MANCHESTER — Clay County ran its record to 4-0 for the first time since 2006 by pulling away in the second half for a 36-16 victory on Friday over Harlan County.
Led by their potent offense, the Tigers found success through the air and ground, as Tate Rice, Tyson Wagers, Aiden Carr and Aiden Wagers accounted for the Tigers’ scoring. Rice posted two interceptions in the first half but was more than able to overcome it. Rice found (Aiden) Wagers late in the back of the endzone in the fourth quarter to put Harlan County away for good.
Tyson Wagers electrified the home crowd on the kickoff, returning it 78 yards for an opening score by the Tigers. That’s when Harlan County turned up the defensive pressure.
“We got off to an exciting start with the opening kickoff being returned by Tyson Wagers for a touchdown and we were able to get a stop and convert that into another touchdown early,” said Clay County coach Mike Sizemore. “Once we scored those two and got the ball back, we, unfortunately, turned it over on what would have possibly been another scoring drive.”
The slow start was due to turnovers, but the Tigers kept pushing.
“Once we turned it over it kind of opened the door for Harlan County to get some momentum heading into the half,” added Sizemore. “We played hard, but we gave them too many possessions in the first half, which allowed them to close the gap to 12-8 going into the half knowing they would get the ball to start the third quarter. We were able to make some scheme adjustments and shift some personnel around on defense to limit what they were hurting us with going into the second half, and on offense we were able to really double down on the things that we were having success with and that allowed us to pull away as the game went on.”
The defense allowed Clay County to regain some composure offensively, as they continually came up with big stops to put the offense back on the field.
“I was proud of the way our kids played in terms of effort and intensity,” said Sizemore. “Our defense was able to limit them offensively for most of the night and it allowed our offense to overcome some early turnovers and get our momentum going again in the second half. Our kids were great. They kept their heads up and focused on the task at hand. Even when some things didn’t go our way, we still were able to battle back and do the things that we needed to do to win the ball game.”
Senior tailback Thomas Jordan led the Harlan County offense with 105 yards on 17 carries, including a touchdown. James Ryan Howard added 45 yards on 10 carries, while Bryan Howard ran for 42 yards on nine carries. Ethan Rhymer completed six of 13 passes for 83 yards and added a 2-yard TD run. Carter Howard had one catch for 36 yards, while Jordan added one for 35 yards. Luke Kelly, Brayden Howard and Mason Beach had one reception each,.
Sophomore safety Hunter Napier was the leader on defense with 15 tackles. Luke Kelly had 12 tackles. Jacob Sage added 10. James Ryan Howard, Carter Howard, Dallas Sergent and Shemar Carr had eight tackles each. Gage Bailey added seven. Darren Alred and Will Cassim had five each.
Napier and Jordan each added interceptions. Carr recovered a fumble.
Harlan County (0-4) will return home Friday to face Lawrence County.