Newton County and Lake squared off in a preseason jamboree on Friday.
With the help of three turnovers, Newton County took a 26-6 win in the two-quarter contest.
Newton County coach Bobby Bass was pleased with what he saw from his team.
“Offensively, I thought we executed well but could still do some things better,” Bass said. “I thought our kids executed at a high level. We only had one or two pre-snap penalties. I thought our effort level was good and I thought we played really hard. They hit us with a couple of things that we hadn’t really worked on, but our kids adjusted pretty well. It was the first time playing somebody else and not really knowing what they are going to do.”
Lake got the ball to start the game and went 70 yards in nine plays as Jamarrion Blaylock scored on a 3-yard run. The PAT failed and the Hornets led 6-0.
“I thought we came out good in the first drive,” Lake coach Tate Hanna. “We never really got going on defense. They sort of put us in a bind on defense and did some things that we hadn’t prepared for. The only thing I was disappointed in was the turnovers. We had some momentum, and the turnovers killed us. I was pleased with how we started, just not how we finished. I liked the attitudes and how we responded.”
The Cougars responded with a 70-yard drive of their own as Tali King hit Byron Pruitt on a 23-yard touchdown pass. The PAT failed to tie the score at 6-6.
The Hornets fumbled on their next play and the Cougars made them pay. County then went 34 yards in five plays as Pruitt scored on an 8-yard run. Juan Brown then scored the two-point conversion and County led 14-6.
“They went up first, but we didn’t panic and went to work on offense,” Bass said. “I thought we played hard and physical. I was proud of how hard they played more than anything else. We had a lot of people touch the football. I would hate to have to prepare for us. I thought we did a good job distributing the football. We were able to play a bunch of kids, and everybody looked fresh. It gives me confidence in what we are doing in practice.”
The Hornets then turned the ball over again as Griffin Boles was intercepted by Miles Mangum. County answered with a quick strike as King hit Cam Bell on a 26-yard touchdown pass with 11:34 left in the second quarter. The try for two failed and County led 20-6.
Lake turned the ball over again as Kaleb Webster intercepted a Boles pass.
County then drove 64 yards in 10 plays and scored on a 2-yard run by Logan Evans with 6:50 left in the half to go up 26-6.
Lake turned the ball over on downs on its last possession before County ran out the clock.
“I thought we did some good things on defense,” Bass said. “They scored on that first drive, and we should have been off the field but didn’t play a ball well. We had better be in a good position this week. But as a unit, I want them to understand that good things happen when you run to the ball and play hard. We caused a fumble and had two interceptions and big returns. Three turnovers is a goal of ours and we got those in a half.”
Newton County will host Morton this week while Lake will play at Forest to open the regular season.
