Gary Mullins

MADISON – Playing with urgency.

The Scott Skyhawks were on a mission here last Friday and it had little to do with facing their longtime rivals, the Logan Wildcats, on Senior Night.

With two early losses creating some doubt as to whether Scott eventually could make a sixth consecutive trip into the Class AA state playoffs, the Skyhawks elected to use that doubt as leverage.

With that leverage firmly in place, the ‘Hawks consistently thumped the Wildcats with an urgent dose of Black Hammer Defense.

Stifling Logan’s offense, Scott rallied from a 7-6 halftime deficit with a pair of third-quarter touchdowns, then used a touchdown from their Black Hammer Defense to clinch the win midway through the fourth stanza.

The 25-14 Senior Night win over the Class AAA Wildcats lifted Scott to 4-2 on the season while Logan dipped to 2-3.

Logan senior Derrick Perrin, who was forced to move from receiver to quarterback early in the season due to an injury to David Brown, paced the Wildcats to an early lead.

Perrin darted 14 yards for a first down and threw to receiver Josh Thompson on a 27-yard pass play to fuel an 80-yard scoring drive. Perrin’s 31-yard touchdown run and Josh Wilson’s kick spotted Logan a 7-0 lead with 6:08 remaining in the opening period.

The ‘Hawks answered with a 66-yard, eight-play scoring march. Junior back Cameron Reeves sparked the drive with runs of 26 and 12 yards. Sophomore quarterback Nevin Honeycutt and junior tight end Tyler Thompson connected for a 14-yard touchdown pass to complete the effort. The extra point kick failed, as Scott sliced the lead to 7-6 with 2:23 remaining in the first quarter.

The visiting Wildcats took seven minutes off the game clock driving from their 35-yard line to the Skyhawks’ 12, but Scott senior lineman Ryan Price turned in a pair of clutch defensive plays to halt Logan.

Price downed Perrin for a two-yard loss on an off-tackle run and, following an incomplete pass, sacked Perrin for an eight-yard loss. The Logan threat ended with a missed field goal.

A 20-yard run by Timmy Fletcher and two nine-yard gains by Reeves helped the Skyhawks pick up a trio of first downs. Senior Drew Runyan’s 14-yard run carried Scott inside Logan’s 10, but the drive stalled and Logan senior Justin Simpkins blocked a Scott field goal attempt to preserve the Wildcats’ 7-6 intermission edge.

Sparked by linebackers Eric Price and Travis Bender and senior linemen Aaron Thompson, Brandon Booth and Ryan Price, the Skyhawks’ defense forced a three-and-out to open the second half and Scott’s offense bolted 64 yards for the go-ahead score.

A 16-yard run by Honeycutt and a 39-yard dash by Fletcher set up a nine-yard touchdown jaunt by Reeves. The two-point conversion attempt failed, but Scott claimed a 12-7 lead with 9:57 showing on the third-quarter clock.

Solid defensive play from Eric Price and Tyler Thompson spearheaded another three-and-out effort by Scott’s Black Hammer Defense, and the Skyhawks’ offense kick-started another scoring drive midway through the third period.

An eight-yard run by Runyan solved a third-and-seven dilemma, but the ‘Hawks faced a fourth-and-four three plays later. Senior punter Kameron Akers caught up with a bad snap, but he was unable to get a punt off in traffic. Akers slipped past a pair of Logan punt-rushers and dodged Wildcats for a key 18-yard gain to sustain the drive.

Two plays later, Honeycutt and senior receiver Shayne Butcher connected for a 27-yard touchdown pass. Matt Berry’s extra point boot then kicked a 19-7 lead into the Skyhawks’ nest with 3:20 remaining in the third stanza.

Midway through the fourth quarter, Scott’s Black Hammer Defense struck the Wildcats with a game-clinching gem when Tyler Thompson swiped a Logan pass and raced 25 yards for a touchdown. The extra point kick was blocked, but the Skyhawks owned a 25-7 advantage with 6:38 left to play.

Logan responded with a 12-yard touchdown pass from Perrin to Chris Evans, moving the score to 25-14.

Booth dashed the Wildcats’ last hope when he recovered a Logan fumble with less than two minutes remaining in the contest.

“Our defense really played well,” Scott head coach Shane Griffith said. “That defense put together a string of three-and-outs during the third quarter that allowed our offense to erase a 7-6 deficit and put us in a 19-7 lead. Our defense is playing with confidence in a comfort zone and it just dominated the third quarter.

“Offensively, we were able to get two weapons back healthy (Fletcher and Reeves) to help our backfield situation. With six different players rushing the ball behind a solid O-line effort, we were able to run for 260 yards against a challenging defense.”

Reeves (93 yards and one touchdown on 16 runs) and Fletcher (89 yards on 10 rushes) paced the Skyhawks’ ground game while Runyan added 54 yards on 10 carries. Honeycutt ran five times for 19 yards and completed 3-of-5 passes for 47 yards and two touchdowns.

Scott’s Black Hammer Defense limited Logan to just over 150 total yards, including 24 rushing yards as Scott recorded 12 tackles for loss.

Ryan Price, who earned the Hammer Award for a hit on the Logan quarterback, teamed with Tyler Thompson and Eric Price for a combined eight tackles for loss.

Jacob Blosser recorded five tackles and six assists. Brett Lambert had three tackles and five assists. Bender had three tackles and four assists.

Booth had six total tackles and claimed a fumble. Aaron Thompson was in on five stops. Tyler Thompson returned an interception for a touchdown.

Griffith also singled out some special teams play as being key to this win. Akers turned a low snap into a first-down run to help set up a touchdown. Punt returners Lee Ball and Reeves contributed to a field-position edge by fielding punts and making positive plays.

The 4-2 Skyhawks are idle this week while they prepare to face an ultra-challenging four-game stretch that will determine their playoff fate.

Scott will travel to Shady Spring on Oct. 17 before facing Bluefield at University of Charleston Stadium/Laidley Field.

The ‘Hawks then will conclude regular-season play against Boone County rival Sherman at Seth and Class AAA opponent Lincoln County at Hamlin.