North Surry battled Wilkes Central in Toast Sept. 16 to open league play in the Foothills 2A Conference.
The Greyhounds held a six-point lead at halftime before going down a score in the third quarter. North Surry was primed to tie things up with a red zone appearance early in the fourth, but a turnover-on-downs followed by an Eagle touchdown turned the momentum in the visitors’ favor.
The Hounds continued to fight and cut into the lead with a touchdown, but came up on the wrong side of an onside kick. Late touchdowns added to the Eagles’ lead, finishing the game with a final score of 51-32.
Friday night marked the 2022 debut of Wilkes Central’s Kamen Smith, who missed the first four games of the season with an injury. According to 247Sports, Smith is a 3-star recruit that has committed to N.C. State.
Kamen’s presence on the defensive line limited North Surry’s rushing offense. The Greyhounds (1-3, 0-1 FH2A) responded by taking to the skies, posting their first game of the season with more yards passing than yards rushing.
Quarterback Colton Allen finished with a career-high 174 yards by completing 8-of-14 passes. Kam McKnight added one pass for 26 yards to bring the Greyhounds over 200 yards passing for the game. Allen threw two touchdowns and an interception, and McKnight had one touchdown pass.
Jahreece Lynch paced the Hounds with five catches for 119 yards and three touchdowns. Jared Hiatt had one catch for 38 yards, Makiyon Woodbury added two catches for 27 yards and Fisher Leftwich had one catch for 16 yards.
All three of Lynch’s touchdowns came in the first half.
Wilkes Central (3-2, 1-0 FH2A) scored first at the 8:57 mark in the first quarter, but Owen McMillian stuck the Eagles on the 2-point conversion. North went ahead 7-6 after McKnight connected with Lynch three minutes later. Lynch scored later in the quarter on a 66-yard Allen pass, putting North Surry up 14-6.
Both squads scored in the second quarter, with North going up 20-14, but Wilkes Central looked to add another touchdown before halftime. The Eagles looked to the end zone but were picked off by Lynch.
The Eagles finally retook the lead in the third quarter with a rushing touchdown. The touchdown tied the game at 20, and the ensuing 2-point conversion put Wilkes Central on top. The visitors added to their lead by scoring a touchdown with 10:36 remaining in the fourth quarter.
The failed two-point conversion left it a one-score game at 28-20.
North Surry marched down the field and into the red zone looking to tie things up. The Hounds went for it on fourth down with less than eight minutes to play, but couldn’t convert. Wilkes Central responded with a 73-yard run to enter the red zone, then scored with 6:50 remaining to go up 36-20.
Even with Wilkes Central’s defensive wall, North Surry managed to rush for 161 yards – bringing the team’s total yardage to 361 for the game. Both of the Hounds’ late touchdowns came on the ground.
Jake Simmons, who led the team with 21 carries for 80 yards, scored with 5:28 left in the fourth. North Surry, however, failed the 2-point conversion to leave it a 10-point game at 36-26.
Following Simmons was Malachi Powers with one carry for 37 yards, Allen with four carries for 27 yards and a touchdown, Lynch with three carries for 17 yards and Talan Vernon with one carry for no gain.
Wilkes Central maintained possession until the 2:35 mark before scoring again. The touchdown and 2-point conversion increased the advantage to 44-26.
The lead increased to 51-26 after Wilkes Central scored another TD with less than a minute on the clock. Allen ran in a 12-yard touchdown late to round out the final score, 51-32.
Both schools continue FH2A Conference play on Sept. 23. North Surry travels to East Surry (5-0, 1-0 FH2A) and Wilkes Central hosts Surry Central (1-3, 1-0 FH2A).
Scoring
Wilkes Central – 6, 8, 8, 22 = 51
North Surry – 14, 6, 0, 12 = 32
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com