KILN — The Hancock Hawks (3-0) set the tone early as they scored five first-half touchdowns against the St. Martin Yellow Jackets (0-3) on Friday.
The Hawks took a 35-0 lead going into halftime and didn’t look back as they never lost momentum in their 42-7 win.
The Hawks kept the visitors at bay with an effective balance of running and passing. The Hawks scored on three running plays and three
passing plays.
“I’m really pleased where we are (offensively),” said Hancock coach Neil Lollar. “Overall, the execution in both areas (running and
passing), if we can do that consistently, it’s not going to be a shocker to see what we can or can’t do.
“It really comes down to the speed of the game for us when it comes down to that rotation.”
Lollar was also pleased with the toughness of his players on both sides of the ball.
“The physicality is something we stress, not just day to day. It’s literally rep to rep in practice,” said Lollar. “Our guys have that mentality. The physicality of what we have always done remains.”
The Hawks scored on their first play from scrimmage on an 80-yard Zachary Gullung run as he broke out of the backfield and down the Hancock sideline. The Hawks led 6-0 after the PAT kick was blocked.
The Hawks failed to pick up a first down on their ensuing possession, but their defense returned the favor, denying the Yellow Jackets a
first down on their next possession. The Hawks’ offense would reward the defense with a six-play drive capped by a 34-yard touchdown pass from Dylan Moran to Todd Dedeaux to increase the lead to 12-0. Once again, the PAT failed, this time due to an errant snap.
The Hawks would score on their next three possessions, while their defense squeezed the St. Martin offense, holding the Yellow Jackets to a single first down during the Hawks’ scoring stretch. Hancock’s third touchdown of the night came with just under 10 minutes remaining in the second quarter on Moran’s 26-yard touchdown pass to
Neil Acker to put the Hawks up 20-0. Moran connected with Aidan Tylor for the two-pointer.
On the Hawks’ next score, Gullung broke free for a 40-yard touchdown carry to cap a 61-yard, four-play drive. Moran hit Acker for the two-pointer to give the Hawks a 28-0 lead midway through the quarter.
The Hawks’ final score of the first half came on an 18-yard run by Kaleb Schaefer with 3:26 left.
Schaefer scored the Hawks’ final touchdown as he was on the receiving end of a 28-yard Moran pass to cap the opening drive of the second
half.
St. Martin would get on the scoreboard with just under eight minutes remaining in the game as Tykevian Wells capped an 80-yard drive with an 8-yard carry. Wells was coming off an impressive game in a loss to Petal the week before when he galloped for just over 160 yards.
Gullung led the Hawks with 142 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Moran completed 12 of 17 passes for 148 yards and three touchdowns. He also had a pair of two-point conversion passes.
Hancock will play at Petal next Friday and St. Martin will visit Stone.
