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Scores and Photos of Friday night high school football – Sept. 25
East Ridge on Friday did nothing but enhance its reputation as a second-half football team in 2015. And still an undefeated one.
The Pioneers never trailed Hixson in their high school game at East Ridge, but they were tied at halftime and at the end of the third quarter. But a tiebreaking field goal by C.J. Bond, an intensified defensive performance and a preserving touchdown in the fourth quarter enabled the Pioneers to secure a 24-14 victory.
“There have been a lot of games where we were down – down bad,” said East Ridge coach Tracy Malone, whose team improved to 6-0. “These guys have such a strong belief, such a strong bond. It comes back around to the team’s calling card about never quitting.”
Rain began falling about the time halftime festivities were coming to an end. The third quarter was played in a steady rain and included Bond having a 35-yard field-goal try tipped at the line of scrimmage.
With an East Ridge possession early in the fourth period reaching fourth down, with the rain subsiding a little, Malone called timeout. But he already had in mind giving Bond another chance, and this time he connected from 35 yards to put the Pioneers up 17-14 with 9:59 to play.
“We put a lot of pressure on C.J. Bond,” Malone said. “He catches it pretty bad. Every Wednesday and Thursday we end practice with a field goal from around the 20. We’re very confident in him. We knew he could make it. I don’t think it was that tough of a decision. We believe in him.”
Hixson (0-5), which in the first half had two touchdown drives of 68 yards, both of them on the ground, found the going tougher in the latter stage of the game. After a Wildcats punt, East Ridge was left on its 47 with 7:03 to play.
Seven consecutive carries by the Pioneers’ Traneil Moore, with the aid of two personal-foul calls on Hixson, moved them to the Wildcats’ 23, where they faced a fourth-and-7. Having completed one pass all night, Eric Bennett came out of an East Ridge timeout and hit Jesse Jones on a post pattern for a touchdown with 2:42 remaining.
Another Hixson personal foul on the extra point enabled East Ridge to pin the Wildcats inside their 20 with the kickoff. The possession, which went backward from there, ended on Hixson’s 13, and the Pioneers were able to run out the final 1:17.
Hixson coach Dan Duff was particularly displeased with the number of personal-foul and unsportsmanlike-conduct calls his team committed.
“Terrible character,” Duff said. “If we don’t fix that, we’re not going to be any good at all.”
Moore had a 67-yard scoring run on East Ridge’s first play and topped the 100-yard rushing mark by halftime. He also had a 1-yard touchdown run.
Justin Nicholson and Myles Ratliff had short TD runs for the Wildcats.
Contact Kelley Smiddie at sports@timesfreepress.com. Follow him at twitter.com/KelleySmiddie.