Mavericks wrap up Pounders, 47-15

October 23, 2019 by Collin Riggs

The Anderson County Mavericks football team beat Chattanooga Central 47-15 on Friday, Oct. 18, as they faced off against the Pounders in a region game in Chattanooga.

The game was an incredible roller coaster ride from the very start, with the Pounders returning a kickoff for a touchdown on the first play of the game. Unfortunately for the Pounders, that play was rolled back after a holding penalty was called.

For such a strong start, the Pounders couldn’t keep that momentum going. T.J. Holmes and Stone Hatmaker both scored for Anderson County in the first quarter, putting the Mavericks up 14-0 at the end of the first.

The second quarter was the busiest of the game, and it opened in the Pounders’ favor after they caused a safety for Anderson County, putting Chattanooga Central on the board.

Unfortunately, not even two minutes after that safety, Anderson County answered with another touchdown, putting it up 21-2. Chattanooga Central’s first touchdown came with six minutes left in the second quarter from a 23-yard pass from Kelvin Mcghee.

Once again, though, the Mavericks answered, with T.J. Homes, exactly a minute later, scoring for the Mavs after a phenomenal 39-yard run down the side of the field.

Chattanooga and Anderson County would both score again before the end of the second quarter, with Chattanooga scoring from a 14-yard pass to Donovan Smith from Kelvin McGhee and Anderson County scoring from a 20-yard pass to Brandon Sanderson from Stone Hatmaker.

The first half ended with Anderson County up 33-15. While Anderson County would score two more touchdowns in the second half to finish the game 47-15, Chattanooga wouldn’t be able to put forth the same numbers as it did in the second quarter as back-to-back injuries began to plague them. First a Chattanooga player got the wind knocked out of him, then another injured his leg.

The worst of the night , though, came when a Chattanooga player, after a rough tackle, was left laying on the field.

An ambulance ambled down the dirt path between the parking lot and the field and, with the assistance of a back board and a neck brace, the injured played was lifted onto the stretcher and wheeled off the field. As he was wheeled off, players from both teams formed a long tunnel between the field and the ambulance. Mavericks and Pounders alike cheered the injured player as he was wheeled off the field in an amazing display of sportsmanship and respect. The player, whose name has been kept off record, gave a thumbs up.

There was still 10 minutes left in the fourth and for that last ten minutes, officials elected to run the clock continuously after the 30-minute delay caused by the injury.

Another notable excerpt from the night came from Daniel Bethel missing two extra-point kicks after a blocked punt early in the game, a rare occurrence for the young kicker who’s currently ranked as one of the top kickers in the state.

He came around by the end of the night, scoring the extra point for the final two touchdowns, but for a player as well-known and strongly competitive as Bethel, any deviation from perfection is a notable exception.