Hampton second half surge sinks Rangers
Published 5:00 pm Friday, October 22, 2021
StarPhoto/Larry N. Souders The Bulldogs Morgan Lyons (24) gets to the outside and heads down the sidelines for a first down in the first quarter.
StarPhoto/Larry N. Souders The Bulldogs Caleb Royston (2) looks back ready to catch the quick out pass from quarterback Conner Jones (4) mid-way through the first quarter.
StarPhoto/Larry N. Souders On first and goal for the 10-yard line the Bulldogs Levi Lunsford (9) crashes through the line, then breaks left to pay dirt for Hampton second score of the first quarter.
StarPhoto/Larry N. Souders Hampton lineman MacKinley Kuhn (78) lifts Broady Hicks into the air in celebration of Hicks 59-yard touchdown reception early in the second quarter.
StarPhoto/Larry N. Souders Taking the handoff from quarterback Landon Ramsey (13) the Rangers Jamol Blamo (20) hits the hole and scamper 65 yards on Unaka’s first play from scrimmage in the second quarter.
StarPhoto/Larry N. Souders The Rangers Landon Ramsey (13) dumps a screen pass, over the middle, over the out stretched hands of Hampton’s front line mid-way through the second quarter.
StarPhoto/Larry N. Souders The Bulldogs Conner Jones (4) trips up Unaka’s Landon Ramsey (13) short of the end zone on a two-point conversion play after Blamo’s second touch down of the second quarter.
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BY ALLEN LAMOUNTAIN
STAR CORRESPONDENT
On Senior Night and Homecoming, Hampton struggled in the first half with a Unaka squad looking for a measure of respect. The Rangers (6-3 overall) got their due but the Bulldogs came out in the power-I run formation in the second half and blitzed Unaka 51-14.
“Winning is always important for us,” Bulldogs head coach Michael Lunsford said. “These seniors have been with us for four years and we just love them and want to see them be successful. Unaka has a great group of kids, they came out and played hard and they have had a great season so far.”
Hampton (7-1 overall) opened with a six-play, 68-yard drive with senior quarterback Conor Jones rushing for 18 yards and a score for a 7-0 lead after the point after kick from Michael Harrison.
The Rangers lost a fumble to Hampton on their first possession and the ‘Dogs cashed in the turnover with Levi Lunsford taking the ball the last 10 yards for the touchdown.
The PAT kick missed and the ‘Dogs had to settle for a 13-0 advantage.
On the Rangers next possession the ‘Dogs forced a punt and Jones returned the kick 43 yards to the Unaka three-yard line from where Ashton Hardin scored and Morgan Lyons added the deuce for a 21-0 Bulldogs lead.
Hampton would push the score to 28-0 early in the second period as Jones connected with Chance Point on a 59-yard scoring bomb with Harrison adding the PAT kick. The Rangers came to life at this point scoring on their next two possessions to cut the lead to 28-14 by halftime.
On the Rangers first scoring drive junior running back Jamol Blamo took a shovel pass from quarterback Landon Ramsey and burst through the middle of the Hampton line and raced 64 yards to paydirt. Ramsey threw to Blamo for the deuce and a 28-8 contest.
The Ranger defense held Hampton on downs on the ‘Dogs next possession and they cashed that in on a two-yard scoring run from Blamo for a 28-14 game at the break.
The second half was all Hampton as they just went to the power run game and Unaka had no answer for it. Caleb Royston scored on a 15-yard run in the third quarter and Lunsford scored his second touchdown on a six-yard run and Jones scored on a 10-yard run.
The rain was coming down in torrents by this time and a lightning strike with 7:40 showing on the clock sent the teams into the locker room and 20 minutes later it was decided to simply call it a game as most of the fans had already left.
—
Hampton 51-14
Unaka 0 14 0 0 – 14
Hampton 21 7 7 16 – 51
Scoring summary
First Quarter
H – Jones 18 run (Harrison kick) 9:29
H – Lunsford 10 run (kick failed) 4:10
H – Hardin 3 run (Lyons run) 1:34
Second Quarter
H – Point 59 pass from Jones (Harrison kick) 11:01
U – Blamo 64 pass from Ramsey (Blamo pass from Ramsey) 10:40
U – Blamo 2 run (pass failed) 2:12
Third Quarter
H – Royston 15 run (Harrison kick) 5:57
Fourth Quarter
H – Lunsford 6 run (Lyons run) 10:20
H – Jones 10 run (Hardin run) 7:40
