MARION, Ky. – In his first varsity start at quarterback, sophomore Hayden Hughes gave Crittenden County the spark it needed Friday night. The Rockets scored twice in the fourth quarter, survived a late Trigg County touchdown and held on for a 21-20 victory in front of a large home crowd.
Hughes started in place of Conner Poindexter, who injured his knee last week and was limited to holding on extra points. Hughes rushed for 107 yards and two touchdowns and passed for 160 yards, accounting for 267 yards of offense.
Trailing 14-7 after three quarters, Crittenden tied the game on Hughes’ 27-yard run just nine seconds into the fourth period. Noah Byford’s 58-yard catch later set up the go-ahead drive. Inside the Trigg 10, Hughes dropped two consecutive snaps but recovered both, kept the offense moving and scored on a 1-yard keeper with 6:13 left.
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| Hayden Hughes was a key player in his first start at QB for the Rockets. |
“I was a little nervous coming out starting at quarterback,” Hughes said. “We played with heart and were aggressive in the fourth quarter.”
Trigg answered with Caden Scott’s 11-yard touchdown run with 1:37 remaining. However, an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty in the end zone pushed the extra-point attempt back to the 25-yard line, and the kick fell short, leaving the Rockets ahead by one.
The comeback had been kept within reach by two Crittenden defensive stands inside its 10-yard line late in the third quarter. Joel Bumpus stopped a fourth-and-goal play from the 3 on Trigg’s second trip into the red zone.
Penalties repeatedly broke up the game’s rhythm. The teams drew 29 flags, including 17 against Trigg for 165 yards.
Eli Lovell scored Crittenden’s first touchdown on a 2-yard run and caught five passes for 94 yards.
“There was a special crowd here tonight. It was packed, and we needed every last one of them,” Coach Gaige Courtney said. “We showed a lot of fight through a lot of adversity.”
Crittenden (2-4, 1-1 district) has beaten Trigg six straight times. Now, just one more district win over its remaining three league games would secure a playoff berth. And with this one in hand, CCHS has a legitimate shot earning at least a No. 3 seed for the playoffs.
The Rockets will be at Todd Central next week for another district game then will have a bye week before topping off the district schedule at home against Fort Campbell then on the road at Caldwell County.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Trigg County 0 14 0 6
Crittenden Co. 0 7 0 14
SCORING PLAYS
CC-Eli Lovell, 2 run (Mitchell Brown kick), 9:21, 2nd
TC-Zamarrion Broussard, 8 run (kick), 9:04, 2nd
TC-Deonatae Edison 4 run (kick) :38, 2nd
CC-Hayden Hughes 27 run (Brown kick) 11:51, 4th
CC-Hughes 1 run (Brown kick) 6:13, 4th
TC-Caden Scott 11 run (kick failed) 1:37, 4th
TEAM TOTALS
First Downs: CCHS 13, TCHS 12
Penalties: CCHS 12-96, TCHS 17-165
Rushing: CCHS 26-152, TCHS 31-139
Passing: CCHS 10-19-0, 160; TCHS 13-23-0, 147
Total Yards: CCHS 312, TCHS 286
Fumbles/Lost: CCHS 2-0, TCHS 4-0
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing
CCHS: Hughes 10-107, Logan Nolan 6-19, Joel Bumpus 5-17, Lovell 5-9. TCHS: MarQuayvion Green 6-50, Scott 11-45.
Passing
CCHS: Hughes 10-19-0, 160; TCHS: Scott 13-23-0, 147.
Receiving
CCHS: Lovell 5-94, Noah Byford 1-58, Davis Perryman 2-1, Alex Hewitt 1-5. TCHS: Conner Bellows 9-89.
Defense
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Records: CCHS 2-4 (1-1); TCHS 1-5 (0-2)
