STANLY FOOTBALL NOTEBOOK: Comets go on the road; South, West host conference foes

Published 3:44 am Saturday, October 23, 2021

In high school football games Friday night, North Stanly went on the road looking end a streak against Mount Pleasant while South Stanly played J.M. Robinson for the first time and West Stanly renewed acquaintances with Monroe.

North Stanly 21, Mount Pleasant 18

The last time the Comets topped the Tigers on the gridiron was in the previous century, when North won 49-7 over Mount in 1998.

Facing the Tigers for the first time in nine years, North ended a 13-game losing streak to Mount Pleasant with a 21-18 road win.

North Stanly (4-4, 3-1 YVC) built a three-touchdown lead starting in the opening quarter when quarterback Luke Shaver found Stefan Harris wide open in the middle of the field for a 10-yard touchdown pass. Mac Barfield’s extra point put the Comets up 7-0 with 8:31 left in the first quarter.

The Comets added to the lead in the second quarter when Shaver connected with Gavyn Covington for a 31-yard touchdown pass. Barfield’s PAT made it 14-0 Comets.

North led by the same score at halftime and scored what proved to be a critical touchdown in the third quarter. Shaver completed a 33-yard TD pass to Clay Hatley with 7:36 left in the period to go up 21-0.

Mount Pleasant (6-3, 3-1) was not ready to give up. The Tigers staged a late comeback, which started with a 7-yard TD run from Jakob Craver with 35 seconds left in the third. The conversion failed, leaving the Tigers trailing 21-6.

With approximately five minutes left in the game, Mount QB Lawson Little found Dylan Coln for a 28-yard touchdown pass. The two-point conversion again failed, leaving the Comets up by two possessions 21-12.

Two minutes later, the Tigers stopped North’s offense and forced a punt. Mount blocked the punt and returned it for a touchdown. However, a bad snap on the point after attempt kept North ahead 21-18.

The North defense came up with a big play when the Tigers took over at the Mount 29 with just under two minutes to play. A halfback pass found its way into Harris’ hands for the fifth of five turnovers the Comets forced in the game, three picks and two fumbles.

With the win, North moves into second place overall in the YVC standings and second behind Robinson for the 2A playoff spot. The Comets host Albemarle (2-6, 2-2) Friday night.

Robinson 54, South Stanly 7

Before this season, Robinson had only played one other Stanly team, beating West Stanly in 2016 and 2017..

Friday night saw the maroon-clad Bulldogs finish a series of first-time games against the three other high school football programs in the county by traveling to South Stanly.

The Bulls fell to 1-7 overall and 0-4 in the YVC, suffering the team’s fourth straight loss.

Robinson (8-1, 4-0 YVC) scored two first-quarter touchdowns and built a 39-0 lead at halftime.

After scoring twice in the third quarter and starting a running clock, South Stanly spoiled the shutout bid. Taewon Morris took the ball over the goal line from one yard out in the last minutes of the game.

The Bulls wrap up the regular season Friday night at Union Academy (0-9, 0-3). The Cardinals lost at Albemarle, 46-20.

Monroe 48, West Stanly 0

The Colts had not faced Monroe in a Rocky River Conference game since the 2016 season until Friday’s game in Red Cross.

West suffered the team’s second shutout loss of the year in Friday’s loss to the RedHawks (5-1, 3-0 RRC).

Monroe’s win over West was the team’s 12th win in a row and improved the RedHawks’ lead in the overall series with the Colts to 35-7 lifetime.

The Colts host Anson County (3-6, 0-3) Friday night.

About Charles Curcio

Charles Curcio has served as the sports editor of the Stanly News & Press for more than 16 years and has written numerous news and feature storeis as well. He was awarded the NCHSAA Tim Stevens Media Representative of the Year and named CNHI Sports Editor of the Year in 2014. He has also won an award from Boone Newspapers, and has won four North Carolina Press Association awards.

email author More by Charles