In a 33-6 season-opening victory, the West Lowndes High School football team dominated the Montgomery County Hornets by playing what coach Anthony King described as “an almost perfect game” defensively.
With 29 team tackles, the Panthers held the Hornets to one first down and less than 50 total yards rushing.
“They played pretty good defense,” King said. “We knew our defense was going to be our strong point, but the offense was able to keep up. The offensive line did really well.”
Defensive back Devonta Kroger lead the team with five solo tackles and three assists. King said he was impressed with Kroger’s performance. “(Linebacker) Phyrtell Williams and (lineman) Ronnie Porter did well, and I expected them to play well,” King said. “But Kroger was a nice surprise. He brought a lot to the game physically.”
Cory Triplett intercepted backup quarterback Daniel Davis in the third quarter and returned almost 80 yards for a touchdown, giving the Hornets their only chance at getting in the end zone.
“We made a mistake and allowed them to get a first down, but if they hadn’t scored on the turnover, it would have been an almost perfect game for the defense,” King said.
Defensive back Jermaine Thomas had three solo tackles. Katzman Rogers and Javarious Ellis had four tackles and one assist each.
West Lowndes will play host to Caledonia, which won Friday 50-7 at Nettleton.
“We played Caledonia pretty tough last year,” King said. “But we are going to have step it up and come out and be physical. We are going to practice stopping the option in practice this week in order to get prepared for Caledonia.”
Jeff Clark was previously a reporter for The Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 32 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.