East Hall fights back to get region win over Dawson County

DAWSONVILLE -- East Hall got the victory it craved on Friday night, holding off a late comeback attempt by Dawson County, 36-29 in Dawsonville.<br /> <br /> "We needed this; this is huge," Vikings coach Bryan Gray said. "The kids showed tremendous heart tonight. We've faced a lot of adversity this season with injuries, but the kids have kept battling."<br /> <br /> East Hall (2-3, 1-1 Region 7-AAA) put up 250 yards in the first half, building a 20-7 lead that stretched to 27-7. Yet Dawson County (0-5, 0-2) showed plenty of fight of its own, scoring two fourth quarter touchdowns to pull within a score late.<br /> <br /> "Their quarterback started making plays and brought them back, full credit to them," Gray said. "But our defense stepped up and held on. Our defensive line and linebackers played great tonight, including Hosea Jackson, Alan Silva, Abraham Sepulveda and Juwon Merritt all came up big.<br /> <br /> "The offensive line also began to gel tonight, and we ran the ball well."<br /> <br /> Gray said his team still has plenty of room to improve.<br /> <br /> "We still haven't put together a complete game yet, and we are still getting better," Gray said. <br /> <br /> East Hall will take on West Hall next week.