Monday Morning Quarterback: Oct. 24 by Eric Lusk

A WEEKLY DIGITAL MAGAZINE FROM YADKIN VALLEY SPORTS & FOOTHILLS FOOTBALL

Monday Morning

Quarterback Monday, Oct. 24, 2011

BATTLE FOR NUMBER ONE

Starmount (9-0) will host Wilkes Central (9-0) for Mountain Valley championship  West Stokes clinches Northwest 1A/2A championship  South Stokes stuns Mount Airy 28-17  Surry Central, North Stokes combine for 121 points

Much anticipated Finally, it’s time for Wilkes Central-Starmount By Eric Lusk Editor

Since conference play began, the Northwest 1A/2A has had a “Game of the Century” about every week. It started with Mount Airy-West Stokes, and continued with numerous other marquee match-ups like Surry Central-Mount Airy, North SurryMount Airy, Surry Central-East Surry, Surry Central-West Stokes, North Surry-Surry Central and on and on. There are other big-stakes games on tap this week as well, with North Surry hosting West Stokes and East Surry entertaining Mount Airy. The Mountain Valley 1A/2A Conference has been a different story. We’ve known pretty much since the summer that Starmount and Wilkes Central would be head and shoulders above the rest of the conference pack, and the MVAC season has borne that out for the most part. West Wilkes gave Starmount a good test a few weeks ago, and Wilkes Central had to scrap for victory at Ashe County. But everything else has been pretty routine for the Rams and Eagles. Dare we say, even a little bor-

ing at times. At long last, the MVAC gets its Game of the Century this week with Starmount hosting Wilkes Central on the final night of the regular season. Both teams are 9-0 overall. Both have spotless 7-0 conference records. Both have speed like no other teams in the conference. Both play fierce defense and both make their way offensively with effective variations on the Wing-T. Unlike last season when Starmount was seen as the heavy favorite, this Friday’s match-up looks like a toss-up on many fronts. The Rams should get a boost from being at home and maybe they get an edge from being the reigning MVAC champions three years running (including what is now a 32-game conference winning streak). But West Stokes proved earlier in the year that long-time champions can be beaten on their home field, knocking off Mount Airy 17-6. We think the potential is there for one of those epic match-ups between two conference super powers that fans will be talking about for a long, long time. We hope so, anyways, considering we’ve had to wait this long to see the two stalwarts face each other.

Monday Morning

A WEEKLY DIGITAL MAGAZINE FROM YADKIN VALLEY SPORTS & FOOTHILLS FOOTBALL

Volume 2 * Issue 10 * Oct. 24, 2011 * www.YadkinValleySports.com eric@yadkinvalleysports.com * (336) 835-4121

Eric Lusk

Editor & Publisher

Pam Lusk

Business Manager

On The Cover

Wilkes Central’s Austin McConnell and Starmount’s Fondae McDaniel

Contributors

Rick Papsun, TC Gammons, Phil Goble, Tim Weatherman, Jimmy Kuhn, William Sparklin, Kelly Snow, Christopher Noble WWW.YADKINVALLEYSPORTS.COM

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Monday Morning Quarterback

In The Rearview Mirror Friday, Oct. 21 Games

NORTHWEST 1A/2A North Surry 28, East Surry 26 South Stokes 28, Mount Airy 11 West Stokes 48, Bishop McGuinness 0 Surry Central 76, North Stokes 45 MOUNTAIN VALLEY 1A/2A Starmount 55, Alleghany 18 Wilkes Central 43, Elkin 19 West Wilkes 48, North Wilkes 22 Ashe County 16, Forbush 11 East Wilkes OPEN

On The Horizon Friday, Oct. 28 Games

NORTHWEST 1A/2A West Stokes at North Surry Mount Airy at East Surry South Stokes at Surry Central North Stokes at Bishop McGuinness MOUNTAIN VALLEY 1A/2A Wilkes Central at Starmount Alleghany at West Wilkes East Wilkes at Ashe County Forbush at Elkin North Wilkes at McDowell END REGULAR SEASON

is a digital publication of:

Week Ten In Review

First & 10

Ten things to take away from week 10 of the football season By Eric Lusk Editor

West Stokes has clinched its first conference championship in football. The Wildcats’ win over Bishop McGuinness on Friday night, combined with Mount Airy’s loss to South Stokes, makes it mathematically impossible for anyone to catch West Stokes in the Northwest standings. Needless to say, there is great pride in King these days.

You have to wonder how what transpired with Wilkes Central this week will affect the team for the rest of the season. More than a dozen players were suspended for the Elkin game Friday for undisclosed disciplinary reasons. It is believed everyone will be back this week for the big game with Starmount. While it’s not important that we the public know what happened to create that situation, it will be interesting to see whether its effects linger through these next few weeks in a negative way or whether the issue will galvanize the team into a stronger unit.

West Stokes still has plenty to play for this week. An NFL team in the Wildcats’ shoes might rest a bunch of starters on Friday to rest up for the playoffs. But it’s doubtful the Wildcats will even consider that. West Stokes can achieve its first 10-0 regular season and it can help its state playoff seeding by closing out North Surry. Though the Greyhounds aren’t undefeated any more, this is still one of the more intriguing games of the week for our area.

Starmount vs. Wilkes Central is finally here. Finally! Friday will be like Christmas Day in the MVAC. The next few days will be like Christmas Eve, with likely a lot of pregame chatter filling up message boards.

MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

one is pretty impressive considering Fleming is a quarterback and not a tailback.

There are 20 undefeated football teams left around the state heading into week 10 (all classifications). Three of them reside in Monday Morning Quarterback territory – West

Stokes (10-0), Starmount (9-0) and Wilkes Central (9-0). We’ll lose at least one this Friday when the Rams and Eagles collide, but there will be at least one team from our area that can claim they had a perfect regular season, maybe two. That’s quite an accomplishment no matter the competition.

South Stokes pulled off what may be the first true upset of the season in this area by beating Mount Airy on Friday night. There have been some nailbiters this season for sure, and some much hyped-games. But this is the likely the first final score we’ve heard involving a Northwest or Mountain Valley team where the majority of people have been wowed to hear the result. The result tightens things in the Northwest Conference among the 1A schools, each of whom are vying for playoff position-

Photo by Eric Lusk

Forbush had a tough time running around Ashe County senior Josh Wineberg on Friday night in East Bend.

Starmount’s seniors have a chance to be part of a class that has never lost a varsity conference game if it can beat Wilkes Central on Friday. Obviously many of the current senior Rams played JV as freshmen and maybe as sophomores, too. But Starmount’s varsity football team has not lost a conference game since this group of seniors started high school. The Rams’ lost conference loss came in 2007.

Photo by Eric Lusk

Austin Fleming (holding flag) became West Stokes’ all-time leading rusher on Friday and helped lead the Wildcats to their first conference title in football. ing – and in some cases, vying to get into the post-season.

There have been some final scores this season that look like basketball games instead of football. Surry Central and North Stokes seemed like they were hooping it up Friday night.

The Eagles put up a whopping 73 points on the Vikings, who kept the pressure on by scoring 46. Somebody make sure and check this winter to see if the two teams combine for more points on the hardwood in either of their two regular season meetings. WWW.YADKINVALLEYSPORTS.COM

Ashe County’s Josh Wineberg is certainly a game-changer. The senior defensive end gave Forbush fits on Friday night, like he has a lot of other teams in the conference. For example, Forbush was trailing 14-11 in the fourth period and moved the ball within field goal range. On third down, the Falcons tried a sweep to the right, but Wineberg sniffed it out and threw the ball-carrier for a big loss. That moved Forbush out of range to try a potential game-tying field goal, and the Falcons threw an incomplete pass on fourth down. “He’s an impressive looking kid,” Forbush coach Chris Johnson said. “We thought we could get around him. We tried and we never could.”

West Stokes senior Austin Fleming became his school’s all-time leading rusher on Friday. Fleming now has 3,376 rushing yards with the varsity Wildcats. He had his name on several other school records already but this is WWW.YADKINVALLEYSPORTS.COM

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Week Ten In Focus

Football champs, at last West Stokes celebrates first conference title in school history By Robert Money

Special to YadkinValleySports.com

KING — Fifteen West Stokes seniors said their goodbyes to family and friends as their last regular season game was played at Wildcat Stadium on Friday night. These seniors did not disappoint, rocking Bishop McGuinness from the get go in a 48-0 rout. With the victory, coupled by South Stokes’ upset win over Mount Airy 28-17, the Wildcats clinched the school’s first ever conference championship in football under the direction of head coach Jimmy Upchurch. “I’m truly excited for our players, coaching staff, administration, student body, and all of our fans,” Upchurch said. “It has taken us nine years, but we have finally done it. When I accepted this job back in 2003, I was told many times by some of my peers that I would never win at West Stokes. Those words keep motivating me personally. “Coach (Steve) Whitt and the rest of our defensive staff have done a phenomenal job this year. This has been one of the most memorable groups of seniors I have ever been around. They get along and have so much unselfishness. I’m not ready for this ride to be over quite yet!” The Wildcats scored a mere two and a half minutes into the game when Austin Fleming galloped 33-yards to pay dirt and kicker Zane McGhee added the extra point for an early 7-0 lead. The Cats started another drive at the end of the first quarter, and then scored 15 seconds into the second when Fleming dashed another 38 yards to the end zone. Matt Hopper added the point after, and the Wildcats’ lead grew to 14-0. West Stokes tacked on two more touchdowns in the quarter when senior

MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

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Photo by Eric Lusk

Brock Reynolds and the Wildcats are conference champions. Eorn Jenkins added his first touchdowns of the season since returning from a broken leg. McGhee and Hopper each added an extra point and the Cats led 28-0 going into the locker room. The Villains received the opening second half kickoff and sustained a drive for more than four minutes before the Wildcat offense had a chance to add to their lead. After a turnover on downs by the Villains, Fleming converted a third-and-two situation into a 60-yard touchdown run. Hopper added the ex-

tra point and the Wildcats led 35-0 with 7:13 left in the third quarter. Fleming added his fourth touchdown of the game with 4:25 remaining in the third quarter, and then managed to break the school’s all time rushing record on the Cats’ next possession. Fleming amassed 223 yards on the evening and passed Jonathan Adams career rushing record of 3,374 yards by two yards on the night. “I am so happy for Austin and his family,” said Upchurch. “He holds several records at this school and some of those will be hard to break. Austin has been such a leader by example and it has been such a pleasure to have him around.” After a standing ovation by the crowd, Fleming was removed from the game. The Wildcats tacked on another touchdown late, when Malik Banner trotted nine yards for his first career varsity touchdown. On the previous play, his cousin and freshman running back Rashad Witherspoon set up Banner’s run with a 20-yard dash up the middle. West Stokes totaled 415 yards on the evening with 370 of them on the ground on 46 carries. Fleming needed 19 carries to get his 223. Jenkins followed with 63 yards, Witherspoon 42 and Banner 23. Four other Wildcats tallied the rest of the yardage. The stingy defense of West Stokes only gave up 39 total yards on the evening with the Villains carrying the ball 39 times for 33 rushing yards. Junior Anthony Wilding led the Cats in tackles with 14. Senior Tyler Bullard and junior Zack Manley added 10 tackles each in the game. Bullard recorded one sack on the night bringing his total to 14 on the year. He needs one more sack to tie a season record of 15 set by Bobby Shouse in 2009. OCTOBER 24, 2011

Week Ten In Focus

Eye-catching box score

STILL HURTING?

Surry Central, North Stokes combine for 121 points Surry Central’s football team did something Friday night that its boys basketball team didn’t do during the entire 2010-11 season – score more than 70 points in a game. No, your eyes weren’t deceiving you when you saw the final score from Surry Central’s game at North Stokes on Friday night. The Golden Eagles really did win the wild shootout 76-45. Surry Central held a 41-26 lead at halftime and just kept finding the end zone after the break. Wes Brown scored six rushing touchdowns. His scoring runs covered 24, 5, 33, 53, 25 and 17 yards. Coaches have said it all year, but Brown truly was unstoppable. Jared Dimmette added two more touchdown runs for Central. Both of his scoring plays covered more than 60 yards. Colby Cooke, Saul Hernandez and Kenyon Martin all found the end zone once. Orlando Perez made all 10 of his extra point tries. Surry Central misfired on a two-point conversion. While North Stokes could do little to stop the freight train (Brown) and the express line (Dimmette), Surry Central’s secondary had a tough time containing North quarterback Garrett Wood. That kept things on fast forward all night. Wood threw five touchdown passes and rushed for another two scores. He might have been the conference MVP any other week with those kind of numbers but Brown’s performance – and Surry Central’s final tally – stole many of the headlines. Matthew Hopkins hauled in three of Wood’s TD passes. The game was a normal looking 14-6 after one quarter. Then, for fans of highpowered offense, the next three quarters probably felt like drinking water out of a fire hose. The teams combined for seven touchdowns in the second period and five more in the third. Surry Central (6-3, 4-2 Northwest) tacked on two more scores in the final

MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

son Friday at home against South Stokes. North Stokes will face Bishop McGuinness. Below is the game box score, courtesy of the Winston-Salem Journal. Pity the poor sports desk worker who had to take that call-in Friday evening on deadline. Surry Central 76, North Stokes 45 Friday * at Danbury Surry Central 14 27 21 14 -- 76 North Stokes 6 19 14 6 -- 45

Photo by Eric Lusk

Wes Brown scored six touchdowns for Surry Central on Friday. period to salt the victory away, with North Stokes finding the end zone one more time. The Golden Eagles have become a scoring machine in recent weeks. They put up 42 against North Surry the week before and tallied 47 the game before that against Bishop McGuinness. Surry Central closes the regular sea-

Scoring Summary First Quarter SC — Wes Brown 24 run (Perez kick) NS — Garrett Wood 2 run (kick failed) SC — Colby Cooke 5 run (Perez kick) Second Quarter NS — Wood 10 run (Lawrence kick) SC — Jared Dimmette 62 run (Perez kick) NS — Dillion Rogers 80 pass from Wood (pass failed) SC — Wes Brown 5 run (Perez kick) SC — Wes Brown 33 run (Perez kick) NS — Matthew Hopkins 12 pass from Wood (pass failed) SC — Dimmette 65 run (run failed) Third Quarter SC — Brown 53 run (Perez kick) NS — Hopkins 48 pass from Wood (pass failed) SC — Brown 25 run (Perez kick) NS — Hopkins 20 pass from Wood (Hopkins pass from Wood) SC — Brown 17 run (Perez kick) Fourth Quarter SC — Saul Hernandez 13 run (Perez kick) NS — Dustin Smith 58 pass from Wood (pass failed) SC — Kenyon Martin 10 run (Perez kick) WWW.YADKINVALLEYSPORTS.COM

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Week Ten Revisiting Our Burning Questions

We asked, they answered During pre-game coverage last week, we posed five burning questions about area high school football at www. YadkinValleySports.com. Below are the questions again — and how what transpired on Friday night helped to answer them: 1. Will Starmount and/or Wilkes Central get caught looking ahead? What we wrote: “The Rams and Eagles, both 8-0, have an epic showdown scheduled for next Friday night in Boonville. Starmount is hoping to retain the conference title; Wilkes Central is hoping to swipe it away. But both teams have other business to attend to this evening, with Starmount taking a trip up the mountain to Alleghany and Wilkes Central hosting Elkin. The local teams are favored heavily, and it’s doubtful either team will get knocked off. But it’s important that both play well and feel good about themselves heading into such a big game next week.” What happened: Starmount romped in Sparta, needing just 10 offensive plays to help build a 44-6 halftime lead. The Rams eventually prevailed 57-18. Wilkes Central, meanwhile, survived a disruption to its normal routine when several regulars were benched for disciplinary reasons. Although more than a dozen starters were missing, Central emerged with a 43-19 triumph in what could have been a disastrous night. The showdown is set. Two 9-0 teams will face off for all the marbles next week in Boonville. 2. Can Mount Airy overcome the injury bug? What we wrote: “The Granite Bears lost all-state defensive back Joktan Moore to injury after the North Surry contest. He’s out for the season. Other Mount Airy players are banged up too, and the Granite Bears will need some

MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

a pass. The win puts Ashe in great shape to finish third on the 2A side of the conference and fourth overall behind Starmount, Wilkes Central and 1A West Wilkes. 4. Can West Stokes continue on its unfettered path toward the Northwest 1A/2A Conference championship? What we wrote: “The Wildcats are in the driver’s seat to win their first conference title in football in school history. But they still need strong performances against Bishop McGuinness and North Surry the next two weeks to finish things out. Bishop knocked West Stokes out of sole possession of second place in last year’s standings with a 35-28 win in Kernersville. The Cats get a chance to avenge that defeat tonight at home.” What happened: West Stokes avenged last year’s loss to Bishop McGuinness in a big way, rolling 48-0. The Wildcats also had some help in the conference standings when South Stokes knocked off Mount Airy. That left unbeaten

West Stokes two games ahead of its closest competitors in the conference with one week to play. It doesn’t take a math major to know that means the conference title is clinched regardless of what happens against North Surry this Friday.

Elite Eight Power Rankings How They Fared * Who’s Next?

1. Starmount (9-0)

Last Friday: Beat Alleghany 57-18 This Friday: Hosting Wilkes Central

5. Can North Surry bounce back from two straight defeats? What we wrote: “We asked this last week after the Greyhounds suffered their first loss of the season against Mount Airy. North Surry fell again last Friday at Surry Central. A strong showing tonight against East Surry is needed to get back on track with the post-season approaching. East Surry has won just twice this season but is no pushover.” What happened: Alex Ratcliff found Jacob Pelfrey for a couple more touchdown receptions, and the Greyhounds outlasted East Surry 28-26. North’s losing skid ends at two games and the team gets a little shot of confidence heading into its game with West Stokes this week.

2. West Stokes (10-0) Last Friday: Beat Bishop 48-0 This Friday: Visiting North Surry

3. Wilkes Central (9-0) Last Friday: Beat Elkin 43-19 This Friday: Visiting Starmount

4. Mount Airy (7-3)

Last Friday: Lost to S. Stokes 28-17 This Friday: Visiting East Surry

5. West Wilkes (6-3)

Last Friday: Beat North Wilkes 48-22 This Friday: Hosting Alleghany

6. Surry Central (6-3)

Last Friday: Beat North Stokes 76-45 This Friday: Hosting South Stokes

7. North Surry (7-2)

Last Friday: Beat East Surry 28-26 This Friday: Hosting West Stokes

Photo by Eric Lusk

8. North Stokes (4-6)

The Starmount Rams took care of business Friday night, scoring 44 points in the first half and rolling to a 57-18 win over Alleghany.

reserves to step up tonight against a feisty, improved South Stokes bunch. Mount Airy still has the inside track at the top 1A seed from the conference for the playoffs. There is an outside shot at winning the conference title or finishing tied at the top if some dominoes fall their way (namely West Stokes losing).” What happened: Mounting injuries combined with an inspired performance from South Stokes led to a Sauras’ upset, 28-17. Mount Airy struggled to move the ball in the second half and shot itself in the foot with turnovers. 3. Who will step forward in the 2A

Last Friday: Lost to Surry Central 76-45 This Friday: Visiting Bishop

Mountain Valley race behind Starmount and Wilkes Central? What we wrote: “Forbush will host Ashe County tonight in what looms as a key contest among the 2A teams in that conference. The winner will have the inside track to third place behind the Rams and Eagles. Forbush got the biggest win of coach Chris Johnson’s tenure at the school last year at Ashe County. Can the Falcons repeat that feat tonight?” What happened: After a gritty performance from both sides, Ashe County emerged with a 16-11 victory. Matthew Sexton had a big night, catching two touchdown passes and picking off WWW.YADKINVALLEYSPORTS.COM

‘

THEY SAID IT

’

“When I accepted this job back in 2003, I was told many times by some of my peers that I would never win at West Stokes. Those words keep motivating me personally.” West Stokes coach Jimmy Upchurch

WWW.YADKINVALLEYSPORTS.COM

OCTOBER 24, 2011

Week Ten Game Coverage SOUTH STOKES 28, MOUNT AIRY 17

Sauras score big upset victory By Kelly Snow

Contributing Writer WALNUT COVE — South Stokes players and coaches struggled to find their usual place, standing on the sideline facing the crowd, as the band began to play the alma mater following Friday’s game against Mount Airy. And nobody seemed to mind. When the band finished playing, the sounds of cowbells and the reactions of overjoyed fans filled the void as the Sauras celebrated an emotional 28-17 victory against reigning Northwest 1A/2A champion Mount Airy. The victory was a new experience for South Stokes’ (5-4 overall, 3-3 Northwest 1A/2A) 12 seniors — it was their first home conference win, and appropriately enough, in their last home conference game. This class entered the season with just three wins in three years and a 1-19 record against Northwest 1A/2A foes, but is currently .500 in league play heading into the final week of the regular season. South Stokes should be a lock to make the postseason, potentially host a playoff game, and could actually finish the season with a winning record if it wins next week at Surry Central. “I am so happy for my seniors. These kids to have been through what they’ve been through, it’s amazing,” South Stokes coach Jonathan Frasher said. “You talk about kids that started as freshmen getting their butt kicked every Friday night by upperclassmen. To fight through that adversity, including games we think we should have won this year. I kept telling them to believe in themselves.” Sophomore Jacquan Martin carried much of the offensive load for the Sauras, finishing with an even 200 yards on 28 carries and four touchdowns. Martin’s first carry of the game, a 50-yard burst up the middle on South Stokes’ opening possession, lifted him over the 1,000-yard plateau for the season. The

MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

Photo by Eric Lusk

Danny Smith and the South Stokes Sauras beat Mount Airy on Friday.

powerful sophomore had five carries longer than 10 yards in the game. “Jacquan Martin can make a coach look good,” Frasher said. “He can make a coach look like he knows what he’s doing.” Mount Airy, playing without three two-way starters including preseason all-state performer Joktan Moore, took a 17-14 lead into halftime. The Granite Bears controlled the ball for much of the first half and racked up 199 yards on 31 plays, including a 22-yard touchdown pass from Austin Taylor to running back Ty Simmons. Mount Airy was held scoreless for the final 26 minutes of the game and didn’t have a second-half first down until the six-minute mark of the fourth quarter. “I challenged our kids at halftime. I told them that we’ve been in this position all year. Last week, we were down 7 at

West Stokes,” Frasher said. “I guarantee you, what everyone’s thinking right now is that we’re going to fold in the second half. Before I could even get that out of my mouth, one of my seniors said, ‘not tonight we won’t.’” Taylor connected on 8-of-17 passes for 103 yards and even caught a 19-yard pass on a trick play late in the game. Simmons led the Granite Bears in rushing with 71 yards. It was over when … South Stokes’ James Davis pulled down an interception on a desperation heave on 4th-and-19 with Mount Airy trailing by two scores with about three minutes remaining in the game. Turning point No. 1 — With the Granite Bears’ facing 3rd-and-6 from the Sauras’ 12-yard line late in the first half, Taylor rolled out and connected with Dobson on a play-action pass that almost went for a touchdown. Dobson scored on a run on the next play and Mount Airy was able to take a lead into halftime. Turning point No. 2 — Both defenses were playing well in the third quarter, but the Sauras were able to get a short field after a long punt return by James Davis — but that wasn’t the turning point. On 3rd-and-6 from the Granite Bears’ 13-yard line, South Stokes was given a gift first down on a late hit out of bounds following a completion that was short of the marker. One play later, Jacquan Martin scored the go-ahead touchdown. Turning point No. 3 — Mount Airy got the ball back midway through the fourth quarter and only trailing by four. The Granite Bears fumbled on the first play of the drive, it was recovered at the 17-yard line and the Sauras were able to extend the lead to two-possessions. A couple of minutes later, a Granite Bears receiver slipped behind the defense on long pass, but the ball bounced off his hands on what would have been a sure touchdown. WWW.YADKINVALLEYSPORTS.COM

Week Ten Game Coverage ASHE COUNTY 16, FORBUSH 11

Huskies hold on for key victory By Eric Lusk Editor

EAST BEND -- After the post-game handshakes Friday night, Forbush football coach Chris Johnson sought out Ashe County’s Matthew Sexton for another pat on the back. “What year are you?” Johnson asked the Ashe receiver/defensive back. When Sexton replied that he was a senior, Johnson smiled back and said, “Good.” Sexton was thorn in the Falcons’ side throughout the Huskies’ 16-11 victory Friday. He caught two touchdown passes in the first half and picked off a Forbush throw late in the fourth quarter to seal the victory. On his second TD pass, which gave Ashe County a 14-3 lead heading into the break, Sexton literally went over a Falcon defender in the end zone and snatched the ball away for the score. All told, Sexton caught nine passes from quarterback Sam Gammons for 140 yards, helping Ashe County improve to 5-5 overall and 4-3 in Mountain Valley 1A/2A Conference play. Forbush dropped to 3-6, 3-4 in conference. “We had our chances. We let some opportunities slip away,” Johnson said. The game, pitting a couple of middle of the pack teams battling for possible 2A state playoffs berths, certainly was a grinder ruled mostly by the defenses. Ashe County managed just 35 rushing yards on 27 carries and had only 186 total yards. Forbush finished with 205 total yards, getting 150 hard-earned clicks on the ground in 40 attempts. “We didn’t have the ball much the second half. They were running the football and making plays,” Ashe coach Bill Strong said. “We didn’t block them very well all night long. We weren’t able to run the football like we like to run. Fortunately we were able to throw it a little bit.” Forbush, hoping to build on last week’s 26-6 win at East Wilkes, got off to the start it wanted. The Falcons defense forced three punts in the opening quar-

MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

Photo by Eric Lusk

Ashe County’s Kolten Pilar fights for yardage against Forbush tackler Matthew Stanley during Friday’s game in East Bend. ter and limited Ashe County to minus 22 yards of offense. Forbush got a 35-yard field goal from Alex Torres on its first series but couldn’t capitalize on another foray deep into Huskies territory two possessions later. Ashe County’s Nate Price blew up a fourth-down run from Brittan Baity at the Husky 22, leaving Forbush a yard short of the first down. Johnson had pondered trying another field goal instead of going for it on fourth down, but really wanted to put Ashe on the ropes early. “I wanted to get up 10-0. In hindsight I wish we would have given (a field goal) a try,” Johnson said.

That defensive stop seemed to galvanize the Huskies, who finally started moving the ball with short passes and rollout throws from Gammons to Sexton. The two hooked up four times, helping the Huskies move from their own 22 to the Falcons’ 22. A motion penalty on play number nine of the drive pushed Ashe back 5 yards, but Gammons would find Sexton again on a deep route the next play. The senior hauled in the 27-yard scoring strike all alone in the end zone. The teams traded punts, and Forbush then punted a second time from deep in its own territory. Ashe County struck quickly, needing just three plays to move WWW.YADKINVALLEYSPORTS.COM

38 yards for a second touchdown. Gammons and Sexton turned a busted play into a highlight reel moment. Gammons lost control of a high snap, then was forced to roll out right after tracking down the ball. He heaved a pass to Sexton, who had again gotten behind the defense. The ball was a bit underthrown, but Sexton came back, leaped high in the air and pulled the ball away from defensive back G.C. Parks, who seemed to be sitting in a great spot to make an interception. “Sexton, he just makes plays. He is a competitor, and he’s smart,” Strong said. Forbush certainly had its chances in the second half to overtake the Huskies. Ashe County ran just three offensive plays in the third period and had only snapped the ball six times in the half at the 7:46 mark of the fourth period. The Falcons ate up most of the third-quarter clock on one plodding drive that started at their own 18. Using a combination of power and off-tackle runs by Zach Chambers and Brittan Baity, Forbush kept the ball for 17 plays. The Falcons converted one fourth-down play – barely – when Baity surged just ahead of the sticks at the Ashe 23. Forbush faced another fourth down and quarterback Bennett Winslow actually fumbled the ball behind the line of scrimmage. But Ashe County was whistled for a 15-yard face mask penalty, giving the Falcons new life. On the next play, Chambers plowed ahead 13 yards for the touchdown as time expired in the third quarter. Winslow’s two-point conversion run made it 14-11 Ashe with one quarter left. The Falcons had a golden opportunity when a mishandled Torres kickoff gave the Huskies the ball at their own 1. Johnson thought his team had earned a safety on the next snap – one official even called it – when an Ashe player was stacked up around

the goal line. But another official ruled that forward progress kept the ball at the 1. On the next play, Forbush thought it had come up with a fumble recovery near the goal line, but that play was whistled dead before any turnover. While Ashe had to punt, and Forbush got the ball back at the Huskies’ 30, the home team couldn’t punch it in or even get a first down. Thoughts of a field goal attempt went by the wayside when Ashe defensive end Josh Wineberg tackled a Forbush runner for a 7-yard loss on third down. A fourth-down throw fell incomplete. Even still, the Falcons had yet more chances. Parks intercepted a Gammons pass at the Forbush 31. The Falcons had to punt, and Ashe County’s Dominic Maxwell blocked it through the end zone for a safety. But the no-quit Falcons recovered an onsides kick attempt. Alex Mitchell came out of the pile with the ball to give Forbush another possession at its own 36 with 3:19 left. Enter Sexton, who snuffed out this possession with an interception on third down. Ashe County ran out the clock to preserve the victory. The Huskies are assured of at least a .500 season in conference play no matter what happens next week. Many believe this guarantees the team a spot in the upcoming 2A playoffs. “We said we needed to win this game in order to get in the playoffs,” Strong said. “That’s the way we approached it … Whatever the future holds, the future holds. We’ve got East Wilkes next week.” Forbush will try to regroup in its finale at Elkin. The Falcons’ playoff picture is much cloudier. Four wins may not be enough. “I felt like if we could have won out and been .500, we would have been in,” Johnson said. “Our best case scenario now is to go 4-6 , cross our fingers and hope the chips fall our way.”

Your radio source for Ashe County sports www.580wksk.com

Week Ten Game Coverage STARMOUNT 57, ALLEGHANY 18

Rams pile up points in hurry By Eric Lusk Editor

There is efficient, and then there was the Starmount football offense Friday night at Alleghany. The Rams ran 10 offensive plays in the first half, yet managed to build a 37-0 lead by the end of the first quarter and held a 44-6 edge at the break. The visitors from Boonville tacked on two more touchdowns after intermission en route to a 57-18 triumph. Running back Chaston Martin touched the ball three times Friday – and scored touchdowns on all three plays. His first touch, a 39-yard scamper, got the scoring started early in the first period. His second touch resulted in a 55-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Christian Hurt. His third was a 54-yard burst on a handoff that completed the explosive opening quarter. Starmount also recorded a safety in the first period, then Jac McCracken returned the ensuing kickoff 55 yards for a touchdown. Eugene Billips added the other TD in the period on a 15-yard run. A very busy Allen Mendenhall booted all five extra points successfully. Hurt pushed the Starmount lead to 44-0 with 9:19 left before halftime, returning a punt 65 yards for a touchdown. Alleghany finally cracked the scoreboard at the 2:41 mark in the second quarter when Jake Hampton found the end zone on a 4-yard run. Starmount’s second half scores came from reserves Trevor Swaim (65-yard run early in the third period) and Sergio Sarinara (30-yard run midway through the fourth quarter). Alleghany also tacked on two scores after the break, getting another short yardage touchdown from Hampton and a 19-

MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

Photo by Eric Lusk

Chaston Martin turned three touches into three touchdowns on Friday night.

yard TD completion from quarterback Grant Caudill to Ryan Billings. The Rams finished with 388 total yards of offense. Alleghany had a 100yard rusher in Luke Hampton. The senior finished with 102 yards on 18 carries, getting most of his yards in the second half. Martin led Starmount in rushing with 93 yards. Friday’s win gives Starmount its 32nd in a row in conference play, dating back to the 2007 season. The Rams improved to 9-0 overall and 7-0 in Mountain Valley 1A/2A Conference

play for this year. Their victory sets up a showdown next Friday night with Wilkes Central, who is also 9-0, 7-0. Wilkes Central beat Elkin 43-19 on Friday. Starmount and Wilkes Central played for the conference title at the end of last season as well, and the Rams surged late for a 35-14 decision. Starmount’s final score Friday was just about identical to its win against North Wilkes on Oct. 14. The Rams won that game 55-18. WWW.YADKINVALLEYSPORTS.COM

Conference Reports Northwest 1A/2A Northwest 1A/2A Standings TEAM

West Stokes (2A) North Surry (2A) Mount Airy (1A) Surry Central (2A) South Stokes (1A) East Surry (1A) North Stokes (1A) Bishop McGuin. (1A)

CONF.

TOTAL

THIS FRIDAY

6-0 4-2 4-2 4-2 3-3 2-4 1-5 0-6

10-0 7-2 7-3 6-3 5-4 2-7 4-6 2-7

@ North Surry West Stokes @ East Surry South Stokes @ Surry Central Mount Airy @ Bishop North Stokes

Photo by Eric Lusk

Surry Central players celebrate a win.

Top Players & Performances Jimmy Upchurch (West Stokes): The Wildcats coach since 2003 has been told numerous times over the past nine years that he can’t win at West Stokes. He has been proving them wrong for quite some time, and this year the ‘Cats earned their first conference title in the sport. Austin Fleming (West Stokes): The senior quarterback rushed his way into the school record books, piling up 223 yards and four touchdowns. Fleming is now West Stokes’ all-time leading rusher (3,376 yards and counting). Fleming’s scoring runs were highlight reel moments, covering 33, 38, 60 and 10 yards. Eorn Jenkins (West Stokes): On the comeback after breaking his leg, Jenkins rushed for 63 yards and two touchdowns in the second quarter. Anthony Wilding (West Stokes): Piled up 14 tackles for the Wildcats, a team high. Nine of his hits were unassisted. Tyler Bullard (West Stokes): Earned 10 tackles against Bishop McGuinness, including three hits that put runners down behind the line of scrimmage (one sack). Bishop managed just 39 yards of total offense, with its longest play of the night covering seven yards. Mason Edwards (East Surry): Completed 13 passes for 166 yards and two touchdowns in Friday’s narrow loss at North Surry. Edwards had a 1-yard TD run in the first quarter that gave the Cardinals an early lead. A 19-yard TD pass to Dustin Holder put the Cards ahead 13-0 in the second period.

MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

Austin Johnson (East Surry): Caught eight passes from Edwards for 81 yards, including one reception for a 3-yard TD in the final period as East Surry tried to mount a comeback. Alex Ratcliff (North Surry): The senior quarterback completed just seven of his 19 attempts. But three of those completions went for touchdowns. Ratcliff, who finished with 173 passing yards on the night, also rushed for a TD. Jacob Pelfrey (North Surry): Ratcliff’s favorite target this season added two more touchdown catches to his season resume. The two scoring plays covered 73 yards. Jesse Robertson (North Surry): Caught two passes for another 73 yards and scored one touchdown. Jacquan Martin (South Stokes): Rushed for 200 yards against what is usually a stingy Mount Airy defense. Martin found the end zone four times on runs of 26, 32, 4 and 3 yards. His stellar performance Friday pushed him over the 1,000-yard mark for the season. He had a 50-yard carry on his first attempt of the game. Martin accounted for 89 percent of the Sauras’ offensive yardage and all but four of their points. Andrew Martin (South Stokes): Booted all four extra point attempts following Martin’s TDs. Jonathan Frasher (South Stokes): Second year head coach has turned around a program that won just once in 2010 and zero times in 2009. South Stokes will take a 5-4 overall record and 3-3 conference mark into

Friday’s regular season finale against Surry Central. Frasher’s defense kept the Bears off the scoreboard in the second half Friday. Ty Simmons (Mount Airy): Rushed for 71 yards and caught a 22-yard touchdown pass in the losing cause. Austin Taylor (Mount Airy): Completed eight passes for 103 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed for 41 yards. Wes Brown (Surry Central): A big reason why the Golden Eagles amassed 76 points. Brown scored six touchdowns on runs of 24, 5, 33, 53, 25 and 17 yards. Jared Dimmette (Surry Central): Added a nice counterpunch to Wes Brown, rushing for two scores Friday. Surry Central Offensive Line: Any time you score more points than the average basketball team, your men up front are doing a heck of a job. Hats off to Surry Central’s OL this week for paving the way for Brown, Dimmette and company to pile up the points and yards. Garrett Wood (North Stokes): Surry Central scored on the ground. The Vikings went by air. The junior quarterback threw five touchdown passes Friday. He also got it done with his feet, rushing for a pair of scores. Matthew Hopkins (North Stokes): Hauled in three of Wood’s touchdown passes on plays of 12, 48 and 20 yards. Dillon Rogers (North Stokes): Caught an 80-yard pass from Wood in the second quarter. WWW.YADKINVALLEYSPORTS.COM

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Conference Reports Northwest 1A/2A

Full Schedules & Results Bishop McGuinness

North Stokes Vikings

Surry Central Golden Eagles

2-7 Overall * 0-6 in Northwest

4-6 Overall * 1-5 in Northwest

6-3 Overall * 4-2 in Northwest

Aug. 20 Aug. 26 Sept. 6 Sept. 9 Sept. 16 Sept. 23 Sept. 30 Oct. 7 Oct. 14 Oct. 21 Oct. 28

Aug. 19 Aug. 26 Sept. 2 Sept. 9 Sept. 16 Sept. 23 Sept. 30 Oct. 7 Oct. 14 Oct. 21 Oct. 28

at High Point Christian W (40-12) Open at Highland Tech W (31-6) South Davidson L (16-19) at North Surry* L (13-39) South Stokes* L (6-28) at East Surry* L (6-34) Surry Central* L (26-47) at Mount Airy* L (7-35) at West Stokes* L (0-48) North Stokes*

* denotes Northwest 1A/2A Conference game

Alleghany W (44-22) Patrick County (Va.) W (24-0) at North Iredell W (32-0) at Rosewood L (43-46) South Stokes* L (7-13, OT) North Surry* L (28-63) at Mount Airy* L (13-33) at West Stokes* L (6-45) East Surry* W (34-21) Surry Central* L (45-76) at Bishop McGuinness*

* denotes Northwest 1A/2A Conference game

East Surry Cardinals

at Wilkes Central L (7-48) East Wilkes W (51-0) South Davidson W (33-6) Open at East Surry* W (27-23) Mount Airy* L (33-38) at West Stokes* L (14-34) at Bishop McGuinness* W (47-26) North Surry* W (42-26) at North Stokes* W (76-45) South Stokes*

* denotes Northwest 1A/2A Conference game

North Surry Greyhounds

West Stokes Wildcats

2-7 Overall * 2-4 in Northwest

7-2 Overall * 4-2 in Northwest

10-0 Overall * 6-0 in Northwest

Aug. 19 Aug. 26 Sept. 5 Sept. 9 Sept. 16 Sept. 23 Sept. 30 Oct. 7 Oct. 14 Oct. 21 Oct. 28

Aug. 19 Aug. 26 Sept. 2 Sept. 9 Sept. 16 Sept. 23 Sept. 30 Oct. 7 Oct. 14 Oct. 21 Oct. 28

at West Iredell L (0-33) at Starmount L (17-30) West Montgomery cancelled Newton-Conover L (9-30) Surry Central* L (23-27) at West Stokes* L (7-17) Bishop McGuinness* W (34-6) South Stokes* W (21-13) at North Stokes* L (21-34) at North Surry* L (26-28) Mount Airy*

* denotes Northwest 1A/2A Conference game

at Forbush at Elkin Ashe County Open Bishop McGuinness* at North Stokes* at South Stokes* Mount Airy* at Surry Central* East Surry* West Stokes*

W (33-9) W (61-10) W (33-24) W (39-13) W (63-28) W (45-21) L (33-53) L (26-42) W (28-26)

* denotes Northwest 1A/2A Conference game

Mount Airy Granite Bears

5-4 Overall * 3-3 in Northwest

Aug. 19 Aug. 26 Sept. 2 Sept. 9 Sept. 16 Sept. 23 Sept. 30 Oct. 7 Oct. 14 Oct. 21 Oct. 28

* denotes Northwest 1A/2A Conference game

L (19-20) W (23-7) W (21-6) W (27-20) L (6-17) W (38-33) W (33-13) W (53-33) W (35-7) L (17-28)

at Albemarle Forbush Central Davidson at McMichael at Mount Airy* East Surry* Surry Central* North Stokes* at South Stokes* Bishop McGuinness* at North Surry*

W (9-7) W (38-0) W (27-20) W (28-20) W (17-6) W (17-7) W (34-14) W (45-6) W (34-14) W (48-0)

* denotes Northwest 1A/2A Conference game

South Stokes Sauras

7-3 Overall * 4-2 in Northwest Starmount Thomasville at Carroll County (Va.) at Central Davidson West Stokes* at Surry Central* North Stokes* at North Surry* Bishop McGuinness* at South Stokes* at East Surry*

Basketball

West Wilkes L (12-14) North Wilkes W (42-13) Open at Alleghany W (34-12) at North Stokes* W (13-7, OT) at Bishop McGuinness* W (28-6) North Surry* L (21-45) at East Surry* L (13-21) West Stokes* L (14-34) Mount Airy* W (28-17) at Surry Central*

* denotes Northwest 1A/2A Conference game

Check YadkinValleySports.com this fall for more details

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Conference Reports Mountain Valley 1A/2A MVAC 1A/2A Standings TEAM

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MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

TOTAL

THIS FRIDAY

7-0 9-0 Wilkes Central 7-0 9-0 @ Starmount 5-2 6-3 Alleghany 4-3 5-5 East Wilkes 3-4 3-6 @ Elkin 3-4 3-6 @ Ashe County 2-5 2-8 @ West Wilkes 1-6 1-8 Forbush 0-8 1-9 @ McDowell

Photo by Eric Lusk

West Wilkes will host Alleghany this Friday night.

Top Players & Performances

We also carry sports braces, hot & cold therapy, tapes & wraps, bandages and more

Starmount (2A) Wilkes Central (2A) West Wilkes (1A) Ashe County (2A) Forbush (2A) East Wilkes (1A) Alleghany (1A) Elkin (1A) North Wilkes (1A)

CONF.

WWW.YADKINVALLEYSPORTS.COM

Matthew Sexton (Ashe County): The wide receiver/defensive back was Mr. Big Play in the Huskies’ hard-fought win at Forbush. Sexton caught two touchdown passes from Sam Gammons, including one where he took the ball away from a Forbush DB in the end zone while in the air. Sexton also picked off a pass in the fourth quarter to end the Falcons’ final series. Sexton finished with nine catches offensively, for 140 yards. Josh Wineberg (Ashe County): The senior defensive end was a menace for the Falcons’ run game, not letting speedy backs get outside and into the open field. His tackle behind the line of scrimmage on a sweep play in the fourth quarter ended one of Forbush’ serious threats to take the lead or at least tie the game. Sam Gammons (Ashe County): Found Sexton plenty of times on Friday, and finished 11-for-16 for 151 yards out of the pistol offense. Zach Chambers (Forbush): A future star in the making, the freshman rushed for 92 yards on 14 carries. He plowed for a 13-yard touchdown in the third quarter, dragging tacklers with him on the play. Tyler Woods (West Wilkes): In a season full of 100-yard games, Woods crossed the century mark again with 189 yards and four touchdowns at North WWW.YADKINVALLEYSPORTS.COM

Wilkes. Woods now has more than 1,000 rushing yards for the season. Few rushers are as punishing as Woods in the conference. Andrew Ayers and Ryan Walsh (North Wilkes): One week after burning Starmount deep a few times, Ayers connected with Walsh for a 65-yard scoring play that helped give the Vikings an early lead on the Blackhawks. Chaston Martin (Starmount): Needed just three touches to score three touchdowns Friday at Alleghany. Martin rushed for a 39-yard score early in the first period, caught a 55-yard TD pass from Christian Hurt a few minutes later and then galloped 54 yards for a touchdown with 38 seconds left in the first. Two rushes for 93 yards equals a 46.5 yardsper-carry average. Not a bad night. Jac McCracken and Christian Hurt (Starmount): Both returned kicks for touchdowns. McCracken dashed 55 yards to the end zone after an Alleghany safety. Hurt returned a punt 65 yards for a score, with his play putting the Rams ahead 44-0 in the second quarter. Hurt also completed his only pass for a TD, the 55-yarder to Martin referenced above. Starmount offense: The model of efficiency at Alleghany, running just 10 offensive snaps in the first half and scoring

on four of them. Luke Hampton (Alleghany): Rushed for 102 yards on 18 carries against one of the top defenses in the conference. Dustin Triplett (Wilkes Central): Rushed for a season’s best 306 yards on Friday against an overmatched Elkin defense. He carried the ball 25 times, giving him an astounding 12.24 yards-percarry average. He scored one touchdown and picked up four tackles on defense. Hank Privette (Wilkes Central): Not normally a starter, Privette made the most of his opportunity for playing time Friday against Elkin. He rushed for 106 yards and two touchdowns, and caught a 5-yard TD pass on offense. He had three tackles and a pass deflection on defense. Privette was named this week’s team MVP by coaches on the Eagles’ MaxPreps.com Web page. Chasey Caul and Petey Estep (Wilkes Central): Swarmed around the ball all night, finishing with 14 and 13 tackles, respectively. All but one of Caul’s tackles were solo hits. Caul also carried a bigger load on offense, rushing for two touchdowns and finishing with 77 yards on the ground. He caught one pass for 16 yards and ran in a two-point conversion. Nick Phillips (Elkin): Continues to have a strong season for the Elks, rushing for 153 yards on 20 carries. OCTOBER 24, 2011

Conference Reports Mountain Valley 1A/2A

Full Schedules & Results Alleghany Trojans 2-8 Overall * 2-5 in MVAC Aug. 19 Aug. 26 Sept. 2 Sept. 9 Sept. 16 Sept. 23 Sept. 30 Oct. 7 Oct. 14 Oct. 21 Oct. 28

at North Stokes Grayson County North Wilkes* South Stokes at Wilkes Central* Forbush* at East Wilkes* Ashe County* at Elkin* Starmount* at West Wilkes*

Elkin Buckinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Elks 1-8 Overall * 1-6 in MVAC

L (22-44) L (12-55) W (28-16) L (12-34) L (8-53) L (18-47) L (0-51) L (12-35) W (35-32) L (18-57)

* denotes Mountain Valley 1A/2A Conference game

Aug. 19 Aug. 26 Sept. 2 Sept. 9 Sept. 16 Sept. 23 Sept. 30 Oct. 7 Oct. 14 Oct. 21 Oct. 28

5-5 Overall * 4-3 in MVAC West Caldwell Watauga at North Surry (E) at Elkin* Starmount* at West Wilkes* North Wilkes at Alleghany* Wilkes Central* at Forbush* East Wilkes*

W (41-6) L (14-32) L (24-33) W (28-6) L (14-51) L (0-31) W (34-7) W (35-12) L (14-29) W (16-11)

Aug. 19 Aug. 26 Sept. 2 Sept. 9 Sept. 16 Sept. 23 Sept. 30 Oct. 7 Oct. 14 Oct. 21 Oct. 28

L (14-26) L (0-51) W (27-7) L (0-28) L (0-17) W (14-13) W (51-0) L (0-35) L (6-26)

MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

Thomas Jefferson at South Stokes at Alleghany* Wilkes Central* at Forbush* East Wilkes* at Ashe County* Elkin* Starmount* at West Wilkes* at McDowell

* denotes Mountain Valley 1A/2A Conference game

W (33-17) W (55-18) W (57-18)

6-3 Overall * 5-2 in MVAC L (9-33) L (0-38) L (5-44) L (13-14) W (36-13) W (47-18) L (0-35) W (26-6) L (11-16)

Aug. 19 Aug. 26 Sept. 2 Sept. 9 Sept. 16 Sept. 23 Sept. 30 Oct. 7 Oct. 14 Oct. 21 Oct. 28

at South Stokes Avery County at Wilkes Central* Forbush* at East Wilkes* Ashe County* at Elkin* at Starmount* Open North Wilkes* Alleghany*

W (14-12) L (34-35) L (0-34) W (14-13) W (17-0) W (31-0) W (35-0) L (17-33) W (48-22)

* denotes Mountain Valley 1A/2A Conference game

North Wilkes Vikings Aug. 19 Aug. 26 Sept. 2 Sept. 9 Sept. 16 Sept. 23 Sept. 30 Oct. 7 Oct. 14 Oct. 21 Oct. 28

W (20-19) W (30-17) W (44-5) W (28-0) W (51-14) W (55-6)

West Wilkes Blackhawks

1-9 Overall * 0-8 in MVAC

* denotes Mountain Valley 1A/2A Conference game

North Surry at West Stokes Starmount* at West Wilkes* North Wilkes* at Alleghany* Wilkes Central* Open at East Wilkes* Ashe County* at Elkin*

at Mount Airy East Surry at Forbush* East Wilkes* at Ashe County* Elkin* Open West Wilkes* at North Wilkes* at Alleghany* Wilkes Central*

* denotes Mountain Valley 1A/2A Conference game

3-6 Overall * 3-4 in MVAC

Aug. 19 Aug. 26 Sept. 2 Sept. 9 Sept. 16 Sept. 23 Sept. 30 Oct. 7 Oct. 14 Oct. 21 Oct. 28

Forbush Falcons

East Wilkes Cardinals West Davidson at Surry Central Elkin* at Starmount* West Wilkes* at North Wilkes* Alleghany* at Wilkes Central* Forbush* Open at Ashe County*

L (6-55) L (0-35) W (21-14) L (32-35) L (19-43)

3-6 Overall * 3-4 in MVAC

* denotes Mountain Valley 1A/2A Conference game

Aug. 19 Aug. 26 Sept. 2 Sept. 9 Sept. 16 Sept. 23 Sept. 30 Oct. 7 Oct. 14 Oct. 21 Oct. 28

9-0 Overall * 7-0 in MVAC L (13-25) L (10-61) L (7-27) L (6-28)

* denotes Mountain Valley 1A/2A Conference game

Ashe County Huskies Aug. 19 Aug. 26 Sept. 2 Sept. 9 Sept. 16 Sept. 23 Sept. 30 Oct. 7 Oct. 14 Oct. 21 Oct. 28

East Montgomery North Surry at East Wilkes* Ashe County* Open at Starmount* West Wilkes* at North Wilkes* Alleghany* at Wilkes Central* Forbush*

Starmount Rams

Wilkes Central Eagles 9-0 Overall * 7-0 in MVAC

W (55-35) L (13-42) L (16-28) L (0-48) L (13-36) L (13-14) L (7-34) L (14-21) L (18-55) L (22-48)

Aug. 19 Aug. 26 Sept. 2 Sept. 9 Sept. 16 Sept. 23 Sept. 30 Oct. 7 Oct. 14 Oct. 21 Oct. 28

Surry Central at West Iredell West Wilkes* at North Wilkes* Alleghany* Open at Forbush* East Wilkes* at Ashe County* Elkin* at Starmount*

W (48-7) W (55-47) W (34-0) W (48-0) W (53-8) W (35-0) W (35-0) W (29-14) W (43-19)

* denotes Mountain Valley 1A/2A Conference game

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Forbushâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Brittan Baity (10) and Matthew Stanley (25) double-team Asheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Josh Pennington.