Asheville, Mills River – A.C. Reynolds won a low-scoring nail-biter behind its defense and big-play heroics of Ayden Hines and Ty Johnson, West Henderson rolled to victory behind Carson Dimsdale’s 187 rushing yards and three touchdowns, while 4A T.C. Roberson dropped a see-saw round two contest.
Roberson (9-3) lost 24-21 at home to Charlotte Catholic (9-3), also in light rain.
Dimsdale Dims Mustangs
Third seed West Henderson (12-0) dethroned 2022 3A champion East Lincoln (8-4) 37-7. The Falcons tied their best football start ever, at 12-0.
Dimsdale had an amazing 42 carries, wearing down the small Mustang defense. He leads WNC with 2,069 yards, averaging 7.2 yards per carry. Dimsdale has a whopping 32 rushing scores, for 2.7 per contest. The senior blends acute field vision, quickness, elusiveness, and power.
Dimsdale ran for three TDs – two in the second quarter – in 9:48. First, he bulled ahead a yard. Next, he dashed nine yards to score. He sliced through two tackles, smashed another Mustang, and bounced into the end zone. West led 13-0 at halftime.
East Lincoln opened the second half with an 86-yard kickoff return score. But then Dimsdale weaved through the defense, was face-masked, yet dragged the culprit ten more yards with him. He ran a yard for the score.
“Being able to hit 2,000 yards is a big accomplishment for me,” Dimsdale said. “It feels amazing going from just trying to hit 1,000 yards again.” He credits blockers, quarterback Cade Young, and the defense for good field position.
Truitt Manuel ran four times for 48 yards, and caught two passes.
Diego Castro returned an interception over 20 yards. That set up Young’s 22-yard TD pass to TE Tyler Nash. Neil Robinson’s 38-yard INT return was the final TD. West scored 17 points in 6:14 of the fourth quarter, starting with Josh Sandoval’s 22-yard field goal.
Grisly Grizzly Fate?
West hosts sixth-seeded Winston-Salem Oak Grove Grizzlies (11-1) on Friday. West beat Oak Grove two out of three in baseball state semifinals in ‘23, en route to the 3A state title. The Falcons hope to make it a grisly Grizzly fate on the gridiron, too.
The Grizzlies ousted 11th seed Pisgah Bears 23-16 in the Bear Bowl. Oak Grove QB Connor Kretch ran the option for two early scores. The main weapon is 1,200-yard runner Karson Williams, in Friday’s Carson-Karson Bowl.
Reynolds Wrap®
Seventh seed Reynolds (9-3) shut out tenth-seeded Kings Mountain (10-2), a perennial state title contender with a large offensive line and stingy defense. “We keep battling, and making plays. Our defense keeps playing hard,” ACR head coach Shane Laws said. “It comes down to who wants it more.” He told his troops after the win that among many heralded Rocket defensive games over the years, “tonight is one of those performances.”
“Our defense is the best in the state,” strong safety Ayden Hines proclaimed.
Shrine Bowl-bound linebacker Brandon Guest called it a “mission to not let them into our end zone.” The Rockets succeeded in preserving the shutout. He said there is a strong brotherhood. “We play for each other.” Ty Johnson said, “We win together.” Wes Rumbough, star free safety-WR, said, “We stand together. When facing adversity, we never back down.”
The Reynolds Wrap® defense “foiled” the Mountaineers with four fourth-down stops, three interceptions, by forcing third-and-long plays, and swarming to tackle runners and often sack quarterback Kandon Zollo.
Above all, Kareem McDowell creamed Zollo into intentionally grounding a pass from the end zone, for a penalty and two-point safety. That boosted the Reynolds lead to 8-0 — a touchdown and two-point conversion — with merely 55 seconds left. KMHS had to boot it back to ACR, and tried an onside kick.
Hines clinched victory. He snatched the ball on one bounce, on his left side at the 14. He dashed into the end zone, and triumphantly thrust out his arms. The PAT made the score 15-0. Hines dove to make the first interception. He signed a baseball scholarship two days earlier, to play for Mars Hill. In the playoff opener, Hines ran a fumble recovery for a TD in Reynolds’ 45-0 victory.
Hines recently shifted to safety, with DE Daniel Angulo filling his outside linebacker spot. Angulo made several tackles Friday.
Fourth-down stops by ACR included when Brandon Guest and Edwin Santiago hauled down runner Robert Kendrick. Santiago wears the 99 that husky 2022 Shrine Bowl DL Russell Barnett wore. Brandon Guest praised “Boom” Santiago’s ferocious tackling, and his helping “fill big shoes” of 2023 grads. “People doubted our defense would be as good. We bring it every play.”
Max is Back!
Superstar ACR back Max Guest debuted, playing sparingly after recovering from a preseason high ankle sprain. Guest ran 12 yards for the first TD, after Tyvon Patterson carried the load. Max dashed left, then cut ahead and breezed into the end zone. KMHS blocked the PAT. ACR led 6-0 in the second period. Max said after the game that “I feel great!” – not sore. RB-CB Malik Angram departed early with a severe ankle injury.
Ty Johnson set up the first score. He returned an INT the distance, though an illegal block moved the ball back. Johnson felt “in the zone” all night. Austin Worrell had ACR’s final interception. In round one, his INT return set up the first score.
Red Tornado Warning
Reynolds shifts into upset mode at unbeaten second seed Hickory on Friday. The balanced, high-powered Red Tornado offense is led by three juniors: QB Brady Stober (2,800 yards, 37 TDs, two picks); Jamien Little (1,000 receiving yards, 14 TDs); and Isaiah Lackey (29 TDs, 1,471 yards rushing).
If Reynolds wins, it goes to West Henderson or Oak Grove. Last year, ACR won three 4A rounds and went 12-2.