4-0! WCMS continues its winning ways
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The Pioneers stayed perfect on the season, improving to 4-0 with a 21-7 comeback victory over Cookeville’s Avery Trace Middle School. The win marked the first time in the history of WCMS that one of its football teams had won its first four games.
“I’ve never been so proud of a team in my life,” said WCMS head coach Jeff Watson. “They were down 7-0, and they could’ve quit. They could’ve laid down, but they didn’t — because they’ve got heart.”
The Pioneers arrived at Cookeville High School over an hour before the game’s originally scheduled kickoff time, only to find out a freshman contest slated for later in the evening had moved up the start of their game.
“Nobody bothered to call us and let us know they’d changed the game time,” Watson said. “As soon as we got off the bus, we had to get ready to play.”
The game’s quick start may have contributed to a uncharacteristic slow start by the Pioneer defensive unit, which gave up a 63-yard pass to the Raiders on Avery Trace’s first drive. That long play set up a 20-yard touchdown run from Dustin Langford, putting the Raiders on top 7-0 after just four plays.
Warren County bounced back, however, driving 64 yards before putting their first points on the board thanks to a 10-yard run from Brandon Rich — his first scoring run of the season.
Avery Trace turned the ball over on a fumble on its next drive, with Warren County’s Toby Watts recovering the ball and putting his team in good field position. The Pioneers capitalized thanks to a 29-yard pass to Lane McCoy which set the stage for quarterback Kyle Mullican’s 7-yard touchdown run, giving WCMS a 12-7 edge at halftime.
The Pioneers came up short on their opening drive of the second half, turning the ball over on downs at the ATMS 10-yard line. But the defensive unit held tough, forcing a punting situation. Avery Trace’s snap on the punt attempt was high, however, and the Raiders had to fall on the ball, giving WCMS a safety and a 14-7 lead.
Justin Bouldin, who rushed for 156 yards on 21 carries, provided the game’s final score, going around the right side on a fake reverse to score from 64 yards out. Tony Garibaldi came on for the extra point to provide the game’s final score.
With time winding down, the Raiders took to the air on their final drive. But ATMS quarterback Jeremy Brooksbank’s final pass attempt of the night was a high, lofting throw, which Warren County’s Andy Southard intercepted to seal the win for the Pioneers.
Mullican finished with 86 yards on a 5-of-8 night passing with one interception. Lane McCoy was his favorite target, catching three passes for 70 yards.
Defensively, the Pioneers held Avery Trace to just 26 yards on the ground, including the early 20-yard TD run. ATMS passed for 87 yards on 2-of-6 completions.
The Pioneers will ride their current winning streak into their first home games of the season this week. Monday night, they’ll play host to Manchester Westwood, while Tuesday Coffee County Middle comes to town. Kickoff for both games at Nunley Stadium is set for 6:30 p.m.
While extremely pleased with his team’s efforts so far this season, Watson said the Pioneers still aren’t satisfied.
“This was a great win, but we can’t rest on it,” he said. “We’ve got two games this week, and we’re going to keep working hard, and keep getting the job done.”