By Bradley Roberts/Fort Payne Times-Journal
Coosa Christian conquered Valley Head, 25-6, in the first Class 1A, Region 6 matchup of the season for both teams last Friday (Sept. 8) at Valley Head.
The Conquerors improved to 2-1 overall and 1-0 in region competition, while Valley Head fell to 0-2 overall and 1-2 in region play.
The Tigers took the opening kickoff and returned the ball past midfield into Coosa territory. Senior running back Roger Kirby had runs of eight and 24 yards to set up a first down in the red zone with just under three minutes off the clock.
Kirby took the ball for another 10 yards to set up a first and goal for Valley Head, but Kirby fumbled the exchange from quarterback Marlonn Trinidad, and the Tigers lost the first of their five fumbles in the first half.
The Tiger defense stalled the Conquerors on their first offensive possession. Valley Head took over after the punt at its own 33-yard line, but six plays and another fumble later, the Tigers punted back to Coosa.
The teams were deadlocked at 0-0 after the first quarter. But a Valley Head punt to start the second half set up a six play, 59-yard touchdown drive.
Conqueror quarterback Caiden Lipscomb found receiver Jackson Justus on a 43-yard touchdown pass. Kicker Noah Davidson’s point-after was good, and Coosa grabbed the early 7-0 advantage.
The Tigers’ ensuing possession stalled at the Coosa 44, and following a bad snap on the punt, Coosa took over at the Valley Head 46-yard line. Five plays later, Lipscomb connected with Ashton Clemmons on a 15-yard TD with 3:01 left in the half. The PAT was good, and the Conquerors took the 14-0 lead.
Coosa stopped Valley Head on the next possession, and the Conquerors took over at the Tiger 43 following a punt. Lipscomb again found Clemmons on a slant route across the middle, and Clemmons went the distance for the score. The PAT was no good, but Coosa took the 20-0 lead into the locker room.
The Conquerors got the ball to start the second half, and after three plays, Valley Head defensive back Gabriel Boozer collected an interception at the Coosa 46-yard line with 10:50 remaining in the third quarter.
The Tigers’ Wing-T attack set up a perfect play-action pass from Trinidad to Kirby on a fourth-and-2. Kirby went 22 yards to set up first-and-goal, and he went across the goal line a play later from one yard out.
The two-point conversion was no good, but Valley Head started to chip at that lead 20-6 with 7:37 left in the third.
Following a Coosa punt, the Conquerors pinned the Tigers deep in their own territory. A bad snap on fourth down led to a safety by Davidson, and the Conquerors increased their lead to 22-6 with 2:06 remaining in the third.
Justus added a 22-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter to bring the lead to 25-6, which was where it stayed.
The Conquerors out-gained the Tigers in total yards by a 332 to 143 margin.
Lipscomb was 8-for-21 in passing for 214 yards and three touchdowns. Justus had four receptions for 103 yards.
Dartavious Britton paced the Coosa ground game with 65 yards on 16 carries, while Brody Sanders ran nine times for 48 yards.
Defensively, Jake McDowell had nine tackles, followed by Sanders and Chase Burger with five each.
Connor Belyeu had an interception, while Britton and Clemmons each recovered a fumble.
The Conquerors host Ragland this Friday (Sept. 15) in a non-region contest.