Stories

Louisa rebounds, edges Orange

By Tammy Purcell / Scrimmageplay.com Contributor

After they dropped a pair of Jefferson District games a week ago, Louisa County and Orange County’s league duel Friday night lost a little bit of luster. After all, the Lions  and Hornets weren’t playing for control of the JD race, they were merely trying to stay in the fight.

But it didn’t matter.

Playing the latest installment of a border war series that spans over a half century, Louisa (4-2, 2-1 JD) and Orange (2-3, 1-2 JD) put on a show in front of a large and raucous crowd in Mineral. And four quarters wasn’t quite enough time to decide it as the Lions eked out a 19-16 overtime win punctuated by a frenetic final few minutes.

“This is a game I will remember for a long time,” Louisa coach Mark Fischer said. “I don’t care if I win another game this year. Both teams played awesome. This is what high school football is all about. Anybody who missed it, missed a great game and whoever saw it got a nugget for the rest of their lives.”

The Hornets set the stage for the late-game drama thanks largely to quarterback Cameron Hughes and a chorus of receivers. Entering the final quarter trailing 7-3, Hughes orchestrated a 9-play, 74-yard scoring drive that wound nearly five minutes off the clock. Facing third and 10, he connected with Amir Waller on 11-yard toss to keep the drive alive, then hit Tyler Seal on a 20-yard scoring pass three plays later.

That effort gave the Hornets their first lead, but it was short-lived.

Louisa took over with about 6:30 remaining and didn’t waste time moving downfield.  Having found little success in the air for much of evening, sophomore signal-caller Kire’ Worley managed some big-time completions when his team needed them most. He hit Brandon Payne on a 43-yard pass play to advance his offense deep into Hornet territory. Then, facing fourth and eight, he found Anthony Hunter on a 23-yard scoring strike. Elijah Payne missed the extra point, leaving Louisa with a narrow 13-10 advantage.

With under four minutes on the clock, Hughes and the Hornets went to work, quickly picking up real estate. But it looked like the Hornets’ comeback hopes were dashed as a wayward pass landed in the hands on defender Rashawn Jackson. But a holding penalty negated the interception and gave the Hornets a ray of hope, and they made the most of it.

Hughes completed three more passes and rumbled for 14 yards on a quarterback keeper to give the Hornets two shots at the end zone in the game’s waning seconds.   While both those efforts fell incomplete, Orange kicker Hunter Ferguson’s 26-yard field goal with just two seconds remaining was right on target.  Ferguson hit another 27-yarder to put Orange on the board on the final play of the first half.

Ferguson gave the Hornets a three-point lead with 22-yard boot in overtime but it wasn’t enough as Louisa took its shot at the end zone and quickly hit pay dirt. Sophomore running back Andre Mealy plowed through the Hornet defense on a 9-yard run then sealed the Lion victory on a 1-yard scoring spurt. Mealy was the Lions leading runner, amassing nearly 100 rushing yards including a 34-yard jaunt that powered the Lions’ first scoring drive on the game’s opening possession. A 2-yard Hunter run capped the drive.

“We played well, I told the kids we’ve got nothing to be ashamed of. The ball just didn’t bounce our way at the end,” Orange coach John Kayajanian said. He added that he was particularly proud of Hughes, who threw for over 200 yards, and Ferguson, who was kicking field goals for the first time in a varsity contest.

 

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