Panthers hold off Hawks, 16-15

Posted 9/5/18

The Alba-Golden Panthers used a pair of passing touchdowns by quarterback Zane Smith to take a 16-15 thriller over Hawkins to open the football season Friday night.

The Hawks got on the board …

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Panthers hold off Hawks, 16-15

Posted

The Alba-Golden Panthers used a pair of passing touchdowns by quarterback Zane Smith to take a 16-15 thriller over Hawkins to open the football season Friday night.

The Hawks got on the board early on the second play from scrimmage. Peyton Smith connected with Tristan Garrett and with the successful point after kick took a 7-0 lead. Alba-Golden came back led by Smith, Tim Mitchell and Boedy Baker on offense. The Panthers scored two times and converted both two-point conversions to take a 16-7 lead at the half.

Hawkins successfully recovered an onside kick to start the second half and drove to the three-yard line where Akim Richmond took it over. The successful two-point conversion made it 16-15. That would be all of the scoring for the evening as defense became the name of the game for both teams in the final quarter.

Hawkins Head Coach Scott Evans was pleased with his team despite the loss. “I am proud of my guys. We played really well on defense and did a good job in spots on offense,” Evans noted. “Tristan Garrett was dominating on defense with 15 or 16 tackles. Ibory Taylor also had a good defensive game. We have lost some guys with injuries, but we will adjust.”

Hawkins goes to Tyler to take in All Saints Friday while Alba-Golden is at home again against Big Sandy.