By David Rogers. NEW YORK CITY — Morgan Beadlescomb (13:44) and Annie Rodenfels won their first national titles in the men’s and women’s divisions, respectively, of the USATF 5k Road Racing Championship on Nov. 4 in Manhattan’s Central Park, but Blowing Rock-based ZAP Endurance was well represented among the leaders. Beadlescomb was representing adidas, the shoe and apparel company.
In the Elite Men’s Division, ZAP middle distance specialist Dan Schaffer finished No. 4, just three seconds behind Beadlescomb in 13:47. To understand just how close it was at the finish, No. 2 Ahmed Muhamed (HOKA Northern Arizona Elite), No. 3 Tai Dinger (unattached) and Schaffer were all credited with the same time of 13:47. Close behind at No. 5 was Brian Barraza (Roots Running) in 13:48 and a second later, No. 6 Woody Kincaid (NIKE) in 13:49.
ZAP Endurance team members Dan Schaffer and Amanda Vestri stop for a photo op in Central Park following the running of the USATF 5km Road Racing Championship. In the background, right, draped in the American flag, is elite women’s division winner Annie Rodenfels. Photo by Pete Rea, ZAP Endurance
Of the 26 elite runners entered in the race, held in conjunction with the Abbott Dash to the Finish Line 5K, 14 men finished the 5km course under 14 minutes (within 17 seconds of the winner). While Beadlescomb took home $12,000 for the win, Schaffer netted $2,000 for the fourth place finish.
In the Elite Women’s Division, ZAP Endurance newcomer Amanda Vestri finished No. 7, approximately 16 seconds behind Rodenfels, representing the Boston Athletic Association (15:22).
Also among the leaders were Rachel Smith (Hoka One One), Bethany Hasz (Boston Athletic Association), Keira D’Amato (NIKE), Weini Kelati (UA Dark Sky Distance), and Katie Camerana (unattached), all ahead of Vestri.
A few places behind Vestri was another High Country athlete, Abbey Cooper, at No. 12, representing New Balance. A total of 23 elite female athletes qualified for and competed in the women’s race.
Rodenfels took home the $12,000 money for first place, Vestri came away with $750 for finishing No. 7.
“Overall, it was a good day for ZAP Endurance to place two of our team members among the leaders of a national championship race,” said Pete Rea, head coach of ZAP Endurance.
The USATF 5km Road Championship is run in Central Park the day before the New York Marathon. Here, Pete Rea, head coach of ZAP Endurance is flanked by Dan Schaffer, who finished No. 4 in the elite men’s competition and Amanda Vestri, who finished No. 7 in the elite women’s division. Photo courtesy of ZAP Endurance
By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Even though the Watauga student section was wearing their PJs for “Pajamas Night,” none of the estimated 3,000 people filling the grandstands at Jack Groce Stadium on Nov. 3 dared to fall asleep for the first round game of the North Carolina 4A playoffs vs. Hickory Ridge.
In football terms, it was a blink of an eye. Trailing 20-19 coming out of halftime, Watauga scored three touchdowns in the the first four minutes of the second half, catapulting the Pioneers to a thrilling, don’t-miss-a-minute-of-this, 54-34 win over the Raging Bulls.
Matthew Leon starts to celebrate a TD run vs. Hickory Ridge. Photo by Garner Dewey for High ?Country Sports.
If last week against Ashe County was a coming out party for Watauga sophomore running back Matthew Leon, the Hickory Ridge playoff contest was a game-long Mardi Gras. Called to duty a week ago when regular running back starter Everett Gryder went down with a lower body injury, Leon rambled for 206 yards on 20 carries and two TDs in his state playoffs debut vs. Hickory Ridge.
A good chunk of those came in the opening drive of the second half. Two plays into the drive, Leon burst through a gap carved out by the Pioneer offensive line and ripped off the Raging Bulls’ secondary for a 30-yard gain. On the very next play, he finished things off with a 38-yard ramble through the Hickory Ridge defense, his TD and quarterback Maddox Greene’s 2-point conversion giving the Pioneers a 27-20 lead they would never relinquish.
we will not back down.
But Leon’s second half opening fireworks was just the beginning for this thrill-a-minute Watauga team in the first four minutes of the third quarter.
Just four plays after Landon Smith recovered an onsides kick by the Pioneers, it was sophomore Evan “Swiss Army Knife” Burroughs’ turn to put even more points on the board for Watauga. After picking up 27 pass-and-run yards from an aerial from Greene, Burroughs finished things off with a 7-yard scoot around the right side for a TD. The 2-point conversion attempt failed, but Watauga now had a commanding, 13-point lead, 33-20 and the Raging Bulls had yet to touch the ball in the second half.
Keller to Pryor sequence
Photo by Garner Dewey for High Country SportsJackson Pryor (9) finishes TD catch and run with a flourish on Nov. 3 vs. Hickory Ridge. Photo by Caleb Dewey for High Country Sports
And they still wouldn’t get that chance when Watauga pulled off yet another successful onside kick. And they didn’t waste any time punching Hickory Ridge in the gut. On the first play of the possession, Greene passed laterally left to backup QB Cade Keller, who was lined up as a wide receiver. Keller, in turn, lofted a pass downfield to a wide open Jackson Pryor for a 51-yard touchdown completion. Hickory Ridge seemed unprepared for the two receiver set on the left side and the single defender froze like a deer in headlights, uncertain whether to cover Keller with the ball or Pryor streaking past him down the field.
The Keller-to-Burroughs score, followed by a successful 2-point conversion with Greene passing to Burroughs, put the Pioneers ahead 41-20 and the second half was not even four minutes old.
Matthew Leon rambles up the sideline vs. Hickory Ridge for a big gain. Photographic image by David Rogers
For the rest of the third quarter and into the the final stanza, the two teams traded stalled drives. Finally, aided by a Watauga turnover and fumble recovery by the Raging Bulls, as well as a Watauga face mask penalty, Hickory Ridge had a short field with which to find the end zone. Raging Bull QB Cayden Haywood punched the ball in from the 1-yard line on a keeper, Andrew Schmidt’s PAT kick was good, and Hickory Ridge had closed the deficit to 41-27.
But midway through the fourth quarter, time was not a friend to the gridiron visitors from Harrisburg, N.C., a northwest suburb of Charlotte. The Raging Bulls scored once more, but gave up two more TDs to Watauga with Greene and Leon doing the heavy lifting on the ground thanks to holes opened up on the line of scrimmage by the offensive line.
After the game, Wataiga head coach Ryan Habich described a self-pitying atmosphere in the locker room at halftime with the Pioneers trailing, 20-19. He hinted that several of the guys thought this would be an “easy” game because of at 3-7 overall record and 3-3 record in the 4A Greater Metro Conference.
Watauga celebrates a successful onside kick vs. Hickory Ridge on Nov. 3. Photo by Garner Dewey for High Country Sports
“We told our team all week that (Hickory Ridge) is probably the second best team we had faced all year behind A C Reynolds,” said Habich. “Their overall record was 3-7, but they played a really tough non-conference schedule… We knew this was going to be a tough game. If you just looked at the seeding, you might not think so but when your non-conference schedule playing around Charlotte includes teams like Chambers, Independence, Porter Ridge and Robinso, that is tough competition.
“I think a lot of our guys were shocked in the first half,” said Habich. “It was tough to block those guys. They were big and quick up front. So we had a hard time stopping them and we were missing PATs, which is not good. So at halftime, I told the guys that we were only down by one point, to stop being a bunch of babies, to suck it up and play Watauga football. We are not going to back down.”
Photo by Garner Dewey for High Country Sports
Habich said he was very proud of how the guys checked themselves at the half and came out to win the football game in the second half.
Habich said that particularly this year to get a playoff win in the first round is a significant accomplishment.
“The 4A West bracket this year is like the SEC in college football,” said Habich. “It is stacked and the most challenging bracket in North Carolina high school football. A lot of teams from the mountain have had a hard time winning in the playoffs. We’ve won in the the playoffs. That’s one of the things that we’ve done here at Watauga, we have won in the playoffs.I am really proud of our guys and how they responded and took charge of the second half. We scored 35 points in the second half so you have to give a lot of credit to our guys for how they responded in the second half.”
Maddox Greene hops across the goal line on Nov. 3 vs. Hickory Ridge. Photographic image by David Rogers
Watauga will face another athletic challenger in Round 2 on Nov. 10 when they host No. 18-seeded Mallard Creek, a 41-7 upset winner over No. 15 Marvin Ridge.
The Mavericks finished the regular season 7-3 overall, 5-2 in the 3A/4 Queen City Conference, where earned runner-up honors behind undefeated Hough and ahead of other historically strong urban programs, including Chambers, North Mecklenburg, and West Charlotte.
Kickoff on Nov. 10 is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Jack Groce Stadium
SCORING SUMMARY
Q1: Watauga TD, Morgan Henry 34-yard pass from Maddox Greene. Jack Wilson PAT (7-0)
Q1: Hickory Ridge TD, Connor Shulman 29-yard rush. Andrew Schmidt PAT (7-7)
Q1: Watauga TD, Maddox Greene 17-yard rush. PAT failed (13-7)
Q2: Hickory Ridge TD, Dominic Testa 14-yard rush Andrew Schmidt PAT (14-13)
Q2: Hickory Ridge TD, Dominic Testa 31-yard pass from Caden Haywood (PAT blocked by Jackson Pryor (13-20)
Q2: Watauga TD, Maddox Greene 44-yard rush. PAT failed (19-20)
Q3: Watauga TD, Matthew Leon 38-yard rush. Maddox Greene rush on 2-point conversion (27-20)
OXFORD, Ohio – In a back-and-forth contest on Friday at the Miami Field Hockey Complex, the App State Mountaineers (14-5, 6-1 MAC) fell 3-2 on a sudden death goal by Emma Rolston in overtime against the Kent State Golden Flashes (8-10, 5-2 MAC). After fighting to tie the score in the 52nd minute, the Mountaineers’ historic season came to a heartbreaking end on Friday.
The Mountaineers trailed at the halftime break by two goals, then fought all the way back, scoring twice in the second half to tie things up and send the game to overtime for the second time this season against Kent State. Charlotte Bosma netted the equalizer with eight minutes to play in the fourth quarter, her seventh goal of the season.
The Mountaineers saw their nine-game winning streak come to an end but it was a historic streak, nonetheless. The nine wins in a row is the third-longest streak in program history. The 14 wins on the season was tied for the most wins in program history with Emily Dinsmore breaking Dr. Jan Watson’s record for wins by an App State first-year head coach.
By Bret Strelow. BOONE, N.C. — With seven App State wrestlers making either a first career start or first dual start at his current weight, the 26th-ranked Mountaineers opened the 2023-24 season against an opponent that JohnMark Bentley said was potentially the best team he’s faced in 15 years as a head coach.
No. 3 NC State won 40-3 on Friday night in front of 1,000 fans in a packed Varsity Gym, with App State’s Ethan Oakley claiming a 4-2 decision at 133 pounds against three-time NCAA qualifier Jarrett Trombley.
With N.C. State’s roster having a higher-ranked wrestler at all 10 weight classes — the Wolfpack has six wrestlers with top-10 national rankings and three returning All-Americans — consecutive close matches at 165 and 174 pounds also had fans from both sides on their feet on a night when wrestling began at 149 pounds.
“I think (tonight) kind of showed us where we’re at, the things we need to fix and the things we need to work on,” Bentley said. “We just never really got going tonight, and there wasn’t a lot of positive momentum in our direction, but we had some guys battle hard. I don’t want to totally downplay that that’s a really, really good team. I’m going to give them credit. They’re ranked third, and they may be the second-best team in the country, especially in a dual meet. They just don’t have any weaknesses.”
tonight kind of showed us where we’re at, the things we need to fix and the things we need to work on.
The rosters for NC State and App State each have two 133-pound wrestlers with NCAA Championships experience, and Trombley got the nod Friday for NC State instead of fifth-ranked Kai Orine, who had lost in overtime to App State’s Sean Carter last year before ending the season as an All-American. Oakley stepped into a starting role following a season-ending injury to Carter last year, went unbeaten in SoCon duals, won a match at the NCAA Championships and opened this season with an impressive result.
Oakley recorded a three-point takedown 40 seconds into Friday’s match, took a 4-2 lead on an escape with 1:20 remaining in the third period and fought off an attack from Trombley in the closing seconds.
“I just tried to get whatever points were there,” Oakley said. “I train in a lot of those positions and try to stay in the positions I’m comfortable in. It’s really good to get a test against a tough opponent. I get excited for every opportunity I can to wrestle the best.”
Ranked No. 33 at 165, NC State’s AJ Kovacs overcame a first-period takedown from Will Miller and didn’t allow an escape after a final-minute takedown to win 5-4 against App State’s returning NCAA qualifier. The next match at 174 went to overtime before 22nd-ranked Alex Faison produced a takedown to win 6-3 against App State’s Luke Uliano.
Miller is wrestling at 165 after competing at 174 last season, and Uliano has moved to 174 after wrestling at 184 last season. They made their first career dual starts at those weights, as did Cody Bond at 149, and four other Mountaineers made the first dual starts of their careers at any weight: Chad Bellis (125), redshirt freshman Kaden Keiser (141), true freshman Tomas Brooker (184) and redshirt freshman Hunter Adams (197).
Miller delivered a three-point takedown midway through the first period and moved ahead 4-2 with an escape 12 seconds into the third period. Kovacs took a 5-4 lead on a takedown with 48 seconds remaining and stayed on top for the remainder of the match.
After a scoreless first period, Uliano rode out the second period and officially took a 1-0 lead (with two minutes of riding time on his side) as Faison conceded an escape to open the third. Uliano was essentially tied at 3-all by following Faison’s takedown with 53 seconds with an escape five seconds later. A scramble late in regulation netted no points, and Faison’s takedown 45 seconds into the first overtime period produced a 6-3 victory.
#3 NC State 40, #26 App State 3
149: #7 Jackson Arrington (NCSU) def. #25 Cody Bond (APP), 19-3 tech fall
157: #5 Ed Scott (NCSU) def. #20 Tommy Askey (APP), 13-6 dec.
165: #33 AJ Kovacs (NCSU) def. Will Miller (APP), 5-4 dec.
174: #22 Alex Faison (NCSU) def. Luke Uliano (APP), 6-3 dec. (SV-1)
184: #29 Dylan Fishback (NCSU) def. Tomas Brooker (APP), fall (1:30)
197: #5 Trent Hidlay (NCSU) def. Hunter Adams (APP), 19-4 tech fall
HWT: #8 Owen Trephan (NCSU) def. Jacob Sartorio (APP), fall (2:08)
125: #12 Jakob Camacho (NCSU) def. Chad Bellis (APP), 19-3 tech fall
133: Ethan Oakley (APP) def. Jarrett Trombley (NCSU), 4-2 dec.
141: #9 Ryan Jack (NCSU) def. Kaden Keiser (APP), 20-6 maj. dec.
Attendance: 1,000
By Zach Smith. BOONE, N.C. — Round 1 of the 2023 NCHSAA 4A West playoffs is in the history books and boy, what a game played on Nov. 3 by Watauga vs. Hickory Ridge. Let’s relive “Friday Night Lights.”
Pregame Notes
#2 Watauga (10-0, 5-0) faces #31 Hickory Ridge (3-7, 3-3) at home in the first round of the NCHSAA 4A playoffs
Watauga earned an undefeated season, winning their 6th straight conference title
Hickory Ridge finished 4th in a difficult Greater Metro conference that features other top Charlotte area schools
This is the first meeting between Watauga and Hickory Ridge
Team Leaders Coming Into the Game
Watauga
QB/DB #4 Maddox Greene (Jr)
TE/LB #9 Jackson Pryor (Sr)
RB #20 Matthew Leon (So)
LB #6 Trathan Gragg (Jr)
WB/DB #12 Evan Burroughs (So)
Hickory Ridge
QB #4 Caden Haywood (Sr)
RB/WR #9 Connor Shulman (Sr)
WR/RB #3 Dominic Testa (Jr)
Play by Play
HR wins toss, elects to receive opening kickoff
HR ball at Watauga 47
Connor Shulman carries up the middle for 3 yards
Caden Haywood pass complete right to Jelon Springs for 4 yards
Shulman carries up the middle for 3 yards
Haywood pass complete left to Shulman for no gain
Haywood pass incomplete
Haywood pass incomplete
Haywood pass incomplete
Morgan Henry with QB pressure
Turnover on downs
Watauga ball at their own 37
Matthew Leon carries up the middle for 8 yards
Leon carries up the middle for 26 yards
Leon carries up the middle for 9 yards
Maddox L sacked for loss of 5 yards
Penalty: Holding against Watauga, 3rd and 15 at HR 34
TOUCHDOWN WATAUGA
#4 Maddox Greene 34-yard pass (1) to #14 Morgan Henry (1)
#41 Jack Wilson PAT is good
Watauga 7 Hickory Ridge 0
Penalty: Illegal touching against Watauga on onside kick attempt
HR ball at Watauga 49
Shulman tackled for loss of 1 yard
Brady Lindenmuth with the TFL
Haywood pass incomplete
Haywood pass incomplete
HR punts
Watauga ball at their own 5
Leon carries up the middle for 1 yard
Henry carries left for 2 yards
Greene fumbles, loses 5 yards
Watauga punts
HR ball at Watauga 42
Haywood pass complete right to Dominic Testa for 4 yards
Haywood carries up the middle for 4 yards, fumbles
Recovered by Harrison Black for total gain of 13 yards
Special Report from App State Sports. BOONE, N.C. — Home basketball games for App State’s men and women will again be streamed on ESPN+ during the 2023-24 season — with the exception of the nationally televised Dec. 3 men’s game against Auburn on ESPN2 — while the wrestling schedule begins Friday with App State’s home dual against No. 3 NC State being available on Facebook, YouTube and Twitch.
Free of charge, fans will be able to watch the Mountaineers face the Wolfpack live at 7 p.m. on the App State Wrestling Facebook page, the App State Athletics YouTube page or the Twitch.TV channel for App State Athletics. Future streaming options for wrestling are subject to change.
in addition to Auburn’s nationally televised visit to boone, men’s basketball has 15 scheduled home games at holmes convocation center.
Season tickets and single-event tickets remain available for wrestling, men’s basketball and women’s basketball. A single-event ticket to the NC State match, one of three premium duals on wrestling’s home schedule, costs $20.
Season tickets for wrestling’s 10 regular-season competitions (with two doubleheaders and two tournaments) are available for $60 (adults), or at $85 for a premium season ticket with a chairback seat on the floor, close to the mat. Additionally, there’s a $70 mini-pack for matside tickets to the three dates with No. 3 NC State, No. 25 North Carolina and No. 7 Cornell (as part of a doubleheader) visiting Boone.
Aside from Auburn’s nationally televised visit to Boone, men’s basketball has 15 home games scheduled for the Holmes Convocation Center, plus the Hickory Hoops Classic against UNC Asheville on Dec. 21. The first Boone appearance will be Tuesday’s Nov. 7 home opener against Oakland City at 6:30 p.m.
Women’s basketball has 13 home games on its 2023-24 schedule, including Monday’s Nov. 6 opener against UNCG at 6:30 p.m.
BOONE, N.C. — App State team captain Jackson Greene, a safety and special teams standout, is one of 73 nominees for the Burlsworth Trophy that goes to the outstanding FBS player who began his career as a walk-on and has shown outstanding performance on the field.
A fifth-year redshirt junior playing for his hometown school, Greene has appeared in 43 career games for the Mountaineers. He made a career-high eight tackles Saturday in the win against Southern Miss, came up with a key interception in the second half of the season-opening win against Gardner-Webb and is a staple on all four App State special teams units (kick return, punt return, kickoff coverage, punt coverage).
Greene has accumulated more than 560 special teams plays in his career since arriving as a walk-on from nearby Watauga High School, and he has made three tackles on special teams already this season.
The Burlsworth Trophy is named in honor of Brandon Burlsworth, a former Arkansas walk-on and All-America offensive lineman whose life is the subject of the movie “Greater.” Without a single Division I scholarship offer, Burlsworth became a three-year starter at Arkansas and was eventually named an All-American in 1998.
He was selected with the 63rd overall pick by the Indianapolis Colts in the 1999 NFL draft but was tragically killed in a car accident 11 days later. The Burlsworth Foundation was created in his memory and supports the physical and spiritual needs of children, in particular those children who have limited opportunities.
By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — App State’s defense finally figured out how to stop Southern Miss running back Frank Gore, Jr. and put together two key defensive stops in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, the Joey Aguilar-led Mountaineer offense scored 20 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to seal a Homecoming win on Oct. 28, 38-28, in front of 32,601 at Kidd Brewer Stadium.
After trading opening TDs, the Mountaineers trailed the Eagles by 10 points at three different points leading up to the last 14 minutes of the game. They trailed 14-24 late in the second quarter, 21-31 early in the third period, and 28-38 early in Q4.
It will probably surprise no one watching this game that App State’s fortunes began to turn in the fourth quarter when they apparently learned how to stop the Eagles’ featured running back, Frank Gore, Jr. The man was a Halloween monster in the eyes of App Nation through three quarters, with gains of 42 yards and 75 yards for TDs in the second and third quarters, respectively. But he also had big gains of 10 and 43 yards, respectively, that set up other Southern Miss scoring opportunities.
Gore’s impact on this game was reminiscent of North Carolina sophomore Omarion Hampton in Chapel Hill on Sept. 9, except the Mountaineers could find no answers for Hampton in the overtime loss, 40-34. Hampton rolled up 234 yards rushing and 3 TDs in his breakout game for North Carolina. Gore, more of a known commodity with a father’s NFL pedigree to match, tore through the App State defense for 247 yards rushing and 2 TDs and setting up others.
Southern Miss got its last touchdown at the 14:01 mark of the 4th quarter when running back Jakarius Caston swept around the left side for an 11-yard TD, also giving the Eagles their last 10-point advantage.
Christan Horn grabs TD pass vs. Southern Miss on Oct. 28. Photo by Charlie Ventura, courtesy of App State Sports
App State was not done on offense, however.
On the next possession, after Aguilar kept the ball and bowled through defenders for a 20-yard gain up the middle, advancing the Mountaineers to near midfield, three plays later he found wide receiver Christan Horn open in the left flat. The junior out of Columbia, S.C. strong-armed his way around one defender, then sprinted down the sideline and into the end zone to bring App State back to within a field goal with a successful Michael Hughes PAT kick, 35-38.
Wiles and the Southern Miss offense were able to get one first down early in their next offensive opportunity but, on 3rd-and-10, Wiles and receiver Tiaquelin Mim came up short with only a six-yard gain and the Eagles were forced to punt. App State safety E J. Jackson, a senior transfer from Marshall was credited with the stop.
After another App State defensive effort forced the Eagles to punt, redshirt freshman running back Kanye Roberts negotiated his way through the left side of the line of scrimmage, broke into the clear and sprinted down the sideline. It was a 61-yard dash to paydirt that gave App State its first lead of the day, 42-38 (with Hughes’ PAT), with a little more than six and a half minutes remaining.
Southern Miss was again frustrated by a stingy Mountaineer defense, the Eagles’ 10-play drive getting no further than the APP30 before turning the ball over on downs. With 2:44 left on the game clock, App State seemed in control but needed at least one, perhaps two first downs to effectively run out the clock — but they got more than that from Aguilar, Roberts, Horn et al.
After Roberts romped for 25 yards on the second play of the drive, with eight seconds remaining Aguilar found Horn running down the right sideline, finding him in the end zone for the night’s final points.
POSTGAME NOTES from App State Sports
App State snapped a two-game losing streak to win its fourth game of the year and move to 2-2 in Sun Belt Conference play.
The Mountaineers are 3-1 at The Rock this year. Their 51-10 record (.836 pct) in home games since making the transition to FBS in 2014 is seventh-best among all FBS teams (behind Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, Georgia, Oklahoma and Oregon).
App State won on Homecoming for the ninth straight year and improved its all-time Homecoming record to 48-13-2.
Attendance at Kidd Brewer Stadium was 32,601, the ninth-largest crowd in stadium history.
App State defeated Southern Miss for the first time after taking losses in 1937 and 2014, both in the state of Mississippi.
This was the fifth straight game – and the sixth in the last seven – to be decided in the closing seconds. The Mountaineers’ fourth-down touchdown with 8 seconds remaining sealed a two-score victory after a Mountaineer fumble with 14 seconds left bounced around before being recovered by the home team.
Earning his first career start was cornerback Trenton Alan Yowe.
OFFENSE
The Mountaineers’ offense put up a season-high 48 points and a season-high 571 total yards, including 34 points and 301 yards in the second half alone.
Christan Horn caught a career-high eight passes for a career-high 165 yards and two touchdowns. His scores were an integral part of the final 12 minutes of the fourth quarter during which App State turned a 10-point deficit into a 10-point victorious margin.
Bouncing back from a pair of first-half turnovers, Joey Aguilar finished the game with a career-high 391 passing yards and matched his career high with four passing touchdowns, while completing 23 of 33 passes.
Aguilar has thrown multiple passing TDs in all but one game this season and leads the Sun Belt with 20.
Running back Kanye Roberts rushed 13 times for 109 yards and a touchdown, one week after he went for 109 in his first career start at Old Dominion. Of his 109 yards against Southern Miss, 92 came in the fourth quarter, including 86 on back-to-back runs. His 61-yard touchdown with 6:37 left in the game gave the Mountaineers their first lead at 42-38.
Running back Maquel Haywood scored his first touchdown as a Mountaineer.
Other touchdowns came from wide receiver Dashaun Davis (third of the season), tight end Eli Wilson (third of the season) and running back Ahmani Marshall (second of the season).
DEFENSE
Linebacker Andrew Parker Jr. led all players with a career-high 13 tackles.
In his most extensive action of the season, Marshall transfer safety EJ Jackson produced a season-high 11 tackles and two pass breakups.
Cornerback Ethan Johnson notched a career-high four passes broken up to lead the Mountaineer defense that broke up a season-high 10 passes.
Linebacker Caden Sullivan, who finished with seven tackles, a sack and a forced fumble, made one of the game’s biggest plays with a sack that knocked the ball out of Southern Miss QB Wiles’ grasp and was recovered by Michael Fletcher at USM’s 1-yard line.
Defensive tackle Santana Hopper made his presence known with a career-high five tackles, a TFL and two QB hurries after posting 1.5 sacks a week earlier.
g
Gore was not the only Southern Miss offensive threat, of course. In fact, it could be argued that Gore’s success began in the second quarter after Southern Miss QB
By David Rogers. CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Having all five of your top runners of record complete a 5,000 meters cross country course among the top 50 finishers is a sure way to have a strong team showing when all is said and done. For Watauga in the NCHSAA 4A West Regionals at McAlpine Park, that is what both the men’s and women’s teams achieved on Oct. 28.
MEN’S DIVISION
Led by Pioneer junior Will Bradbury returning to form and capturing the No. 7 spot among 130 harriers in Men’s Division final of the 4A West regional meet, Watauga finished No. 7 in the team standing Removing the runners who did not have enough teammate participation to count as the required 5-man team, the Pioneer team scorers included at No. 7 (Bradbury) – No. 17 (Sam Nixon) – No. 31 (Calvin Zwetsloot) – No. 38 (Jonah Norris) – and No. 44 (Elliott Taft). Even the two alternatives embraced the top 50, including Sam Rex (No. 47), and Collin Anderson (No. 51).
Out of the 17 teams in the men’s division, Ardrey Kell swept the top two places, with senior Raghav Gopalakrishnan and junior Joey Joseph Wells taking top honors ahead of Kevin Cordero (T C Roberson), Will Fiore (T C Roberson) and Logah Hill (Charlotte Catholic) finishing ahead of Bradbury. Not even a full half-minute separated the seven racers. Gopalakrishnan’s first place time was 15:41.62 while Bradbury crosse the line in 16:14.59
WOMEN’S DIVISION
Watauga didn’t have a full contingent of seven student athletes (five scoring plus two alternates) in this race, but the six representing the Pioneers all ran among the top 38 team finishers, including No. 11 (Janie Beach-Verhay) – No. 19 (Rachel Cathey) – No. 24 (Lainey Johnston) – No. 25 (Winter Shaw) – No. 36 (Sydney Cate Townsend) and alt No. 38 (Ellary Smith).
A senior and a sophomore led Myers Park to the team title. Mary Bonner Dalton, the senior, claimed top individual honors in 18:15.39, roughly 45 seconds ahead of her young teammate. Ardreu Kell, T C. Roberson, and Charlotte Catholic rounded out the top four teams ahead of Watauga.
By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. —What started as an old-fashioned, offensive barnburner quickly morphed into a one-sided juggernaut of discipline and multi-faceted power on Oct. 27 at Jack Groce Stadium. The host Watauga Pioneers pummeled the Ashe County Huskies, 63-27, marking the end of the 2023 high school football “regular” season.
For Watauga, it is surely not the end of the 2023 football season as they await their seeding in the NCHSAA 4A West state playoffs and an opponent, almost certainly to be in Boone. For Ashe County, the Huskies’ 6-4 overall, 2-3 in conference play may well not be good enough to make the state playoffs this year.
With big smiles to match the big hands reflecting the 10-0 regular season, Watauga celebrates after its 63-27 win over Ashe County. Photographic image by Jared Everett for High Country Sports.
For Watauga, the win over Ashe County completes the last smear of frosting on the regular season. They remained undefeated against Northwestern Conference opponents (5-0) and now go into post-season play with an unblemished, hard-fought, 10-0 record when you include the early, non-conference slate of tough opponents.
Remarkably, Watauga is now 30-0 after capturing the last of six consecutive Northwestern Conference titles, which speaks not just to the coaching staff assembled by head coach Ryan Habich, now in his 11th season at the helm of the Pioneer program, but also to the buy-in of the student athletes and their parents over the years into the culture that has been created in Boone. It is a blue color program with the acronyms to match.
Photographic image by Jared Everett for High Country Sports
Friday night’s contest was a matchup of differences: Watauga’s “NASCAR” offense vs. Ashe County’s “Air Raid” offense.
The latter is no slouch. In no way do we want to suggest that Ashe County was a doormat opponent, because they are the opposite. If they had not through realignment been thrust into the 3A/4A Northwestern Conference, they might well be competing for the 3A title this year.
In many respects, Watauga had more to fear going up against the Huskies than they did against the more athletic Alexander Central, Hibriten, and especially Freedom teams in the weeks before.
That’s because Ashe County’s attack strikes at arguably the Pioneers’ weakest position group — except for the fact Watauga overcomes the lack of roster depth by deploying several of the team’s best players on both offense and defense. That 2-way commitment and the high level of conditioning embraced by the players accepting the 2-way challenges provide at least a 1.5X roster multiple.
Maddox Greene (4) intercepts pass in the end zone during Watauga’s 63-27 win over Ashe Country on Oct. 27. Photo by Jared Everett for High Country Sports
Just as the term, “Air Raid” suggests, head coach Brian Hampton, now in his 12th year heading the Ashe County program, has modeled a high-flying aerial attack that can bring up big chunks of yardage, whether in one play or in an entire offensive series. The Huskies ran a whopping 72 offensive plays against the Pioneers, accumulating 388 yards of total offense. All but 51 yards of it was through the air.
Against many opponents at the high school level, controlling possession for 72 plays and rolling up 388 yards would be more than enough to win the day. Senior quarterback Blake Peters completed 35 of 51 pass attempts for 338 yards and two TDs, offset by delivering two interceptions into the poaching hands of Watauga defensive backs Ben Gosky and Maddox Greene.
Because of its high-octane, up tempo, “rule the roads” style, some Pioneer fans have started referring to Watauga’s offensive attack as a “NASCAR” blend, leaning toward a grinding, rushing offense but from time to time interspersing aerial strikes where the wheels all but come off. Now with a maturing quarterback in junior Maddox Greene, in whom Habich and his offensive coaches have been able to develop some effective passing skills to match his running acumen, the 2023 edition of the Pioneers evolved as a multi-headed offensive monster. If Greene, sophomore RB sensation Everett Gryder, sophomore “Swiss Army Knife” back Evan Burroughs, or senior hybrid back Morgan Henry aren’t getting the results you expected, a Greene-to-Jackson Pryor, Greene-to-Burroughs, Greene-to-Henry, or Greene to one of two capable tight ends, senior Grayson Elliott or junior Trathan Gragg are likely to get the job done.
Even with a reputation for keeping the ball on the ground, taking time off the clock and keeping opposing offenses off the field, Watauga has at times used its aerial combinations to great effect this year.
Against the Huskies, Greene directed an offense that rolled up 352 yards rushing, but showed balance with 221 passing yards to just two receivers, Burroughs (4 catches, 186 yards, and 3 TDs) and Pryor (3 catches, 36 yards).
Coming out party?
Rushing, of course Greene was a team leader in keeping the ball on the ground. In what has become characteristic production for the explosive junior playmaker, Greene kept the ball 13 times for 189 yards and three TDs, including a 2-point conversion. His longest ramble was “just” 58 yards, but that means the average yards per carry for the other 12 totes of the football was over 10 yards, or almost 11 yards per carry.
Evan Burroughs dances over and past an Ashe County defender on Oct. 27/ Photo by Jared Everett for High Country Sports.
But with sophomore running back Everett Gryder suddenly showing up on the sidelines, on crutches, in the first quarter, it was “next man up” time for the Watauga running back room. Enter fellow sophomore and emerging Pioneer track star, Matthew Leon, who as a freshman last spring won the Northwestern Conference 400 meters event, according to records publicly available at MileSplitNC
It turns out that a sprinter’s speed is useful on a football field, too. In his first night as Watauga’s lead B-back, Leon carried the ball 16 times in a little more than three quarters for 101 yards and two touchdowns. As coming out parties go, Leon’s night was a good debut.
Next up for Watauga will be to see where their unblemished regular season record will land them in the NCHSAA 4A West Football Championship seedings. Prior to Friday night games, Watauga had the No. 2 RPI, behind top-seeded Weddington.
Ashe County awaits their fate in the 3A West classification. With a 6-4 overall record and 2-3 record in conference, the Huskies are likely to be on the outside looking in.
