By Stan Beall
The Star Herald
ETHEL —
The Ethel Tigers traveled to Nanih Waiya last Friday night to play the Warriors in a Region 3-1A contest, and came up just short 28-16.
The Tigers are now 2-7 overall and 0-6 in region play.
The Tigers attempted an onsides kick to open the game, but the Warriors were ready for it and ran it back for a touchdown to take an early 6-0 lead.
The Tigers then drove the football the length of the field and failed to convert on fourth and two from the Warrior five-yard line.
The Warriors took a 12-0 lead into the intermission but the Tigers came storming back after quarterback Bobby Potts found Markei Johnson with a 39-yard strike, conversion good, to pull within four points.
Nanih Waiya was able to pull away late by scoring two more touchdowns, but not before Potts found Johnson once again through the air in the fourth quarter with a 49-yard strike, conversion failed, to push the final score to 28-16 in favor of Nanih Waiya.
“I thought, against a good football team, that we came out and gave a lot of good effort,” said Ethel head coach Paul A. Dees.
Ethel hosts Weir Friday night at 7 p.m. in what could be the last ever match up between the two schools, while both seek their first region win of the year.
“It’s senior night so it’s the last game for our seniors at home,” added Dees. “We’ve got a great group of kids, seniors, and I really believe our kids are going to come out and play hard. Weir has gone through the same gauntlet (Pelahatchie, Noxapater, West Oktibbeha) that we went through, but it’s hard to compare, and they had a chance to win against Sebastopol. They will be well coached and well prepared and they’re going to play hard. We’ll have to match their level of play and hope that the breaks fall our way.”
