It was week number seven of the high school football season on Friday night as teams began to position themselves for the playoffs.
The best game on the evening featured a couple of teams in Class A tied for No. 2 in the rankings. Wirt County (6-0) edged Buffalo (5-1) 33-29 to stay undefeated on the year.
The Tigers’ Dalton Brindo scored the game-winning touchdown with just 40 seconds left on a fourth-and-goal from the one-yard line. Just a few minutes earlier, Buffalo had taken a 29-27 lead on a 22 yard field goal by Levi Jordan. Overall, the back-and-forth contest had five lead changes. Brindo, meanwhile, totaled over 230 offensive yards in the win.
Meanwhile, all three of the state’s top ranked teams won on the night. Class AAA No. 1 Martinsburg drubbed Washington 60-0. Class AA No. 1 Shady Spring pounded Sherman 57-15 and Class A No. 1 Wheeling Central bounced back after trailing at the half to beat Shadyside, Ohio 34-20.
Class AAA No. 2 Bridgeport withstood a strong test from University as the Indians erased a 7-6 halftime deficit to pull away 21-13. Bridgeport’s Conner Kornbrath had two field goals in the first half of 47 and 49 yards to keep Bridgeport close early. The Indians finished with 303 rushing yards in the win.
No. 15 Parkersburg South blanked No. 5 Parkersburg 17-0 in a game that was tied at zero at the half. No. 6 Capital struggled to get much going offensively, falling to Riverside 14-7.
“It was a big win for us – we needed a big win,” said Riverside head coach Ralph Hensley. “We’ve just been so close a bunch of weeks and our guys came out and played well tonight. We took care of the ball and got us a win.”
Also, No. 3 George Washington pulled away from No. 11 Spring Valley in the second half 39-20 – the two teams were tied at the break 14-14.
No. 16 Morgantown improved its record to 4-2, pulling away from Wheeling Park in the second half for a 28-7 win.
“These kids are starting to buy in to be tough guys,” said Morgantown head coach John Bowers. “I think there at the end we just kind of imposed our will on them. Give our kids a ton of credit, but I think those are two pretty good teams that will go deep in the playoffs.”
In Class AA, Braxton County improved to 4-3 with a trouncing of No. 2 and previously unbeaten Ravenswood 51-13. Also, No. 5 Roane County pounded Clay County 48-12. Roane County quarterback Dylan Cottrell finished the game with 389 all-purpose yards and six touchdowns – three were rushing scores while the other three came on a punt return, kick return and through the air.
Also in Class AA, No. 7 Lincoln followed up its win over Grafton last week with a win over No. 14 Ritchie County, 17-7.
In Class A, No. 2 Williamstown only led Doddridge County 14-8 at the half, but poured on the points in the second half to take the 55-8 win. Wahama, meanwhile, was held below 60 points for only the second time this season – the fifth ranked White Falcons shutout Federal Hocking, Ohio 49-0.
And a good win for No. 15 Madonna – the Blue Dons edged No. 11 Bishop Donahue 10-7.
To see the complete scoreboard, click here.