air as they downed region foe The Kings Academy Lions 39-6 Friday night in Florence, moving them to 1-1 on the season.
The Warriors played with a much improved game attitude that offensively produced over 500 combined yards from the passing, running and kick returns as compared to last week’s efforts of less than 80 yards of combined offense. The defense was also greatly improved, holding the Lions to less than 200 yards of total offense and one lone touchdown.
The Warriors were penalized 12 times for 130 yards against the Lions with some of these penalties costing them some sizable offensive gains. The Warrior coaching staff will work to improve in this area.
John Michael Price took the opening kickoff on the 25-yard line and returned it to the Lion 34-yard line. On first down Jeremiah Cribb broke tackles on his way to a 34-yard touchdown with 11:46 left in the first quarter. The Lion defenders got by the left side of the offensive line and blocked the extra point leaving the Warriors with a 6-0 lead.
With 2:02 left in the first quarter, Warrior quarterback Will Brown hit tight end Will Shelly with a 17-yard touchdown pass. Brown hit John Michael Price with the two point conversion pass to put the Warriors out front 14-0. The first quarter would end with this score.
Brown connected on his second touchdown pass of the night when he hit wide receiver Mark Minges with a 50-yard strike. The kick was just off the mark, leaving the Warriors up 20-0 with 8:02 left in the second quarter.
With 16 seconds left in the first half, Brown found Shelly open and sent him racing to the goal line on a 45-yard touchdown pass. The kick was off and the Warriors took a 26-0 lead into the half.
The Lions came roaring out in the third quarter and dominated play in most of this time period. With 8:36 left in the quarter, Lion tailback Robert Hewitt crossed the goal line on a 19-yard run. The kick was blocked and the Warrior lead was cut to 26-6. The Warriors struggled through the third quarter but managed to stop the Lions and the quarter would end with this score.
The Warriors regained control in the fourth quarter and with 5:04 left in the game, John Michael Price out ran the Lion defenders on his way to a 27-yard touchdown run. The kick failed but the Warriors now had a 32-6 lead.
The Warrior defense stopped the Lions and on what would be the last Warrior offensive drive, Bryson Cook showed that he has some good moves that can get him into the defense’s secondary with the drive ending with Cook taking it in from two yards out. Chayce McDowell sent the kick through the center of the goal post to give the Warriors a 39-6 lead. The game would end with Warrior defensive back Mark Minges intercepting a pass, adding a 25-yard return as time expired, sealing the Warriors’ first win of the season.
On Offense for the Warriors, Will Brown was eight of 15 passing for 146 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 24 yards on five carries. John Michael Price rushed for 89 yards on nine carries with a touchdown and caught three passes for 15 yards. Will Shelly caught four passes for 89 yards and two touchdowns; Jeremiah Cribb got 55 yards on nine carries with a touchdown; Mark Minges caught a 50-yard touchdown pass; Bryson Cook carried the ball six times for 49 yards with a touchdown run, and Kelvin Stackhouse got 23 yards on six carries.
On defense, John Michael Price had seven tackles with four assists; Ellison Rourke had seven tackles with two assists; Matthew Price had six tackles, three assists; Bryson Cook, Jeremiah Cribb, and Will Brown had six tackles with two assists each, with Brown batting down a pass and Cribb adding two QB sacks; Will Shelly and Thomas Evans had five tackles with two assists each; Dorian Sellers had four tackles with three assists, a blocked kick, and a quarterback sack; Kelvin Stackhouse had three tackles, three assists, a batted down pass and an interception; Ben Boykin and Mark Minges had a tackle with three assists each; Jake Boykin had a tackle with two assists; and Connor Hamilton had a tackle and an assist.
The Warriors will play at home Friday hosting a non-region game with Florence Christian School. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m.
