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by Michael Ross
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The Dragons and Pirates have always had some what of a rivalry since the two Mid Southern Conference schools are less than 10 miles apart down Highway 403.
For the first time in school history Silver Creek welcomed the Pirates last Friday night. Both teams entered the game even at 2-2 on the season. The Pirates have taken wins over Clarksville and North Harrison while the Dragons have captured victories from Springs Valley and Eastern.
The teams came ready to play and were prepared for the forecasted rain, as were the fans. The fans huddled under umbrellas or found dry areas while they watched their teams splish, splash and slide all over the field. The rain progressively grew in intensity throughout the game but slacked off immediately following the final buzzer.
The rain soaked field caused problems for both teams to advance the pigskin in the latter part of the ballgame.
“The conditions were bad. It affected both teams. I think both teams played very hard,” stated Charlestown head coach Jason Hawkins after the ballgame. “I think if the conditions were different, both teams could have scored a lot more points.”
The first quarter proved to belong to the Pirates as they scored twice in the 12 minute period.
Charlestown needed less than four minutes to find the endzone to begin the scoring in the contest. Pirate senior running back Matt Myers scampered 35 yards to paydirt at the 8:16 mark. The two point conversion was good as senior running back Darren Taylor crossed the goal line. The Pirates held the early 8-0 advantage.
It only took the Pirates 3:04 to find the endzone again. Charlestown senior linebacker Jake Harper picked off a Brooks Howell pass and rambled six yards into the endzone. The extra point attempt failed for the 14-0 Pirate lead. The score would prove to be the final one for the ballgame.
The rain continued to fall and the rain dampened field proved to benefit the defense as both coaches felt this game was the best the teams played defensively all season.
“Defense great job,” Charlestown head coach Jason Hawkins stated to his team after the ballgame.
Silver Creek Coach Mike Donahue agreed, “This was our best defensive effort this season. We held Charlestown to under 150 yards total offense in the game.”
After the game, Donahue discussed the team’s strategy heading into the MSC contest, “The plan was, originally, to run Bobby (Haines). If we had a dry field we could have. The weather took our speed away.”
Coach Hawkins praised the play of Matt Myers and Jake Harper after the ballgame.
“Matt (Myers) and Jake (Harper) have set the tone all year. That’s what our seniors should do,” Hawkins added.
Hawkins ended the talk to his team after the ballgame, “The conditions in tonight’s game make it a nightmare to coach in, but it’s fun to play in, isn’t it?”
Charlestown was led by Matt Myers with 59 yards on eight carries while freshman Antonyo Gaddie tallied 34 yards on nine carries. Darren Taylor added 26 yards on 14 carries.
Charlestown finished the game with 130 yards total offense.
The Pirates pushed their record to 3-2 overall and 3-1 in the Mid Southern Conference.
The Pirate defense held the Dragons to negative yardage for the ballgame.
The Dragons fell to 2-3 overall and 1-3 in the Mid Southern.
Charlestown will host rival Salem this Friday night for Homecoming. Kick off is 7 p.m.
The Dragons will travel to Clarksville to face the Generals. Kick off is also at 7 p.m. |
