Passing game clicks, Warriors top Alliance 31-21

By Carol McIntire
Editor
When the Carrollton Warriors needed the defense Friday against the Alliance Aviators it was there.
When the Warriors needed the passing game, it was successful.
When it was time for the offense to grind out yards on the ground late in the contest, the line opened holes for running backs to squirt through.
When the different aspect of the game responded when called upon, the results are usually favorable, as was the case for the Warriors Friday night in a 31-21 win.
It was the second consecutive Eastern Buckeye Conference (EBC) win of the season and sets the Warriors up with a 5-2 record a high probability of making the post season playoffs with three games left on the schedule.
“We’ve wanted to be balanced on offense,” Carrollton Coach Storm Hill said after the contest. “We know we can’t live and die by run. It’s something we’ve worked on all year. It’s good to see it executed.”
The hosts struck first on the opening drive of the game. Senior quarterback Jacob Whitmore engineered an eight-play, 69-yard drive exclusively on the ground that culminated with a 13-yard Isaac Husted run for the score. Freshman kicker Paycen Havens kicked the extra point and the Warriors enjoyed an early 7-0 lead.
The Aviators were quick to answer.
On the visitor’s first play from scrimmage on their own 31-yard line, Ravhan Hawkins dropped back and found senior receiver Brady White open for a 69-yard catch and run that resulted in a touchdown. Defender Dalton Naylor blocked the extra point kick with 7:27 on the first quarter clock and the hosts held on to a 7-6 lead.
Early in the second period, Carrollton forced an Alliance punt that looked like it was going to roll into the end zone. An alert Aviator defender went airborne and batted the ball into the field of play from the end zone. It rolled dead on the Carrollton 3-yard line. Just when it looked like the Warriors were going to “live and die” by the run, Hill dialed up a pass.
With the nose of the ball on the Warrior’s own 26-yard line, Whitmore dropped back and threw a 59-yard strike to receiver Landon James, who was dragged down on the Alliance 13-yard line. On the next play, it was back to the run game. The line opened a hole, running back Levi Kiko sneaked through and dragged defenders the final 13 yards to the end zone.
Havens added the extra point for a 14-6 lead that lasted only 10 seconds.
White fielded the kickoff, shed a couple defenders and raced 86 yards for a touchdown. This time the kick was good and the Aviators had renewed life.
Carrollton threatened late in the quarter with a drive deep into Alliance territory. Jackson halted the threat when he intercepted Whitmore’s fourth-down pass in the end zone.
“We made some mistakes in the first half,” Hill said. “We gave up a big pass play and we gave up that big special teams play. We coach special teams every day and we don’t want those to happen.”
Carrollton returned for the second half knowing the defense had to hold the Aviator passing game in check and continue to move the ball through the air and on the ground.
“We rebounded in the second half and went plus 11,” Hill said. “We had two big defensive plays. Hunter made that interception, and the defense as a whole did a great job down here in our end zone.”
Hill was referring to two Alliance drives that went deep inside Warrior territory. The first came in the third period after Izae Hardy intercepted a Whitmore pass and returned it to the Carrollton 4-yard line. The Carrollton defense recorded two negative yardage plays and, on a third and goal play from the 13-yard line, Allison intercepted Jackson’s pass in the end zone and returned it to the Carrollton 22-yard line.
From there, Carrollton mounted an 11-play, 78-yard drive capped off when Husted caught a Whitmore pass and ran left, angling toward the goal line. As he crossed the 5-yard line, an Aviator defender closed in and Husted laid his body out, stretched out his arm with the ball in it knocked the pylon over for the touchdown. Havens was again good on the extra point kick. With that score, and a 27-yard field goal by Havens in the third period, Carrollton took a 24-13 early in the fourth period.
The Warrior defense would be called upon again to defend the end zone on Alliance’s ensuing drive.
Brady returned the Braylen Murphys’ kickoff to the Aviator 45-yard line. An offside call on Carrollton advanced the ball to midfield. On first down, Jackson connected with White for another long pass play, this one to the Carrollton 4-yard line.
Again, the Warrior defense answered when called upon.
On first down, Jackson’s pass over the middle and into the end zone fell incomplete. On second down, Allison brought Hawkins down in the backfield for a two-yard loss. Tanner Johnston knocked Jackson’s third-down pass away from the intended receiver and, on fourth and goal from the 6-yard line, the pass again fell incomplete.
Alliance added a touchdown with 3:42 on the clock when Hawkins scored from four yards out. A personal foul against Carrollton moved the ball half the distance to the goal. From there, Alliance successfully converted the two-point conversion and pulled to back within three points.
Carrollton closed the door on the Aviators with just under two minutes remaining in the contest when, on a fourth-and-five play from the Alliance 31-yard line, Witherow connected with Allison for the touchdown.
The Warrior travel to Salem Friday for an EBC contest with the Quakers. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.