Sloppy Soddy Daisy Escapes Hixson, 26-16

Hixson's Two TDs Both Come On Fumble Recoveries

Saturday, September 28, 2024
John Hunt

It wasn’t the most wonderful conditions for playing a high school football game on Friday night, at least not from an old sports writer’s point of view, but the Soddy Daisy Trojans were able to prevail on the road against an old rival in a game troubled by intermittent rain and a strong headwind.

The Trojans defeated the Hixson Wildcats by a 26-16 final in a game where both Hixson touchdowns were scored on fumble recoveries, but Soddy Daisy still ran the ball well under really soggy conditions and pretty much controlled the tempo when the game was on the line.

Soddy Daisy improves to 5-1 overall and 2-1 in Region 3-4A while Hixson drops to 0-3 in region play and 1-5 overall.

Soddy Daisy coach Josh Owensby, who coached Hixson just a few years ago, was just happy and relieved when the final horn had sounded.

“I’m better now,” he admitted by telephone after getting back to school following the emotional contest.

“I think I had some fun when it was over. We played a really sloppy game, but were able to get the win and that’s the most important thing. We made enough plays to win and our defense played lights out as they only allowed three points and basically kept us in the game.

“It’s nice to win ugly at times, but this game really wasn’t over until the very end. I’m just thankful that we came out ahead,” he added.

Hixson coach Nick Rivers loved playing in conditions like this when he was a high school player, so the rain and win didn’t bother him a bit. He was proud of the effort and intensity, but key mistakes were his team’s biggest headaches.

“I thought we came out and played with a lot of intensity, but costly penalties hurt us throughout the game,” he suggested.

“We moved the ball pretty well, but those penalties got us off our rhythm. I thought that Luke Finch was locked in and threw the ball well at times, but it was the little things that really killed us tonight. We just have to keep working to continue getting better,” he concluded.

Hixson won the opening coin toss and elected to defer to the second half, giving Soddy Daisy the choice to receive the opening kickoff.

Logan Alexander had a nice return back to the 37, but the first of two fumbles cost the Trojans an early touchdown as Tucker Ross was stripped of the ball by Ryan Burney on Soddy’s first play as Burney raced untouched into the end zone for a touchdown with just eight seconds elapsed.

The Trojans came right back and knotted the score at 7-7 when Alex Pinson completed his only pass of game that covered 45 yards with a strike to Tucker Ross. Calum Williams then booted the extra point to even the score with 8:57 left in the opening stanza.

Ross scored again on the first play of the second quarter when he plowed into the end zone from the 2, but the lead was only 13-7 when the extra point was blocked.

That was the score at halftime.

Hixson was the first to score in the second half as Logan Springer booted a 35-yard field goal with 2:16 left in the third after both teams exchanged punts to start the quarter. The big play in the drive was a 24-yard pass from Finch to Davis. Santana Sharp had a 17-yard run two plays later, but the Soddy Daisy defense stood tall and kept the Wildcats from getting any closer, leading to the field goal.

Ross scored his third touchdown of the game with 10:19 left in the game when he zipped seven yards into the end zone, Williams’ kick doubling the score to 20-10.

Gage Welch, who gained 183 yards on 20 carries, scored Soddy’s final TD with 5:14 to play on a carry from the four to put the Trojans up 26-10, but the game was far from over. Finch was intercepted by Evin Spurlock at the one, but all wasn’t lost as Tramell Davis Jr. recovered Soddy’s second lost fumble in the end zone with 3:36 to play. The conversion run failed, making the final score 26-16 as Soddy Daisy was able to run out the clock without further points being scored.

Soddy Daisy had 337 total yards, including 292 on 51 rushing attempts. Welch had his 183 that included a 61-yard run in the first half. Ross followed with 60 yards while Pinson added 53 yards. Ross had Soddy’s only pass reception that covered 45 yards.

Hixson ended the evening with 231 yards total offense, including 136 on the ground and 96 through the air.

Finch was the leading rusher for the Wildcats as he finished with 57 yards on a dozen attempts. Sharp added 42 yards on seven attempts. Tariq Reese was Hixson’s leading receiver with three grabs for 50 yards before leaving the game late after taking a vicious hit on another pass. Davis had one catch for 24 yards while Ron Suttles also had one for 12 yards.

Soddy Daisy will be at home next week for another big region test against Red Bank while Hixson will travel to Madisonville to face the winless Sequoyah Chiefs.