By Jim Walker

jim.walker@irontontribune.com

 

COAL GROVE — One would be hard-pressed to find an amusement park ride as wild and crazy as this game.

In a game that saw 76 points in the first half including 57 in the second quarter, the Coal Grove Hornets outscored the Meigs Marauders 61-34 on Friday.

The Hornets led 42-34 at the half and then neither team scored in the third quarter. Coal Grove then scored 19 points in the fourth quarter while holding Meigs scoreless the entire second half.

Chase Hall had a monster game for the Hornets as he ran 28 times for 410 yards and scored 5 touchdowns for the second straight week. Hall has more than 800 yards rushing through 3 games and has scored 14 touchdowns.

The Hornets rushed 44 ties for 496 yards as a team wth Steven Simpson getting 63 yards on 9 carries and a score while Kaden Murphy added 26 yards on 5 totes and scored 3 times, once on a pass reception.

Quarterback Whyatt Mannon was 3-of-6 passing for 107 yards and a TD as Coal Grove amassed 6-3 total yards.

Meigs finished with 425 total yards led by quarterback Griffin Cleland who was 20-of-29 for 259 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

The Marauders ran for 138 yards led by Conlee Burnem with 76 yards on 10 carries and a TD.

Coal Grove took a 6-0 lead on a 13-yard run by Murphy with less than a minute into the game.

Meigs came back to take a 7-6 on a 4-yard run by Burnem and Walker Mayer’s kick at the 6:08 mark.

But Coal Grove used a 36-yard pass from Mannon to Murphy to go up 12-7 with 2:54 left in the quarter.

The Hornets extended the lead early in the second quarter on a 31-yard run by Hall. Murphy’s conversion run made it 20-7 with 10:34 on the clock.

Meigs struck quickly as Cleland hit Logan Eskew with a 57-yard scoring pass to cut the deficit to 20-14 with 9:01 on the clock.

Coal Grove used a 52-yard burst by Simpson with 6:55 left in the half and a conversion run by Hall to take a 28-14 lead.

That part of the ride was fun but the wicked curve that followed as Burnem return the kickoff 87 yards for a touchdown and it was 28-21.

On the Hornets’ ensuing play from scrimmage, Hall race 60 yards for a touchdown and Murphy’s run opened up a 36-21 lead.

Eskew had a 5-yard TD run with 2:26 left and it was 36-28, but Hall answered with a 62-yard touchdown gallop on the Hornets’ next play and it was 42-28 with 2:11 left in the half.

Meigs ended the half and its scoring with a 12-yard run by Cleland with just 44 seconds to go in the half. The conversion pass failed and it was 42-34.

After a scoreless third quarter, Hall ran 6 yards on the first play of the fourth quarter and it was 48-34.

Hall cored from 17 yards out with 6:04 on the clock and the lead was 54-34.

Murphy had a 17-yard scoring run with 2:58 left in the game and John Turner’s conversion kick set the final score at 61-34.

Coal Grove begins Ohio Valley Conference play at South Point next Friday.

Meigs       7    27    0     0     =     34

Coal Grove     12    30    0     19    =     61

First Quarter

CG — Kaden Murphy 13 run (kick failed) 11:06

M — Conlee Burnem 4 run (Walker Mayer kick) 6:08

CG — Kaden Murphy 36 pass from Whyatt Mannon (run failed) 2:54

Second Quarter

CG – Chase Hall 31 run (Murphy run) 10:34

M — Logan Eskew 57 pass from Griffin Cleland (Walker Mayer kick) 9:01

CG— Steven Simpson 52 run (Chase Hall run) 6:55

M—Conlee Burnem 87 kickoff return (Connor Mayer kick) 6:42

CG— Chase Hall 60 run (Kaden Murphy run) 6:22

M— Logan Eskew 5 run (Walker Mayer kick) 2:26

CG— Chase Hall 62 run (run failed) 2:11

M— Griffin Cleland 12 run (pass failed) :44

Fourth Quarter

CG — Chase Hall 6 run (run failed) 11:54

CG — Chase Hall 17 run (run failed) 6:04

CG — Kaden Murphy 17 run (John Turner kick) 2:58

———

Mgs CG

First downs     20    19

Rushes-yards  28-138    44-496

Passing yards  287  107

Total yards     425  603

Cmp-Att-Int    19-29-1   3-6-0

Fumbles-lost   0-0  3-0

Penalties-yards       9-60 7-47

Punts-average 1-40.0     0-00.0

———

Individual Leaders

RUSHING–Meigs: Conlee Burnem 10-76 TD, Connor Imboden 1-minus 6, Griffin Cleland 12-58 TD, Wade Howard 5-14, Logan Eskew 3-8, Demetrius Tackett 1-minus 3; Coal Grove: Chase Hall 28-410 5TD, Steven Simpson 9-63 TD, Kaden Murphy 5-26 TD, Gavin Gipson 1-3, Whyatt Mannon 2-minus 6.

PASSING–Meigs: Griffin Cleland 20-29-1 259 TD; Coal Grove: Whyatt Mannon 3-6-0 107 TD.

RECEIVING–Meigs: Conlee Burnem 3-56, Dillon Howard 2-12, Peyton Vaninwagen 7-46, Connor Imboden 4-46, Logan Eskew 1-57 TD, Jake Martin 1-10, Joe Metzger 1-28, Demetrius Tackett 1-4; Coal Grove: Gavin Gipson 1-21, Kaden Murphy 1-36 TD, Chase Hall 1-40.