Two local football standouts were honored with all-state accolades Wednesday as Trinity’s Levi Teets and Clay-Battelle’s Zac Hall both earned second-team all-state recognition as defensive utility players.
Teets, a safety and running back, led the Warriors with 72 tackles, five interceptions and eight forced fumbles. On offense, he was the third-highest scorer in the state this season with 25 total touchdowns, 17 rushing and eight receiving. He topped 1,700 yards of total offense rushing and receiving.
Hall also had success on both sides of the ball, picking off six passes with 23 tackles while rushing for 1,115 yards and a dozen scores.
Clay-Battelle had five other players named honorable mention in Mason Chisler, Matthew Gaad, Jacob Kassay, Carson Shriver and Maddox Shriver.
Williamstown’s Maxwell Molessa saved his best for last.
The junior quarterback rushed for 276 yards and five touchdowns and threw for 58 more as the Yellowjackets beat James Monroe 52-20 in the Class A state title game Saturday.
Molessa simply was unstoppable averaging 14.5 yards per carry.
“His performance in the state championship game is one for the ages,” coach Chris Beck said. “He demonstrated why he is one of the best players in West Virginia.”
That was confirmed Wednesday when Molessa was one of five Williamstown players named to the Class A first-team all-state squad released by the West Virginia Sports Writers Association.
He joins teammate and running back Ricky Allen, who captains the first team offense, junior offensive lineman Aiden Corbett, senior defensive lineman Harbor Haught and defensive back Cole Hesson.
Molessa was named as an offensive utility player, and he did a little bit of everything, finishing with 1,256 yards (going over 1,000 in the championship game) and 18 touchdowns, completed over 70 percent of his passes (57 0f 80) for 808 yards and 10 touchdowns, with no interceptions, and even caught seven passes for 166 yards and two touchdowns.
“As talented as he is physically, his mental makeup in terms of determination and competitiveness is as good as you’ll see.,” Beck said. “He doesn’t care about the stats; he just wants to win.”
Allen was the Yellowjackets’ leading rusher with 1,632 yards rushing and 32 touchdowns.
Beck said as valuable as his yardage and scoring was, his leadership was key.
“He is the best leader I’ve had the privilege of coaching in my time here,” Beck said. He’s a tremendous player who leads by example, our team would follow him anywhere. He’s our leading rusher, leading tackler, and handles our long snapping. Just a tremendous player in all three phases.”
Corbett was the leader of a line that paved the way for 3,931 yards and 65 touchdowns.
“Aiden was the highest-graded lineman on our team and paved the way for an offense that averaged over 400 yards and 46 points a game,” Beck said.
Harbor Haught (defensive line) and Cole Hesson (defensive back) were picks on defense.
Haught had 68 tackles with eight sacks, 17 tackles for a loss of yards, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and a pass broken up. Hesson had four interceptions.
“Harbor was a high motor player that always seemed to make big plays leading us in TFLs and sacks. His combination of speed and strength wreaked havoc on opposing offenses,” Beck said. “(Hesson was) often assigned the other team’s best WR and ended the year with four interceptions. Our pass defense gave up less than 60 yards a game and opponents under a 40% completion percentage.”
Runner-up James Monroe had five players selected, including quarterback Layton Dowdy who threw for 1,783 yards and 27 touchdowns.
Last season Dowdy shared the quarterback spot with Eli Allen and Cooper Ridgeway as the Mavericks advanced to the quarterfinals. Allen (defensive back) and Ridgeway (offensive utility) were also first-team selections this year.
Allen didn’t join the team until the third game of the season. A two-time first-team all-state basketball player with Division I potential, the 6-foot-3 Allen had originally opted to not go out of football but once the fall camp started, he couldn’t stay away after earning all-state honors last season.
A ball-hawking defensive back, Allen finished with eight interceptions in 12 games, matching last year’s total. and had 12 touchdown receptions.
Ridgeway was the Mavericks leading rusher with 1,544 yards and 16 touchdowns.
Lineman Jeffrey Jones on offense and Brady Baker on defense were also first-team picks.
Doddridge County fell in the semifinals to Williamstown and had three selections, all on a stout defense and led by defensive lineman Adam Burnside.
Coach Bobby Burnside’s middle child, Adam, a defensive lineman, had 134 tackles, 37 of those for a loss of yardage, eight sacks, four forced fumbles and three blocked punts.
“I’d label Adam as an old-school hard-nosed player that goes to battle on every play,” coach Burnside said. “He has worked extremely hard in the offseason to become a big-time playmaker on both sides of the ball.
Linebacker Bryce McKinney (126 total tackles, nine tackles for loss, two sacks, two pass deflections) and defensive utility Seth Richards (48 tackles an interception and five pass deflections playing both defensive back and outside linebacker) were also picked to the first team.
Greenbrier West’s Ty Nickell (1918 yards and 31 touchdowns) and Wheeling Central’s Lorenzo Ferrera (1,220 yard and 21 touchdowns and 23 catches for 465 yards and eight touchdowns) were the other running backs.
The receivers were Midland Trail’s dual-threat Cody Harrell (45-745-7) and Tucker County’s Maddox Anderson (1,134 yards and 16 touchdowns)
Other offensive linemen include South Harrison sophomore Luke Given, Wheeling Central’s senior Deante Suggs, and Pocahontas County’s Austin Morgan.
Wahama senior Sawyer VanMatre was the other utility pick (1,637 rushing yards and 32 touchdowns) and 1,023 passing yards and 18 touchdowns) and the kicker was Wheeling Central’s Eli Tucker (45-49 PAT and two field goals).
East Hardy’s Justin Parker was named as a defensive lineman after amassing 47 tackles, 15 tackles for a loss and nine sacks.
Linebackers were South Harrison’s Noah Burnside (74 tackles, 11.5 TFL, three sacks), Cameron’s Adam Angel (139 tackles, 13 TFLs and eight sacks) and East Hardy’s Mason Miller (88 tackles, nine TFL).
Four players were pegged as defensive utility players including Tug Valley’s Buddy Marcum, Greenbrier West’s Ethan Holliday and Tyler Consolidated’s Sean Winfrey.
The punter was Webster County’s Peyton Amos who averaged 39.4 per punt with a long of 58.
Quarterback Ethan Rosenau of Tucker County was captain of the second-team offense after throwing for 2,942 yards and 36 touchdowns and Wheeling Central’s Riley Watkins captains the second-team defense.
BY DAVE MORRISON
Class A All-State Football Team as Selected by the West Virginia Sports Writers Association:
FIRST TEAM
Offense
QB – Layton Dowdy, James Monroe, Soph.
RB – Ty Nickell, Greenbrier West, Sr.
RB – Lorenzo Ferrera, Wheeling Central, Sr.
RB – Rickie Allen, Williamstown, Sr. (Captain)
WR – Maddox Anderson, Tucker County, Jr.
WR – Cody Harrell, Midland Trail, Sr.
OL – Aiden Corbett, Williamstown, Jr.
OL – Luke Given, South Harrison, Soph.
OL – Deante Suggs, Wheeling Central, Sr.
OL – Jeffrey Jones, James Monroe, Sr.
OL – Austin Morgan, Pocahontas County, Sr.
U – Maxwell Molessa, Williamstown, Jr.
U – Cooper Ridgeway, James Monroe, Jr.
U – Sawyer Vanmatre, Wahama, Jr.
K – Eli Tucker, Wheeling Central, Jr.
Defense
DL – Adam Burnside, Doddridge County, Sr.
DL – Justin Parker, East Hardy, Jr.
DL – Brady Baker, James Monroe, Soph.
DL – Harbor Haught, Williamstown, Sr.
LB – Adam Angel, Cameron, Sr.
LB – Noah Burnside, South Harrison, Sr.
LB – Mason Miller, East Hardy, Sr.
LB – Bryce McKinney, Doddridge County, Sr.
DB – Eli Allen, James Monroe, Sr. (Captain)
DB – Colt Hesson, Williamstown, Jr.
U – Buddy Marcum, Tug Valley, Jr.
U – Seth Richards, Doddridge, Sr.
U – Sean Winfrey, Tyler Consolidated, Jr.
U – Ethan Holliday, Greenbrier West, Jr.
P – Peyton Amos, Webster County, Sr.
SECOND TEAM
Offense
QB – Ethan Rosenau, Tucker County, Jr. (CAPTAIN)
RB – Jordan Adams, Man, Sr.
RB – Joey Ramsey, St Marys, Sr.
RB – Peyton Day, Petersburg, Sr.
WR – Gabe Stewart, Doddridge, Jr
WR – Cole Burkett, Cameron, Sr.
OL – Trey Ohlinger, Wahama, Sr.
OL – Charles Ibbeson, Doddridge County, Sr.
OL – Braden Whitelatch, Wheeling Central, Sr.
OL – Reney Cordial, Greenbrier West, Sr.
OL – Jacob Proffitt, James Monroe, Sr.
U – Ethan Haught, Ritchie County, Sr.
U – Drake Cole, Summers County, Jr.
U – Brady Green, Van, Sr.
K – Owen Jackson, James Monroe, Sr.
Defense
DL – Peyton Girard, St. Marys, Sr.
DL – Chayse Myers, Moorefield, Soph.
DL – Cole Vandall, Greenbrier West, Jr.
DL – Ty Walton, Tyler Consolidated, Sr.
LB – Riley Watkins, Wheeling Central (CAPTAIN), Sr.
LB – Chase Parsons, Wirt County, Jr.
LB – Andrew Roush, Wahama, Sr.
LB – Tyson Adkins, Summers County, Soph.
DB – DeShawn Middleton, Wirt County, Sr.
DB – Bryson Elia, Tug Valley. Fr.
DB – Duke Dodson, Summers County, Sr.
U – Levi Teets, Trinity, Sr.,
U – Zac Hall, Clay-Battelle, Jr.
U – Payton Neely, Cameron, Sr.
P – Johnathan Huff, Mount View, Sr.
Honorable Mention
Blaike Adams, Tucker County; Joey Baker, Paden City; Matt Barr, Wahama; Austin Bartlett, Ritchie County; Luke Bartram, Tug Valley; Chazz Boggs, James Monroe; Luke Bright, Tygarts Valley; Jayden Brumfield, Man; Gunnar Bryan, Cameron; Braydie Carr, James Monroe; Logan Carver, Montcalm; Mason Chisler, Clay-Battelle; Cole Cogar, Gilmer County; Keaton Crowder, Richwood; Ashton Davis, Tug Valley; Caden Davis, South Harrison; Peyton Day, Petersburg; Gavin Derby, Valley; Virgil Dorion, Valley; Matthew Gaad, Clay-Battelle; Chris Goins, Mount View; Timothy Hager, Sherman; Colton Hall, Gilmer County; Evan Hamrick, Pocahontas County; Brad Harris, Buffalo; Ashton Haslacker, East Hardy; Dalton Heath, Greenbrier West; Cody Houser, St. Marys; Patrick Higginbotham, Valley; Trenton Huffman, Doddridge County; Chris Isaacs, Man; Jacob Kassay, Clay-Battelle; Miles Kidwell, East Hardy; Adam Landis, Moorefield; Landen Lafferty, South Harrison; Lucas McCallister, Madonna; Josh Moody, Buffalo; Aiden Moreno, South Harrison; Dominick Mullenax, Tucker County; Seaton Mullins, Meadow Bridge; Ryan Oliveros, Summers County; Ian Persinger, Calhoun County; Dawson Price, East Hardy; Michael Radcliff, South Harrison; Jared Reall, Tucker County; Andrew Roush, Wahama; Jaden Sayre, Ravenswood; Carson Shriver, Clay-Battelle; Maddox Shriver, Clay-Battelle; Adam Slone, Tug Valley; Joseph Stewart, Van; Bryce Taylor, Summers County; Jaxon Tipton, Man; Blake Turner, Petersburg; Michael VanMatre, Wahama; Bumby Van Meter, Petersburg; Owan Velazquez, St. Marys; Logan White, Williamstown; Trenton Wilfong, Tucker County; Zack Wise, Hundred; Jaylen Younger, Montcalm
