CHATSWORTH — Murray County maintained an early lead in the 11th outing of their rivalry against North Murray and trailed just 14-7 at halftime, but the Mountaineer offense pulled away in the second half for a 40-14 victory to remain undefeated against the Indians.
In a region game that saw North Murray quarterback Hudson Hulett run in for a pair of touchdowns and Layten Myers leapfrog a Murray County defender to score a run of his own, the Mountaineers (3-1, 2-0 Region 7-2A) shut down the Indians’ (1-4, 0-2 Region 7-2A) initial momentum.
North Murray were the first to put points on the scoreboard following a Corbin Patterson fumble recovery on the second play of the game. That opened up for Hulett to score his first touchdown with 9-yard rushing TD a minute and a half in.
An unsuccessful PAT attempt would cost the Neers early on, as a successful John Bickford-Nate Perry connection for a 22-yard passing TD put the Indians in the lead 7-6 following a successful Omar Tapia PAT.
Hulett would continue to make big plays in the game on both sides of the ball, including intercepting a Trent Childers pass to set up a 12-yard rushing TD eight seconds into the second quarter. A successful two-point conversion passing attempt to Tyler Henry put the Neers up 14-7.
Murray County’s Jagger Reed would rush 34 yards down the field in two plays to put the Indians back in scoring position, but another interception — this time courtesy of Jacob Daley — stopped Murray County in its tracks within inches of the end zone once again.
Not looking to be outdone, Murray County’s Domingo Sanchez would answer back with an interception of his own on the following possession before the end of the first half.
Hulett would continue to show fire on offense, barreling down the field to the Indian territory before handing the ball off to Myers for a 1-yard rushing TD with 6:14 left in the third quarter, extending the lead to 20-7.
Overall, North Murray would total 410 rushing yards against the Indians, with Hulett managing 193 yards on his own.
North Murray’s Conner Ponders would soon follow up with a 39-yard rushing TD with 40 seconds left in the quarter, however an unsuccessful two-point conversion attempt would place the score at 26-7.
Murray County’s defense would apply pressure to the Mountaineers late in the game, which included a sack of Hulett by Landon Souther, but a handoff to Myers led to the North Murray running back jumping over an Indian defender to ensure a 33-yard rushing TD with 7:20 left in the game. A successful PAT attempt by Leo Gonzalez brought the score to 33-7.
The Indians would be able to fight down the field and bring the ball down to the Mountaineer 11-yard line on the next possession, but three back-to-back offensive penalties on fourth down put Murray County back to their own 49-yard line before punting.
North Murray’s Nick Carter would make the secure the final touchdown for the Mountaineers with an 18-yard rushing TD with 1:57 left, but it would not be the last score of the game.
With just over a minute left, Murray County’s Nathan Bonanza would run the following kick return down to the Mountaineer 3-yard line, opening up the opportunity for a Reed-Perry connection and a 7-yard passing TD to cap the score at 40-14 before the clock ran out.
The Mountaineer victory ensured their 11th straight win against their cross-county rivals. North Murray will continue region play when they travel to Blairsville to take on Union County, who previously bested the Indians 49-6 this season, at 7:30 p.m. next Friday.
Murray County will travel next Friday to Sonoraville for region play at 7:30 p.m.