TOCCOA — Stephens County has long been a thorn in Habersham Central's side, and the Indians proved so again on Friday in Toccoa.
Stephens County pulled away in the first half and held on for a 27-7 win over the Raiders at The Reservation, handing Habersham its first loss of the season and halting a three-game win streak.
The victory was 12th straight in the longstanding series for Stephens County and gave the Indians (3-1) their second straight victory of the campaign.
Stephens did it on the ground, as A.J. Howard rushed 19 times for 151 yards and Hassan Brown carried 10 times for 122 yards to help the Indians to a 21-0 halftime lead.
Habersham (3-1) fought throughout but could not get its run game fully on track, as Aaron Galloway led the way with 81 yards on 17 carries. Senior standout Michael Babers did not play, missing the contest after suffering injury in last week's defeat of Franklin County.
Raiders quarterback Cole Wilbanks completed 16 of 32 passes for 168 yards and a score.
Jake Jones and Garrett KInsey also recorded eight tackles apiece for Habersham.
The Raiders will look to rebound next week at Chestatee.
Stephens County travels to Hart County next week.
