After a shaky start to the season, the Lake Hornets seem to be returning to the form that led them to a tie for the Division 4-2A title last year.
The Hornets used a stingy defense as they took a 27-0 win over Choctaw Central on Friday night on the Pearl River Reservation.
The Hornets are now 4-1 on the season and will host Richland on Friday night.
After a season-opening loss to Pelahatchie, the Hornets have won four straight games.
“I told our coaches staff and team that losing that first game was probably the best thing that could have happened for us,” Hanna said. “They had to witness defeat before they got back hungry. It has helped us in the long run. Now we have one more game before district and have got to get better next week.”
The Lake defense limited Choctaw Central to just 37 yards of total offense.
“I thought we played really good,” Hanna said. “They only had 37 yards on offense. We dominated them from the first of the game. They got a couple of first downs on the first drive but from that point on, we totally shut them down. We did a good job of coming out and taking care of business. We had a lot of young guys in the game and that’s always good. I was real proud of the effort and the outcome.”
Choctaw got the ball to start the game and put together a nine-play drive to get to the Lake 39 before turning the ball over on downs. The Hornets then responded with a six-play, 61-yard drive as Ethan Gray scored on an 8-yard run. The PAT was blocked and Lake led 6-0.
Lake put together another good drive, as the Hornets drove 62 yards in nine plays. D’Alex Jennings finished it with an 11-yard run for a touchdown. The two-point conversion was good and Lake led 14-0 midway through the second quarter.
After a quick three-and-out by Choctaw, a 34-yard pass from Mickey Parker to Danarrious Hughes set up Gray’s score from two yards out. The two-point conversion failed and Lake led 20-0 at the half.
“We are improving every week on throwing the football,” Hanna said. “We threw for over 100 yards again. We are very balanced on offense, and it’s a big deal for us. Last year, people were loading the box on us. I don’t think they are going to be able to do that this year.”
Lake got the ball to start the second half and drove 80 yards in 11 plays. A big 50-yard run on a reverse by Jadorian Pace allowed Gray to finish off the drive with another 2-yard scoring run. Will Burns’ PAT was good and Lake led 27-0.
Gray led Lake on offense with 72 yards on 13 carries while Parker was 7-of-11 passing for 108 yards. Zywon Ledbetter had two catches for 31 yards while Jennings had 33 yards receiving and 26 rushing.
Seth Prestage led the Lake defense with 7.5 tackles while Aaron Campbell had 6.5 stops. Shelton Porter and Johnny Johnson each had five tackles while Danarrious Houghes had four tackles.
