With its offense stalled, Central’s football team was rescued by a stout defense and dazzling play on special teams.
The Purple Pounders lost three fumbles, tossed an interception and gave the ball up three more times on downs but managed to escape at East Hamilton with a 14-7 Region 2-4A win Friday night.
The Hurricanes defense was stout in its own right, but the hosts also struggled with turnovers and lost two of their five fumbles.
Central (3-2, 2-0) struck first behind workhorse Michael McGhee. The senior running back punched in a touchdown from 2 yards out with 3:41 to play in the first quarter.
East Hamilton (2-3, 1-1) grabbed a 7-6 lead in the second quarter on an 8-yard strike from Haynes Eller to Jaxon Knight. That score stood until the fourth-quarter heroics from Central’s Hunter Jones.