Warhorses fall to 1-2 with home loss to North Henderson

Missed tackles and turnovers prove too much to overcome

Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
September 11, 2021

It took only 16 seconds for North Henderson to find the end zone in Warhorse Stadium, Sept. 10, as senior running back Hahazh Collington sliced through the Owen defense on the first play from scrimmage, sparking a 21-0 first quarter for the Knights.

The Warhorses responded with three touchdowns of their own before the half, but the visiting ground attack couldn’t be contained in the matchup of 1-1 teams, which ended with a 48-34 victory for North Henderson.

Collington, who led all rushers with 262 yards and 4 touchdowns in the contest, propelled his team to a strong start against Owen, which allowed a pair of Knights touchdowns within the first 2 minutes of play. North Henderson’s early lead was aided by a two Warhorse fumbles in the opening quarter. Missed tackles and turnovers plagued the Warhorses all night, according to head coach Brint Russell.

“We came out flat,” Russell said on the field after the game. “Any time you turn the ball over four times in a game, and you run the type of offense we do, you put yourself in a position where it’s tough to come back.”

Owen’s triple option offense settled in when senior quarterback Eli Lanter led his team down the field and set up a rushing touchdown for senior Cadyn Cook to start the second quarter. An interception by senior Will Shaw on the ensuing North Henderson possession allowed the Owen offense to cut the lead to 7. Junior Alex Sanchez hauled in the Warhorse defense’s second interception of the night on the following drive setting up a touchdown pass from Lanter to Cook that evened the score, 21-21, before the half.

“Eli has tremendous leadership qualities,” Russell said of the quarterback. “He runs this offense very well and does a great job at making the right reads. He does a terrific job of getting the ball where it needs to be.”

The coach expressed pride in his team’s ability to fight back from the early three-touchdown deficit, but the Knights took the lead again early in the second half after sophomore quarterback Korey Barner connected with wide receiver Jaylen Croft on a short pass that the senior turned into a long touchdown.

Owen cut the North Henderson lead to 28-27 later in the third quarter on a quarterback keeper by Lanter, followed by a botched snap on the extra point attempt. The Knights scored quickly on the ensuing possession and extended their advantage, 41-27, early in the fourth. Another rushing touchdown by Lanter pulled his team within 7, but a long run by Collington put the game out of reach for Owen.

“You can’t spot a good team like North Henderson 21 points and expect to come back and win,” Russell said. “We have to clean that up, and do a better job of holding onto the football and tackling on defense.”

As the Warhorses prepare to head to Valdese to face 1-2 Draughn, Friday, Sept. 17, the coaching staff will emphasize the basics of the game in team practices in the upcoming week.

“We go back to fundamentals on Monday,” Russell said. “We have to learn to tackle, and get better at doing the things we need to do before we head into conference play.”

A gallery featuring photos of the Sept. 10 game, featuring Military and First Responders Appreciation Night at Warhorse Stadium, can be found at the top of the page.

SportsFred McCormick