GAINESVILLE, Ga. – The Lumpkin County seniors became the winningest class in school history with a near-perfect performance in a 47-9 Region 6-3A victory over Chestatee on Friday night at Lynn Cottrell Complex.
This year’s senior class earned its 30th victory, which came one week after a last-second loss to Greater Atlanta Christian.
“I felt really good on Monday, when we showed up for practice with the intent that these guys had in overcoming what happened last week,” Lumpkin Coach Heath Webb said. “We haven't lost a whole lot of ballgames in our four years together, because of that group. Their intentionality after a loss has always been really good.”
The excellent week of practice showed as the Indians (3-2,1-1 Region 6-3A) scored the first eight times they had the ball and rolled up 438 yards in offense. Defensively, they held the War Eagles to 72 yards in the first half as they raced out to a 30-0 lead.
“I thought we had great balance tonight,” Webb said. “We've had some other games where we haven't been quite as balanced. I thought we were balanced tonight. I thought we did a good job of throwing and catching for the most part. And then the offensive line, I think they did a great job with pass protection and run blocking. Then Nolan Matthews is special.”
The Indians got another big night from Matthews. The senior running back rushed for 162 yards and three touchdowns. Quarterback Mason Hester completed 15-of-21 passes for 245 yards and three scores. Wide Receiver Mac Powell caught seven passes for 164 yards and two touchdowns.
The Indians' defense did an excellent job against Chestatee’s Wing-T offense. The Indians were able to consistently get defensive stops, avoiding the long drives the Chestatee offense is known for.
“The challenge in playing Chestatee is how well they operate the Wing-T,” Webb said. “We had a great plan. The guys executed the plan well, practiced well all week long in preparing for the Wing-T. I’m really proud of our defensive staff for the job that they did in preparing those guys.”
The loss puts the War Eagles (2-3, 0-2 Region 6-3A) in an early hole in the region standings, but they
lost their first two region games last season before rallying to reach the state playoffs.
The Indians totaled 296 yards in the first half as they took a 30-0 lead at the half.
Matthews opened the scoring with a 50-yard touchdown run 4:48 into the game. After forcing a second straight three-and-out, the Indians scored on another big play when Hester connected with Powell for a 51-yard scoring play.
Lumpkin’s defense set up the third score with Kolson Howell’s interception at the Lumpkin 47. Seven plays later, Hester found Martin Hulsey for 18 yards for a 20-0 lead.
Sophomore kicker Wylder Flakes kicked a 29-yard field goal, and Matthew scored from 1 yard out to round out the first-half scoring.
Lumpkin scored touchdowns on its first two possessions in the second half. The first came on Matthews’ 26-yard run, followed by Hester’s 26-yard pass to Howell. Kicker Xavier Blount kicked a 27-yard field goal to close out the scoring.
The War Eagles scored in the third quarter on Yohann Reyna’s 21-yard field goal and Brody Burke’s 5-yard touchdown run. Blake Conner led the War Eagles with 77 yards rushing.
