Week 1: Holland runs to PWS top athlete honor
scored two touchdowns in the Bulldogs' dramatic 47-42 win over
Lindale last week. (Photo by John Krueger)
A pair of cross-county rivalries brought out the best in Shelby County athletes this past week as the contests between Shelbyville and Joaquin and another between Timpson and Tenaha highlighted local play. But the most dominating individual effort during the Week of Aug. 29-Sept. 4 came from a little farther north.
The Carthage Bulldogs have had hype of being the 2-time defending Class 3A Div. II State Champions. They entered last week's game with Lindale with a 30-game winning streak. All that being said, and with every team on their scheduling gunning to knock them from their unbeaten mark, the Dawgs just keep rising to the top.
PineyWoodsSports.com
Athlete of the Week
Hunter Holland - RB - Carthage HS
Bulldog running back Hunter Holland is one of the main reasons Carthage is holding steady at No.2 in the Associated Press Class 3A state poll this week. He had his second straight 2-touchdown contest, while rushing for 254 yards on 27 carries in a dramatic 47-42 CHS win against Lindale at Bulldog Stadium on Friday.
Not only did he run the ball well, Holland was on the receiving end of four passes for 36 yards and another touchdown against Lindale.
Holland, who has become the workhorse of the Carthage offensive attack this season, is honored this week by PineyWoodsSports.com for his relentless work effort last week by being named the PineyWoodsSports.com Athlete of the Week.
In two weeks Holland has rushed for 414 yards on 49 carries, averaging 8.4-yards per carry, while scoring four touchdowns as Carthage improved to 2-0 on the year. The victory over Lindale stretched The Bulldogs' current win streak to 31 games heading into this Friday's game at Chapel Hill.
PineyWoodsSports.com Superlative Efforts
Six athletes in the PineyWoodsSports.com coverage area received Superlative honors for their performances during the 7-day period.
Austin Rabalais - RB/DB - Shelbyville High School
Shelbyville equaled its win total of all of 2009 when the Dragons defeated the Rams by a 21-12 count at Dragon Stadium. Shelbyville used a stellar defense effort to record the victory, holding the Rams to 170 total yards.
One of the leaders of the Shelbyville defensive attack was defensive back Austin Rabalais. He tallied 13 tackles, including nine solo stops, two tackles for losses and forced one fumble. For his effort Rabalais has been named the Shelby County Athlete of the Week for events played during the week of Aug. 29 through Sept. 4.
Rabalais is also a two-way starter for the Dragons. He ran the ball once for an 8-yard gain, while catching a 27-yard touchdown pass to support his AOW honor.
Anthony Morgan - QB - Carthage High School
Bulldog quarterback Anthony Morgan had his second strong game in as many weeks by completing 15-of-21 passes (71.4%) for 299 yards and three touchdowns in the victory over Lindale. It was definitely a 'Superlative' effort by the senior signal caller.
Morgan appears to be in midseason form already as he has directed Carthage to 88 points in two weeks, while completing 32-of-43 passes (74.4%) for 573 yards and seven touchdowns.
Cortlyn Ware - WR - Carthage High School
After catching three passes for 45 yards and a score in the opening win over Jacksonville, Carthage wide receiver Cortlyn Ware took center stage in the receiving corps in the second game of the season by catching three passes for 113 yards, including the game-winner TD pass from Anthony Morgan from 58 yards out with just 35 seconds remaining to preserve the 31-game winning streak.
Ware has six catches for 158 yards and a pair of scores after just two games.
Reginald Davis - QB - Tenaha High School
With wet conditions on the field of play, Reginald Davis kept the ball in his hands most of the night against Timpson as he led the Tigers to their second consecutive shutout on the season.
Davis carried the ball 24 times for 151 yards and three touchdowns for the Tigers. That effort followed a 94-yard rushing night against Joaquin on opening night. Davis has scored six touchdowns after just two games.
Davis also recorded six tackles while playing defensive back for Tenaha.
Cala Harless - CC - Center High School
Lady Rider cross country runner Cala Harless placed 6th out of 76 runners to pace CHS at the 13th Annual Davey Crockett Invitational Meet last Saturday.
Harless set a personal best time of 14:02, which is outstanding since the competition was the first of the season for Center. That means that great things are ahead for the local runner.
Keitron Smith - LB - Tenaha High School
Tenaha linebacker Keitron Smith was a leader on defense for the second straight week as he led the Tigers to their second consecutive win to begin the season. After posting 20 tackles in the season-opening win over Joaquin, Smith added a game-high 14 tackles against the Bears in a 21-0 shutout last Friday.
With also ran the ball twice and caught a pair of passes for 32 yards against the Bears.
PineyWoodsSports.com Honor Roll
Nathan Burkhalter - RB - Garrison High School
Garrison running back Nathan Burkhalter had another big week as he scored the lone touchdown, while surpassing the 100-yard rushing mark during last Friday night's 7-6 Bulldog win over Lovelady.
Burkhalter rushed for 112 yards on 14 carries and scored a 57-yard TD on the first play of the second half. His extra point was also the difference in the ballgame as the Bulldogs improved to 2-0 on the season.
Jesten Brown - RB - Shelbyville High School
Dragon running back/defensive back Jesten Brown stood out last week, finishing with triple-digit rushing for the first time this season. He posted 123 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries against Joaquin, averaging 6.2-yard each time he touched the ball.
Brown also caught a pass for three yards and posted seven tackles on defense, with six of the stops being solo tackles. He recorded three tackles for losses and one quarterback sack in the win over Joaquin.
Austin Bloodgood - RB - Joaquin High School
Joaquin running back Austin Bloodgood went over the century mark in rushing for the second consecutive week. He bolted for 113 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries, averaging 5.1-yards per carry.
That followed a Week 0 effort in which he ran for 127 yards on 16 carries against Tenaha.
Cameron Cloudy - QB - Center High School
Center quarterback/receiver Cameron Cloudy played a dual role for the Roughriders last week. He began the game playing receiver, and then finished as quarterback totaling 130 yards.
Cloudy scrambled and rushed for 71 yards on 13 carries, then completed 4-of-11 passes for 59 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
Cloudy's scoring toss was to Ty Hubbard, which gave Center the lead in the fourth quarter of the sea-saw battle. The 'Riders lost the game, 28-23.
Reggie Carter - RB - Mount Enterprise High School
Mount Enterprise running back Reggie Carter raised his season rushing total to 150 yards by finishing with 92 yards and a score on 17 carries against Cayuga last Friday.
Brad Estes - QB - Shelbyville High School
Shelbyville two-way starter Brad Estes threw for more than 100 yards for the second straight week, completing 6-of-14 passes for 111 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He had scoring tosses of 27 and 39 yards.
Estes also stood out on defense, finishing with seven stops, with six of them being solo tackles. He also caused a fumble as the Dragons improved to 2-0 on the year.
PINEYWOODSSPORTS.COM
WEEKLY INDIVIDUAL AWARDS
Week of Aug. 29 - Sept. 4
ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Hunter Holland - RB - Carthage
SUPERLAVITIVE EFFORTS
Austin Rabalais - DB - Shelbyville
Reginald Davis - QB - Tenaha
Anthony Morgan - QB - Carthage
Cortlyn Ware - WR - Carthage
Keitron Smith - LB - Tenaha
Cala Harless - CC - Center
HONOR ROLL
Nathan Burkhalter - RB - Garrison
Jesten Brown - RB - Shelbyville
Austin Bloodgood - RB - Joaquin
Cameron Cloudy - QB - Center
Reggie Carter - RB - Mount Enterprise
Brad Estes - QB - Shelbyville