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Hawks fall hard to East Side in district outing By CLAUDE VINSON
Sports Editor  | Photo by Ronnie Day
Quarterback on the move
Holly Springs quarterback Brandon McKinney (18) looks to avoid the tackle of a Trojan Friday at Sam Coopwood Park. |
High-flying East Side invaded Holly Springs Friday night and returned to Cleveland with an easy district win. Holly
High was first over the ball versus the Trojans at Sam Coopwood Park.
It was a very short possession because the Hawks went four and out in a
matter of seconds. The visitors caught the Hawks’
punt on the 35-yard line, but Holly High’s defense held them in check
for three downs. They were already deep in Hawk territory so they
didn’t debate the “go for it” on a fourth and 11. Lachristopher Lee
gave them a first and goal at the 4 and Tavares Johnson Jr. found one
of his receivers on a drop-off screen for six. He came back with a
flare to Lee for good measure. It was 8-0. The
Hawks didn’t move far from their backyard on their second possession
and their short high punt was returned for another score. The Trojans’
fullback came out of the backfield with a straight buck to add the
extra pair. With eight minutes left in the first quarter, it was 16-0. After
the kick, Brandon McKinney scampered for 21 welcome yards and the
Hawks’ first first down. McKinney called his number again and broke to
the right side for 24 more yards and with a little flag help was well
inside the red zone. But the offense met strong opposition at the 11
and the field goal unit was sent in. Brandon Galloway booted the
27-yard trey dead center over the uprights and Holly High was on the
board with a 16-3 score. Galloway, a senior, had never kicked prior to
this season. Rodrigues McGee took the Hawks’ kick
to the 19. Aided by two penalties, they were deep again. Laquavious
Jones rushed to the 3 and the setback bucked his way over the middle
for the touchdown. Johnson “Lujacked” a pass to his receiver for the
extra points to make it 24-3.  | Photos by Ronnie Day
Field goal
Brandon Galloway (7) of Holly High kicks a 27-yard field goal for his team’s only points. |
The Hawks went four
and out but this time got off a much better punt. The first quarter
ended after the Trojans had moved to the 47 aided by a face mask
penalty. The Hawks held and the visitors punted from their 45. The
Hawks couldn’t make any progressive moves and had to punt. East Side
didn’t waste any time or motion as Jones streaked in over tackle for
six and they converted for two more to go ahead 32-3. Holly
High failed on the next possession. The only thing helping the Hawks
was the flag. Jones was waging a one man ground war against the Hawks
and winning. He had a pair long runs called back, one had gone for a
TD. The Trojans sent in a fresh pair of legs who scored a 35-yard TD
and a two-point conversion to move the score to 40-3 with 6:01 left in
the 2nd quarter. Things took a turn for the
better on the next possession, as they Hawks made a first on a keeper
by McKinney. But it came down to fourth and five with 1:19 left. The
Hawks stacked the receivers and went out on a long pass that sailed off
the fingertips of the intended receiver who was heavily covered. The
half ended on a 40-3 score. The second half saw
the Trojans send in a new signal caller but Jones was still getting the
work. East Side received to start the second half and scored three
plays later. By the end of the third the visitors had increased their
margin to 54-3. They added another eight points in the fourth to make a
final tally of 62-3. The Trojans improved to 8-1 overall and 3-0 in Region 3-3A, while the Hawks dropped to 1-7 and 0-3. Holly
High will travel to Charleston this Friday for a 7 p.m. kickoff and
finish the regular season at M.S. Palmer on Friday, Oct. 29.  | Going for the tackle
Ronnell Boyland (22) of Holly High dives for a Trojan ball-carrier. |
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