Final score says it all: SWR 49, AHS 47

ASHEBORO — There are some wins that will be remembered for a little longer than others. There are some wins that prove just a little more than other victories. There are some wins that could have a longer lasting impact on a season.

Southwestern Randolph experienced one of those victories last Saturday night, a thrilling 49-47 victory over rival Asheboro High at Ivey B. Luck Stadium.

The Cougars totally dominated the time of possession, withstood a slew of big plays from the Blue Comets and scored touchdowns on seven of nine total drives to offset an AHS team that scored touchdowns on seven of eight drives.

“This means a ton,” said SWR senior quarterback Noah Stills, who ran for three touchdowns and threw for three more. “It’s crazy how hard we get these boys to come out and work. We knew they had a strong offense and we tried to keep them off the field for as long as we could.”

The victory was the fifth straight for the Cougars in the series, a series that saw AHS win 25 of the first 26 meetings. AHS still holds a 26-6 series advantage. But all that mattered to the Cougars was last Saturday.

“We talked about basketball, keeping the ball away from somebody,” SWR coach Seth Baxter said. “You can’t score if you don’t have it. We wanted to control the time of possession and we did that. They have athletes all over the field and we don’t have the speed they do. We knew we had to attack them tackle to tackle.”

SWR’s offensive line, a stout running game led by Stills, Asher Perkins and Brody Sheppard, acrobatic and clutch catches by Julian Mosely and a key stop to open the second half by the defense helped the Cougars improve to 3-2 on the season. It was the most points the Cougars have scored against AHS in the 32-year history of the series.

“We came out here with a plan of running the clock through four quarters and we did that,” said Perkins, who caught a 1-yard scoring strike from Stills on a fourth-down play in the third quarter that gave the Cougars a 35-28 lead, a lead SWR would never relinquish. “Our playbook is complex and it gives us the ability to score on most of our drives.”

The Cougars held a whopping 79-40 advantage in plays run from scrimmage, but AHS did score on all four drives in the first half, including a two-play, 46-yard drive in the final 12.7 seconds of the first half to tie the score at 28-28 at the break. Elijah Woodle, who caught a pair of scoring strikes, scored on a 26-yard pass as the first-half clock expired.

“Did we do some bad things? Yes,” said Baxter. “Did we give up some big plays? Yes. But the last thing we said at halftime was to go out and get one stop. We found a way to win and I am so proud and happy for our kids and our fans. This means a lot to them, too.”

After SWR took a 35-28 lead, Quincey Lee, who scored three times, pulled AHS to within 35-34. But a missed extra point allowed the Cougars to keep the lead.

Later, when AHS cut its deficit to 42-40 in the final quarter, a two-point pass attempt was dropped and the Cougars added another score on a 7-yard run by Perkins with 3:08 left.

Lee’s third touchdown with 23.3 seconds left made it 49-46 and the PAT made it 49-47, but SWR recovered a pooch kick and ran out the clock.

Laughlin, who threw for 248 yards, connected with Ben Luck for a 52-yard scoring strike in the second quarter.

Mosely made a number of key receptions for the Cougars, including scores of 2 and 24 yards.

“The offense was working together as a brotherhood,” said the 6-foot-6 Mosely, who out-jumped the AHS secondary a number of times. “It started Monday and I made sure we were on the same page and locked in. It’s good my QB could find me all over the field. I just had to make a play and I did.”

The loss was the second straight heartbreaker for the Blue Comets, who slipped to 2-3 on the season. AHS dropped a 34-27 overtime decision to Randleman last week.

Both teams begin conference action Friday as the Cougars host Eastern Randolph in Piedmont Athletic Conference play and Asheboro hosts Oak Grove in its Mid-Piedmont Conference opener.