Southside tops Patriots

By RAY COONEY

The Commercial Review

The field was far more wet and muddy. And the score was closer.

But the overall result was the same in Friday's sequel as the Jay County High School football team fell 20-6 to the visiting Muncie Southside Rebels.

The Patriots struggled to get much going offensively - they finished with less than 100 total yards - and each of the two times they got into the red zone McKenzee Nash halted their drives with interceptions.

"He is our star," said Southside coach Mike Paul of the freshman, who also had a 52-yard touchdown run. "McKenzee, we just have to get the ball to him. He's an exceptional athlete. When he grows he's going to be a big-time player."

Jay County (2-6) trailed just 6-0 at halftime and tied the score when Patrick Williams returned the opening kick of the second half 71 yards for a touchdown.

"Patrick is a kid that I just love," said JCHS coach Shane Hill of the first-year senior, who now has three kick returns for TDs this year. "I wish I would have had him for four years. ... He is a nice weapon when we get the ball in his hands."

However, the Patriots couldn't cash in on any of their other opportunities as turnovers hurt them.

The JCHS defense halted Southside on its first drive of the second half, but the offense couldn't move the ball for a chance at the lead. The Rebels responded with a one-play drive - a 52-yard TD run around the left end by Nash out of the Wildcat formation - to claim the lead for good.

On the ensuing drive quarterback Zach Cash moved the Patriots down the field with two completions to Patrick Williams and one each to Cody Thompson and Ben Vance, getting them to the 16-yard line. But after runs on first and second downs were stuffed, Cash's attempt to hit Vance running toward the left pylon was picked off by Nash inside the 1-yard line.

A second interception, this one by Troy Lewis, set up a 27-yard run scoring run by Shaq Buchanan for a 20-6 Southside lead. And when JCHS had the ball in the red zone in the final minutes, Nash again picked Cash off near the goal line to end the threat.

While the offense had a difficult evening, Hill credited his defense with giving the team a chance to win.

"They gave us the ball back twice only down seven," he noted. "I don't know what else to say other than that. ... The defense played great. That's a good thing to see."

But offensively Jay County was limited, gaining just three yards on the ground. It turned the ball over four times, and finished with 98 total yards.

"Our defense I think really smothered them," said Paul. "I think the defense just played an excellent game.

"It is so hard to play in games like this. It's so sloppy. ... The ball is so wet."

While quarterback Nick Dyer had some success passing with nine completions for 126 yards, it was the two-headed running duo of Nash and Buchanan that really hurt the Patriots. Buchanan, a bruising 235-pounder, slammed up the middle for 82 yards on 15 carries, while Nash ran mostly out of the Wildcat gaining 78 yards on 18 attempts.

Buchanan scored Southside's first-half TD on a 1-yard run in the second quarter.

"He's a 235-pound fullback who can move," said Hill. "He gets through (the line) and then it's our secondary guys trying to bring him down by themselves, and that's just a mismatch. ...

"And then McKenzee Nash just comes from a family that plays. Every single kid that's been in that family has just been some sort of player. He's definitely going to be a threat to everybody around here for three more years."

Southside played without Shayon Cork, who had three interceptions and 97 yards and three touchdowns on just five carries in the first meeting with the Patriots.[[In-content Ad]]