Hampton rally falls short to Gatlinburg-Pittman

Published 12:17 am Saturday, October 8, 2022

By Allen LaMountain

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STAR CORRESPONDENT
  GATLINBURG – Big plays were the order of the night in Gatlinburg as the Highlanders took a 48-40 win over Hampton at Legion Field on Friday night to knock the Bulldogs from the ranks of the unbeaten.
  “There were times it looked bleak and there were plenty of times we could have laid down,” Bulldogs head coach Michael Lunsford said. “But we kept battling, kept fighting and if we had just a little bit go our way, if we get one of those onside kicks, it could have gone our way.”
  Sophomore RB Tegan Avera rushed for 94 of his game-high 165 yards for G-P, while junior quarterback Brady Hammonds passed for 141 first-half yards on his way to 296 yards passing.
  Hampton opened strong with senior RB Levi Lunsford capping a 15-play, 80-yard drive with a seven-yard touchdown run. The point after run failed so the ‘Dogs held a 6-0 lead.
  That lead did not last long as G-P went on a 72-yard scoring drive with Avera scoring on a 12-yard run. Kicker Aiden Jeanette connected on the PAT for a 7-6 Highlanders lead. In the second quarter Hammonds connected with Whit Whaley on a 25-yard scoring strike for a 14-6 G-P advantage.
  For the second consecutive series Hampton was forced to punt and G-P struck again on a five-yard Avera scoring run. The PAT kick was blocked so Hampton trailed 20-6.
  Junior Chance Point got Hampton back on the scoreboard with a 64-yard catch and run for a touchdown on a strike from junior Dylan Trivett, which made it a 20-12 contest. G-P ended the half with a 50-yard strike from Hammonds to Whaley for a 27-12 halftime lead.
  G-P’s Whaley caught eight passes for 223 yards and three touchdowns with the last one giving the ‘Landers a 48-24 lead. Hampton did not quit, scoring the last two touchdowns of the game and converting both two-pointers to close to within 48-40 with under two minutes remaining.
  For Hampton, Lunsford rushed for 72 yards on 20 carries and sophomore Dominique Burleson rushed for 98 yards on five carries.
  “Dominique has a lot of speed,” Lunsford said. “He’s just a sophomore but we’re trying to get him ready, trying to get him ready and I think tonight he showed that we can trust him in these situations.
G-P 48-40
Hampton           6 6 6 22 – 40
G-P                    7 20 14 7 – 48
Scoring summary
First Quarter
H – Lunsford 7 run (run failed) 5:24
G – Avera 12 run (Jeanette kick) :32
Second Quarter
G – Whaley 25 pass from Hammonds (Jeanette kick) 9:08
G – Avera 5 run (kick blocked) 6:18
H – Point 64 pass from Trivett (pass failed) 4:52
G – Whaley 50 pass from Hammonds (Gheesling kick) 2:22
Third Quarter
G – Whaley 50 pass from Hammonds (Gheesling kick) 4:57
H – McKinney 79 pass from Point (pass failed) 3:29
Fourth Quarter
H – Trivett 3 run (run failed) 8:50
G – Avera 50 run (Gheesling kick) 8:27
H – Lunsford 3 run (Lunsford run) 3:40
H – Lunsford 7 run (Trivett pass to Carrico) 1:32

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