WAYNESVILLE — The Paddle will be staying on Lebanon Road.
First half passing and second half defense propelled Clinton-Massie to a 31-21 win over neighboring rival Wayneville Friday night in the Battle for the Paddle at Spartan Community Field.
“I’ve got to give Waynesville a lot of credit,” Clinton-Massie coach Dan McSurley said. “That’s probably a regional finals team in my opinion. So they’re one of the top Division V teams. We beat a really good team tonight, but there’s a lot of improvement we need to do. We take the win, it’s a tough win and a tough place to play.”
Opening up the game, both offenses had their struggles early. Massie relied on big plays, a 41-yard punt return from sophomore Peyton Warren, whose freshman year ended early due to a knee injury late in the season, and then a 56-yard touchdown run by senior halfback Logan Chesser.
Celebrations wouldn’t last long, though, as on the ensuing kickoff, track star running back Garrett Lundy ran it back 91 yards to tie the game 7-7.
On the next series, the Falcons faced back to back third downs to open the drive, and both times relied on second year starter Kaden Zantene to pick it up through the air. And both times the junior delivered helping lead a 10-play scoring drive that went into the second quarter. Zantene capped it off by pushing into the endzone from the 1 to put CM back on top.
On the next Spartan drive, a quick three and out gave CM the ball back, a free reign for classic CM football with an 11-play, 5:20 drive capped off with Chesser pounding it in from the 1.
The Spartans countered with their own style of offensive fireworks, taking just five plays to score, bringing it back within a score leaving just 1:18 left on the clock in the first half.
The Falcons have rarely been known for quick strike ability through the air, but on the second snap of their following drive, Zantene hit freshman Baron Phipps in stride for a 41 yard touchdown as the Falcons carried a 28-14 lead into the half.
“He’s improved his arm strength a lot, it’s obviously a lot better,” McSurley said of Zantene. “It’s a work in progress in his development to get him ready for the rest of the season but, the arm strength, the ability to do different things and to check in and out, I thought was really good.”
In the third, the Spartans were looking to cut into the lead when Amburgy hit Trent Davis in space, but the Falcons defense came up big, punching the ball out from behind and Brady Russell fell on it.
After a Massie punt, the Spartans took advantage with a nice mix of runs, ending with a Lundy touchdown, 28-21.
After another stalled Massie offensive series, Russell came up big on the defensive side with a third down interception that led to Jack Thamann’s 40-yard field goal with 3:30 to go.
“Defensively, I thought we gave a great effort,” said McSurley. “They’ve got some really athletic and explosive kids. “We’ve gotta score when we get down in their end, though. Had we done that the game really shouldn’t have even been close but we’ll take the win and learn from our mistakes.”
SUMMARY
Aug 23, 2024
@Waynesville High School
Falcons 31, Spartans 21
CM^7^21^0^3^^31
WV^7^7^7^0^^21
SCORING
First Quarter
CM: Logan Chesser 56 yard run (Jack Thamann PAT)
WV: Garrett Lundy 91 yard kickoff return (Celtan Walton PAT)
Second Quarter
CM: Kaden Zantene 1 yard run (Jack Thamann PAT)
CM: Logan Chesser 1 yard run (Jack Thamann PAT)
WV: Preston Callahan 28 yard pass from Alex Amburgy (Celtan Walton PAT)
CM: Baron Phipps 41 yard pass from Kaden Zantene (Jack Thamann PAT)
Third Quarter
WV: Garrett Lundy 5 yard run (Celtan Walton PAT)
Fourth Quarter
CM: Jack Thamann 30 yard field goal
STATISTICS
TEAM
CM: 15 first downs, 51-251 rushing, 3-4-0 passing for 81 yards 1 TD, 2 Fumbles Lost, Penalties 1-5
WV: 15 first downs, 32-110 rushing, 13-25-2 passing for 153 yards 2 TD, 2 Fumbles Lost, Penalties 1-10
INDIVIDUALS
RUSHING
CM:Logan Chesser 19-129-2, Peyton Warren 15-72-0, Eli Muterspaw 8-34-0, Nolan Phipps 5-14-0, Kaden Zantene 4-2-1
WV: Alex Amburgy 16-75-0, Garrett Lundy 16-35-1
PASSING
CM: Kaden Zantene 3-3-0, 81 yards, 1 TD; Logan Chesser 0-1-0
WV: Alex Amburgy 13-25-2, 153 yards, 1 TD
RECEIVING
CM: Baron Phipps 1-41-1, Cash Mounts 2-40-0
WV: Garrett Lundy 5-76-0, Trent Davis 4-36-0, Preston Callahan 1-28-1, Caleb Sullivan 1-6-0, Lincoln Buck 1-4-0, Wade Von Handorf 1-3-0
TACKLES
CM: Brady Russell 4, Eli Muterspaw 1, Cooper Carmack 3, Ty Martin 0.5, Brendan Musser 2.5, Eli Ruther 0.5, Mason Martini 1.5, Hunter Monds 5, Jack Thamann 1, Nolan Phipps 5.5, Brady Dillon 2.5, Peyton Brewer 5, Tristan Trampler 4.5, Tye Clutter 3.5
INTERCEPTIONS
CM: Brady Russell 1, Cooper Carmack 1
