By Chris Yow
LYNNVILLE — Richland had every chance on Thursday night to knock off Spring Hill, but couldn’t finish the job. Spring Hill escaped with a 19-14 win in a game that was added to the schedule just two weeks ago.
“We preach to our kids about finishing, but we didn’t do that tonight,” Richland coach Nick Patterson said.
Trailing by five points with 2:28 to go in the game, Richland’s defense forced a Luka Boylan fumble, giving the host Raiders a chance to get a big win against a Class 4A opponent. A long pass play from Sam Edwards to Ethan Workman set up the hosts at the Spring Hill 33-yard-line. Four plays later, Edwards connected with Jack Norman on fourth down, but the ball came up a half-yard short of the line to gain, ending the comeback attempt.
“I asked for a spot, and I should’ve gotten one,” Patterson said of his team’s final offensive play. “I’m not happy about it, but we didn’t do enough. It shouldn’t have come down to that.”
Spring Hill jumped out to an early lead in the game. Landen Secrest went 19 yards for a score on the visiting Raiders’ opening possession, and Remone Kelley took a short Boylan pass 53 yards to pay dirt in the second quarter to give his team a two score lead.
Richland then answered with a solid drive, finding themselves at the Spring Hill 3-yard-line. After a pair of negative plays with a jumbo backfield, that included lineman Brandon Adams, the Raiders were forced to try a pass on fourth down that failed.
“Our defense played very well in the first half,” Spring Hill coach Ben Martin said. “We let off the gas in the second half, and we can’t go into cruise control like that.”
Holding a 13-0 lead at the break, Spring Hill allowed Richland back into the game after a fake punt set up the hosts in good field position, of which they took full advantage. Running back Trey Walkington cut the lead to 13-7 with a 5-yard run in the third quarter on the ensuing drive.
Secrest, however, put his team back ahead with a brilliant 59-yard scamper down the Richland sideline. He finished the night with 83 yards on just four carries and the pair of scores.
“Landen had a big game tonight,” Martin said. “We thought we were a little bit faster than them, so we wanted to try and get the edge when we could, and we were able to do that.”
The two teams combined for 10 fourth-down conversion attempts, with Richland converting two and Spring Hill none in three tries.
Patterson said playing a team with the athleticism and strength of Spring Hill should help his team prepare mentally and physically for the remainder of their region schedule, which includes Huntland and Cornersville. Richland lost starting running back Austin Seals in the second quarter to a shoulder injury. He did not return, and Patterson said he didn’t have an update on the severity of the injury after the game.
Spring Hill now takes a two-game win streak into Marshall County next week, but Martin knows the test his team is about to take.
“We can’t get excited about winning two games right now,” he said. “Marshall County is the best team in our region, and we have to prepare for them like they are.”
Spring Hill 19, Richland 14
At Wayne Hobbs Stadium, Lynnville
SH 7 6 6 0 19
R 0 0 7 7 14
TEAM STATISTICS | R | SH | |
First Downs | 15 | 11 | |
Rushes-Yards | 40-137 | 22-183 | |
Passing Yards | 121 | 126 | |
Comps-Atts-Ints | 11-19-0 | 11-15-0 | |
Penalties-Yards | 4-30 | 8-67 | |
Fumbles-Lost | 0-0 | 2-1 |
Scoring Summary |
FIRST QUARTER |
SH – Landen Secrest 19 run (9:51) Brett Hughes kick |
SECOND QUARTER |
SH – Remone Kelley 53 pass from Luka Boylan (8:35) kick failed |
THIRD QUARTER |
R – Trey Walkington 5 run (3:17) Colton Trimble kick |
SH – Secrest 59 run (1:43) kick failed |
FOURTH QUARTER |
R – Sam Edwards 4 run (9:01) Trimble kick |
Individual Statistics |
Rushing |
Spring Hill – Landen Secrest 4-83, Mac Richie 11-78, Luka Boylan 5-16, Dante Prowell 2-6 |
Richland — Trey Walkington 20-95, Austin Seals 5-21, Kylie Tucker 1-10, Sam Edwards 12-5, Easton Hewitt 1-3 |
Passing |
Spring Hill — Luka Boylan 10-14-0 128 |
Richland — Sam Edwards 11-19-0 121 |
Receiving |
Spring Hill — Remone Kelley 4-81, Jaylan Rucker 2-19, Dante Prowell 2-14, Luis Alderette 1-8, Jordan Porter 1-6 |
Richland — Ethan Workman 2-42, Kyrie Tucker 3-30, Brayden Adams 2-19, Mason Lawing 1-17, Mason Campbell 1-8, Austin Seals 2-5 |