BY MARK SCHRAF | For The Dominion Post
BLACKSVILLE, W.Va. — In these days of COVID-19, it pays to be flexible, to pivot sharply, to shift plans quickly.
When the Clay-Battelle football team found out mid-week that their game with Hundred would not happen due to Wetzel County’s pandemic status, they scrambled to find a potential opponent for their Homecoming game last night. Wirt County stepped up with short notice, and dozens of high school football players got to play another game in this challenging season of all seasons.
Unfortunately for the Cee-Bees, it was the Tigers who flexed, pivoted and shifted more successfully on the field, especially Garrett Parsons, their compact, powerful, and fast running back, who ran for 259 yards and scored four times to lead the way in a 48-7 win.
After an opening drive three-and-out for the Clay-Battelle (3-2) offense, the Cee-Bees defense got a taste for what their night would be like when Parsons took a simple toss sweep right all the way to the house for a stunning 68-yard touchdown. In an effort to respond, C-B took advantage of a huge break when quarterback Carson Shriver, who was hobbled by a badly bruised toe, shot a pass that slipped through his receiver’s hands, was tipped up in the air by a Wirt defensive back, and was alertly plucked out of the air by wideout Cooper Watson. Behind the defense, Watson sprinted 63 yards all the way to the WC 5, the caught an 18-yard touchdown pass from Shriver on fourth down to knot the score at 7-7.
But that would be all the offense the Cee-Bees could muster against a quick, stout Wirt County (5-2) defense. On their next possession, the Tigers scored on a well-executed 36-yard jet sweep run from Aaron Garrett, then later ran a well-designed fake off the same jet sweep action for a wide-open 18-yard TD pass from Dylan Lowe to Kolton Parsons. Up 21-7 late in the half, Garrett Parsons used his speed and cutback vision to weave his way into the endzone on a 49-yard jaunt to make it 28-7 at the break.
The Cee-Bees put together a nice drive early in the second half, but they stalled and turned it over on downs at the Wirt 34. Three straight runs from Garrett Parsons was all it took for another Tigers TD, the score coming from 19 yards out, and later, his 17th and final carry of the night resulted in a 1-yard TD. Kolton Parsons scored on a 13-yard sweep later in the third for the final score.
After the game, C-B coach Ryan Wilson talked about his team, and the decision to play Wirt County.
“We had a choice to not play, and hope that we might catch a break and get into the playoffs,” he explained, “but in the end, we decided we wanted to be proactive, rather than passive, and try to earn our way in. Besides, in a year when we frankly were just hoping at the beginning to maybe get one game in, we wanted to play as many times as we could.
“Wirt County is a very good, very fast, very experienced team, and it showed,” he continued. “We just didn’t have enough to get the job done tonight, but I’m telling you, I’m so proud of how our team persevered through it all this year. My seniors (Cooper Watson, Matthew Cottrell, and Gavin Reynolds) and all our kids were such a great group to work with. We had fun every day at practice, and they really lived our theme of “I Have Your Back.” This team will always have a special place in my heart – and we finished with a winning record, too. Whether or not we made the playoffs, I call this a very successful, very special season for Clay-Battelle football.”
Wirt County (5-2) 14 14 20 0 – 48
Clay-Battelle (3-2) 7 0 0 0 – 7
WC – Garrett Parsons 68 run (Shelby Simonton kick)
CB – Cooper Watson 18 pass from Carson Shriver (Gavin Reynolds kick)
WC – Aaron Garrett 36 run (Simonson kick)
WC – Kolton Parsons 18 pass from Dylan Lowe (Simonton kick)
WC – G. Parsons 49 run (Simonson kick)
WC – G. Parsons 18 run (Simonson kick)
WC – G. Parsons 1 run (Simonson kick)
WC – K. Parsons 13 run (kick missed)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
PASSING
WC – D. Lowe 5-6-0 83 TD
CB – Shriver 8-19-2 138 TD, Cooper Watson 0-1-0 0, Totals 8-20-2 138 TD
RUSHING
WC – G. Parsons 17-259 4TD, Garrett 2-35 TD, D. Lowe 4-29, Logan Powell 4-60, K. Parsons 1-13 TD, Dallas Pigott 1-(-2), Dalton Joy 1-0, Channing Lowe 2-(-5) Total 32-389 6TD.
CB- Shriver 21-20, Watson 1-(-4), Daniel Gorby 11-41, Zachary Hall 1-0, Brady Ammons 7-26, Total 41-103.
RECEIVING
WC – K. Parsons 1-34, Powell 1-10, K. Parsons 3-39 TD
CB – Johnny Arnett 1-14, Watson 5-109 TD, Gorby 2-15
INTERCEPTION
WC – Nathan Murray, Garrett
