JEFFERSON — Noah Venable rushed for over 250 yards and scored two touchdowns to lead Jackson County to a 41-21 victory over Monroe Area Friday night in both teams' Region 8-AAA openers at Panther Stadium.
The win for the Panthers (2-4, 1-0 Region 8-AAA) snapped a four-game losing streak. Monroe Area fell to 1-5, 0-1 in region play and it was the Hurricanes fourth staright loss.
Chris Griggs added a pair of rushing touchdowns and Caleb Matthews threw a pair of touchdown passes to Zane Corley.
"I thought our offensive line really played their tails off," Jackson County coach Brandon Worley said. "They were the key to the win."
Monroe Area actually led 3-0 early before Jackson County scored on three consecutive drives to take an 18-3 lead. The Hurricanes cut it to 18-6 before the Panthers scored late in the second quarter to take a 26-6 into the half.
The teams would trade a pair of touchdowns each in the second half.
Jackson County will play host to Franklin County next Friday in another Region 8-AAA contest. Monroe Area will play host to East Jackson on Friday in region action.
