For the first time in 11 years, the Albemarle varsity football team has exited a matchup against intracounty rival West Stanly with a victory in hand.
The Bulldogs (1-2) picked up their first win of the season as they posted a 33-14 victory over the Colts (0-3) on Friday night, spoiling West’s home opener at Larry Wagner Field.
Dating back to last season, the Colts have now lost their past six games as well as nine of their past 11 games; their all-time record against the Bulldogs is now tied at 23-23.
Senior running back Darrell Bynum gave West a 7-0 lead in the second quarter following an explosive run, setting up a quick answer in a touchdown pass from Bulldogs quarterback Dre Davis to Ja’Zyion Geiger.
Albemarle went on to add 12 more points to make it a 19-7 lead at halftime, while West managed to pull within five points in the third quarter as quarterback Maverick Scott connected in the end zone with Pedro Mincitar.
The rest of the game was all Albemarle as Vincent Gregory and Kaine McLendon went on to combine for three touchdowns and 186 yards on the night.
Looking ahead, the winless Colts will look to reverse their downward slide as they travel to North Stanly; Albemarle is set to head to Anson (1-2) as the Bulldogs hope to win their second game in a row.
Western Alamance 24, North Stanly 7
Over in New London, the North Stanly Comets (2-1) found themselves on the losing side of the ball for the first time this season as they suffered a 17-point defeat to the Western Alamance Warriors (2-1).
North’s first home game of the year didn’t go as planned for the Comets, who let a 7-7 tied game after one quarter turn into 17 unanswered points for the Warriors. The Comets had previously outscored their last two opponents by a 70-6 margin.
Junior quarterback Charlie Shaver was limited to just 42 passing yards from his 20 passes, while North’s running back room managed to top 100 combined rushing yards but with no touchdowns.
The Comets will now host the Colts as the two Stanly teams link up for the first time since North’s 26-16 win over West last September.
Lexington 28, South Stanly 14
Following a Week 1 win over West and a subsequent bye week, the South Stanly Rebel Bulls (1-1) got back on the field but struggled in a 28-14 home loss to the Lexington Yellow Jackets (2-1) on Friday night.
South quarterback Kaleb Richardson had his team up 14-7 in the third quarter after throwing touchdown passes to Jasiah Holt and Ethan Gaddy.
However, Lexington quarterback Jaylen Henderson soon clicked into gear as he led the Yellow Jackets to a runaway 14-point road win, thanks in part to a few key turnovers by South that set up its opponent for success.
The Bulls will play their third-consecutive home game this weekend as they host the South Davidson Wildcats (0-3), who have three losses to start the year but have only been outscored by 11 combined points.