Hendersonville – Erwin nipped Brevard 28-21 Friday as quarterback Iggy Welch scored in the final 15 seconds, Hazahn Collington ran for four touchdowns and 262 yards to lead North Henderson past Owen 48-34, while Hendersonville fell 42-13 to reigning South Carolina 3A champion Daniel Lions.
Enka was edged by home-standing Madison 26-21. Jet Chase Bosewell caught three TD passes. Other than Enka and Owen, all other teams from Buncombe County were idle last Friday.
East Henderson’s game was among a handful cancelled due to COVID quarantine precautions — in this case for North Buncombe. West Henderson was off.
Games this Friday include West at North Henderson and East at Franklin. MAC openers are A.C. Reynolds at NBHS, Roberson at McDowell and Enka-Erwin. Asheville hosts North Davidson.
First Knights Hazahn, Jaylen
North Henderson (2-1) raced to a 21-0 lead at Owen. The see-saw game was tied at 21 at halftime. NHHS outscored Owen 27-13 in the second half.
Collington ran for 262 (16.3 ypc.) yards. He dashed 58 yards for his first TD — merely 16 seconds into the game. NHHS blocked a punt and Collington scored on a six-yard run. He scored his third TD of the initial quarter — on a 30-yard jaunt — after the first of four Owen lost fumbles. His 47-yard TD scamper in the final two minutes sealed victory.
Jaylen Croft of NHHS took it to the house on scoring receptions of 67 then 21 yards in the third quarter. He totaled 115 receiving yards. Quarterback Jaxson Willis ran for a TD in the final quarter.
Head coach Jim Beatty lauded several “explosive plays” to jump to the three-TD lead. He said “once Hazahn got going again in the second half, it opened the passing game for Jaxson and Jalen — on RPOs (read-pass options).”
The defense eased up but then “responded to our challenge at halftime,” Beatty said. “We showed a lot of fight. We made good plays, and stops when we needed to most. we got the ball back and scored” to clinch victory.
Coach Brint Russell’s Warhorses fought back with three straight TDs to tie the game at 21 by halftime. Cadyn Cook ran for four TDs — starting with the first and third Owen TDs. The Workhorse Warhorse rushed for 190 yards on 30 carries — averaging 6.3 yards.
QB Eli Lantner ran for two TDs including Owen’s last score. Two Owen TDs came after interceptions by Warhorses. Alex Sanchez’s pick set up tight end Will Johnson’s TD reception.
Each side scored a TD in the third quarter. Willis hit Croft on the bomb. Owen responded as Cook scampered 66 yards into the end zone. But on a botched extra-point snap, the Knights tackled kicker Emil Rathscheck to click “save” on their 28-27 lead.
The Knights tacked on an insurance TD in the fourth on Willis’ second TD pass to Croft. NHHS answered the final Owen TD with Collington’s fourth TD run with two minutes left to win by 14.
Heroics by Erwin ‘D’ then Iggy
Erwin (2-2) led visiting Brevard 14-0 on a pair of Daniel Rivera bullish runs in the first half-quarter. Dallas Phillips also made many key gains of nearly ten yards.
A scoring drive was sustained by Dylan Davidson’s 18-yard reception on third down. He scored on a seven-yard quick “out route into the end zone” a minute into the fourth quarter, head coach Rodney Pruett noted.
But he called it a “battle.” The Blue Devils scored twice to tie it at 21 with 1:48 left. They quickly got the ball back on a pick. But Erwin’s defense clamped down with a sack and a tackle for a loss.
Tall QB Joe Powell could not grab a low snap. Erwin linebacker Tucker Hargrove “pounced on the ball, and secured it” at the BHS 17, Pruett said. “Our defense gave us a chance to win it — just inside a minute.”
Rivera ran for a first down to the seven. Iggy Welch managed well with no timeouts. He threw incomplete then threw it away out of the end zone to avoid an interception or time-ending sack.
Burly Welch improvised on third down. “We called a pass play,” Pruett said. “But Iggy saw an opening” to run to the right side. “He attacked. Four guys converged on him. He lowered his shoulder. Someone hit him high. Another hit him low — causing him to flip over” and somersault over the goal line. “Iggy willed his way in.”
Flu-ravaged Erwin won 28-21 without nine players — five starters on offense.
Trapped in Lion’s Den
Hendersonville hosted Daniel, S.C. to sharpen after playing an elite foe, HHS head coach Jim Sosebee said. The Lions won the S.C. state crown and are top-ranked in 3A. The visitors turned Dietz Field into the Lion’s Den.
Hendersonville scored the first touchdown. Sophomore Tayshawn Collins took a Gavin Gosnell pass to inside the Lion 40. Then Gosnell connected with Eric Rasheed for a 34-yard scoring pass.. This was less than three minutes in. Cat receivers kept getting open.
Bearcat DL Ellison Hunter grasped a Lion fumbled snap in the end zone to score the other HHS TD — at the close of the third quarter.
The first half ended with the Lions ahead 28-6. They outdid HHS by merely 14-7 in the second half.
The Lions dominated the line. Their runner Chris Edge broke free for three TDs – in the opening quarter.
The pivotal moments soon followed. Brodey Conn snatched a Cat fumble and returned it to the HHS 45. On the next play Trent Pearman connected with tall Eli Merck down the left side for a TD. Reigning Gatorade S.C. Player of the Year Pearman threw two of his long TDs to Merck. He arced a towering TD bomb to Jaylen Brown-Wallace for a 60-yard score three minutes later.
A pick by Lennard Benniefield thwarted the next Lion drive.
Pearman’s father Danny Pearman coaches Clemson tight ends. Clemson head coach Dabo Sweeney watched Clay Sweeney — his third son to play for Daniel — from the stands. Too often it felt like his Clemson Tigers were playing HHS.
Hendersonville welcomes R-S Central this Friday in the Mountain Foothills
Conference opener.