Lexington, SC (Danielle Smith) – White Knoll High School’s Timberwolves' home opener Friday night pitted them against South Aiken High School in the Wolves' Den off Platt Springs Road. It was a game you did not want to miss! Throughout the game, both teams had you on the edge of your seat with tied scores in the 2nd and 3rd quarters. In the end, it came down to the last few minutes of the game.
The 1st quarter saw both teams starting out with strong offensive players battling it out on the field. South Aiken's team scored first to give them a 7-0 lead over White Knoll. The remainder of the 1st quarter was scoreless, as both defenses made crossing the goal line a tough task.
As the 2nd quarter began, both teams still showed promising plays, with strong players, both offensively and defensively. As the 2nd quarter was in full swing, White Knoll was able to pick up two turnovers, an interception, and a fumble from South Aiken. These mistakes helped them gain three touchdowns. The remainder of the 2nd quarter was back and forth until the final horn of the first half. The two teams went into the locker rooms with a score of White Knoll 21, South Aiken 14.
Within the first 35 seconds of the 3rd quarter, the South Aiken Thoroughbreds' scored a touchdown, tying up the game for the third time at 21-21. White Knoll was showing signs of being gassed in the 3rd quarter. And South Aiken's offensive players were holding strong. That helped them continuously gain yardage to score another touchdown,pulling ahead of the T-Wolves, 27-21.
South Aiken started the 4th quarter in the lead with a touchdown, to give them the lead. This put them up by 2 touchdowns and made the score Thoroughbreds 34, Timberwolves 21. Still the Timberwolves fought on.
White Knoll's offensive players turned up the heat with a pass that brought them to 1st and goal. With 1:54 left on the clock in the 4th quarter, White Knoll’s wide receiver, Keon Clary, scored a touchdown that pulled them within one point of South Aiken. The score was South Aiken 34, White Knoll 33.
The entire stadium was sitting on the edge of the seats at this point. The crowd was cheering as White Knoll’s coach staff decided to forgo a tying kick for the point after, and instead to try a 2-point conversion to pull ahead. The home stands erupted as they made it! The score was now White Knoll 35, South Aiken 34.
At this point, with just 1:50 left in the game, South Aiken had the ball. They started out on the Wolves' 6th yard line, and pressed the defense as they tried to move the ball down the field. They fought hard to save their game, but White Knoll wouldn’t let them have it easy. On a pass play, a White Knoll defender intercepted the ball, effectively shutting the door on their opponent from the west. White Knoll had the ball and ran out the clock to take the WIN in their first game at home in 2017. The final score was White Knoll 35, South Aiken 34. It was a great game, and a strong showing by two very promising teams.
Some key players from Friday night's White Knoll High School football game that are worthy of watching this season are:
• # 88 Wide Receiver - Clayton Lindsay
• #25 Wide Receiver – Keon Clary
• #8 Quarter Back – Aveon Smith
All in all, Coach Howell’s Timberwolves are playing strong and cohesively as a team. They’ve taken the first two games of the 2017 season, and if they continue on that track and are able to stay healthy, could have more success on the radar for the remainder of the season.
