WCMS Warriors defeat Prescott South Middle

On Sept. 9, two middle schools from Sparta and Cookeville squared off the night before the high schools would meet on the same field. The results were very similar as the White County Middle School Warriors dominated the Prescott South Middle School Bulldogs behind a great special teams effort and strong running by one of the Dowell boys.

The game got off to a great start for the Warriors as Cole Sims took the opening kickoff back 80 yards for a quick score. The two-point conversion was no good. The Warriors had an early 6-0 lead.  The teams exchanged fumbles on the next couple of drives. However, White County got their running game going on their next possession and scored another touchdown on two great runs by JoJo Dowell. The two-point conversion on a pass to J.G. Wallace made the score 14-0 in favor of the Warriors.

The White County Defense looked a lot like their high school counterparts as they dominated the Prescott offense on their ensuing drive. Matthew Stoglin made a huge tackle for loss against the Bulldogs. Prescott chose to punt the ball to Sims which proved to be a mistake as he returned it for a 65-yard touchdown. The conversion was good yet again making the score 22-0 while still in the first quarter.

The Bulldog’s next possession showed some promise but ended as Tucker Pinion broke up a pass in the end zone on a fourth down play, giving the ball back to the Warriors on the 19-yard line. On the very next play, JoJo Dowell did his best impression of his older brother Malaki as he made two tacklers miss and sprinted 81 yards down the sideline for a touchdown. Exavior Gamblin made a beautiful throw on the run to Pinion for the two-point conversion, making the score 30-0.

Prescott’s next drive would stall quickly, and the Warriors would score again on the ensuing drive to make the score 36-0 at halftime.

On the second play of the second half, Gamblin would pick off a Prescott pass and return it for a touchdown. The score was then 42-0.

White County was able to substitute many players during the final two quarters of the game. The Bulldogs did finally score just as the fourth quarter began. They  were successful with their conversion, making the score 42-8. The second kick off for the Bulldogs ended the same way as the one that started the game. This time Gamblin did the honors of taking it all the way back for the final score of the game giving the Warriors a 48-8 victory.

The Warriors scored four non-offensive touchdowns on the night.  This limited the number of touches the Warrior runners had. The Warriors still managed to pile up 203 yards on 14 carries. In the last two weeks Sims has rushed 22 times for a total of 242 yards and 6 touchdowns.  Dowell has 253 yards and 5 touchdowns, while Gamblin has added 167 yards and a touchdown of his own.  On the season, the three runners are averaging around 15 yards per carry. Not only does this speak to the talent of the running backs, but also of the hard work being put in by the offensive line and wide receivers.

The White County Middle School Warriors were in action against the Upperman Bees on Sept. 13 and travel to McMinnville to play the Pioneers, on Sept. 16.