Falcons soar over Dragons
Perennial power Fulton came calling on the Clinton Dragons Friday night and left with a 40-7 win.
Clinton took the first possession and had a promising drive going as Cameron Washington and Isaiah Washington pounded the ball into the heart of the Fulton defense.
On an early third and two, Trevon Hill plowed ahead for a first down at the Falcons’ 48-yard line. The drive stalled after 10 plays and Clinton was forced to punt.
Fulton quarterback Xavier Malone wasted little time in living up to his credentials as a game changing quarterback. In just five plays he directed the offense 73 yards for a score. The key play of the drive was his 47-yard touchdown pass to Joey Smith.
Jashuan Fenderson kicked the extra point and the Falcons claimed a 7-0 lead with 4:08 remaining in the first quarter.
On their second possession, the Dragons drove to the Fulton 40-yard line as Ro Hardin had a couple of nice gains on the ground to keep the drive going.
Following the punt, the Falcons took over on their own 27-yard line.
Facing fourth and five on the Clinton 25-yard line, Malone threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to Fenderson, who promptly kicked the PAT.
With 11:49 left in the second quarter Fulton led 14-0.
The Dragons fumbled the ensuing kickoff and the Falcons recovered on the Clinton 36-yard line.
Three plays later, Malone threw a 30-yard touchdown pass to Coryean Davis.
Fenderson added the extra point and the Fulton lead grew to 21-0 with 10:33 remaining in the first half.
On the following possession, the Dragons fumbled a snap on third down and the Falcons recovered it on the Clinton 15-yard line.
After an encroachment penalty moved the ball to the Dragons’ 11-yard line, Jackson Leinart dropped Fenderson for a six-yard loss. Clinton’s Andrew Niner then blew up a screen pass for a one-yard loss. Two incomplete passes later and the Falcons turned the ball over on downs,
The Clinton offense was unable to get anything going and was again forced to punt.
Eight plays and 56 yards later, Dorian Williams plunged into the end zone for the one-yard touchdown run.
Fenderson added the extra point and pushed the Fulton lead to 28-0 with 3:30 left in the half.
Freshman quarterback Jacob Brock entered the game and gave a spark to the Dragons’ offense as he completed a 10-yard pass to Cameron Washington. Clinton also benefitted from a 15-yard personal foul penalty before Isaiah Washington broke a 28-yard run and Cameron Washington followed with seven more.
The drive stalled and Garrett Zody came on for the 50-yard field goal attempt. The Dragons attempted a fake and the Falcons’ Jaquez Booker intercepted the pass to end the drive.
Fulton ran out the clock and took a 28-0 lead into the half.
The Falcons took the first possession of the second half and surely looked to be a demonic possession to Dragons’ fans, marched 66 yards in six plays. Deshaun Page scored on a 14-yard run to cap the drive.
The extra point attempt failed but Fulton led 34-0 with 9:23 remaining in the third quarter.
On the first possession of the second half, the Dragons turned the ball over on downs at their own 33-yard line.
The Clinton defense held as Trevor Linderman dropped Page for a nine-yard loss and an incomplete pass forced the Falcons to turn it over on downs.
On the first play of the next possession, Fulton’s Fenderson intercepted a pass and returned it 23 yards to the Clinton four-yard line.
Three plays later, J’Coryan Anders scored on a three-yard run.
The extra point attempt failed but the Falcons extended their lead to 40-0 with 2:39 left in the quarter.
On the first play of the next possession, Cameron Washington exploded for a 47-yard run to give the Dragons a first down at the Fulton 11-yard line.
Two plays later, Isaiah Washington scored on a nine-yard run.
Zody kicked the extra point to put the Dragons on the board and break a 17-quarter scoreless streak with 11:12 left in the game.
Trailing 40-7, Zody booted an onside kick and recovered it to give Clinton the ball at the 50-yard line.
Isaiah Washington ran for nine yards and Cameron Washington ran for nine more. Reagan McKamey picked up four yards and Brock completed a short pass to Cameron Washington but the drive stalled at the Fulton 31-yard line.
Zody came on for the 47-yard field goal attempt but the kick sailed just wide left.
The Falcons were able to run out the clock from there.
Cameron Washington led the Dragons with 91 yards on 12 carries.
Isaiah Washington had 68 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries.
Defensively, Linderman led Clinton with nine tackles, including two and a half for loss.
Josh Breeden, Ro Hardin, and Isaiah Washington each had six tackles while Anthony Shervington had five tackles.
The Dragons fall to 2-5, 0-3 in Region 3-5A while Fulton moves to 6-1, 3-0 in region play.
Clinton will visit rival Oak Ridge (5-2, 3-0) for a huge region game on Friday.
Kick-off is set for 7:30 p.m.
Game Stats
FHS CHS
First downs 16 14
Rushing yds. 139 162
Passing yds. 231 31
Comp/att/int 17-25-0 3-11-2
Total yds. 370 193
Turnovers 0 4
Penalties 13-98 14-72
Time of poss. 19:25 28:35
