The Cougars had the passion and desire to battle for their first victory of the season, so the taste of defeat was swallowed in the bite taken out of the Hive during the 40th Hardy Bowl as East Hardy crushed the homecoming swagger in Moorefield by a score of 20-7 last Friday.
East Hardy (1-6) kept the momentum going from the start to win the Hardy Bowl for the seventh time in the past eight seasons, however the Yellow Jackets (2-6) have a 26-14 advantage in the overall series with two more wins added for playoff meetings.
There was no empty seat at Yellow Jacket Field as fans lined the fences for the 40th Hardy Bowl and the cheers roared throughout the game, but that wasn’t the only noise factor as cattle at the nearby stockyards bellowed out all night long.
“It’s exciting. I’m more so excited for the boys than anything, because they are reaping the benefits of a good week of practice. They are taking care of business and hopefully they will build on that momentum going forward,” East Hardy Coach Devon Orndorff remarked.
“It is a little piece of heaven, the Hardy Bowl. We have two teams that aren’t having their best years, but just four years ago it was number one against number four in the state and now a couple of unranked teams. That doesn’t change intensity and we live for that, all of us whether coach, spectator or player. The intensity is what makes it interesting.”
Moorefield punted on the first two possessions, while the Cougars gained the upper-hand scoring touchdowns twice on their drives.
An onside kick to commence the Hardy Bowl was unexpected as Jeffrey Mills snatched the ball for the Cougars, but there was an offsides penalty assessed as Moorefield started in East Hardy territory at the 42-yard line.
Moorefield’s Javen Fawley caught a pass from quarterback Brent Moran for three yards and was tackled by East Hardy’s Austin Alt.
Matthew Jenkins took a direct snap for the Yellow Jackets and took off around the right side for a six yard gain before being tackled by Chance Dove.
Fawley converted the third down at the 28-yard line as East Hardy’s Alex Miller and Andrew Tharp garnered the stop.
There was a fumble on the next play, but Moran picked the ball up and was chased out of bounds on a six yard advance before having the sequence negated on a holding call moving the line of scrimmage back to the 44-yard line.
Jenkins fumbled the ball on the next handoff and the Yellow Jackets managed to recover losing three yards.
Moorefield’s Benjamin Pyles caught a pass and in the process of going to the ground the hit by Alt jarred the ball loose, but the ruling was being down prior to the fumble.
The Yellow Jackets faced 3rd-and-18 forth 36-yard line and the next pass attempt fell incomplete as Aden Funkhouser defended on the play forcing a punt which was sent into the end zone by Atikilt Tamiru.
Alt was denied any yardage on the first play by Moorefield’s Vincent Cyrus and Matthew Weatherholt.
Moorefield’s Coleman Mongold had tight coverage forcing an incomplete pass.
East Hardy snapped out of the stigma as quarterback Aden Funkhouser found Christian Dove for a 35-yard third down conversion for a first down at the Moorefield 45-yard line where Blake Funk recorded the stop.
Jenkins and Weatherholt stopped Alt for no gain on the following play.
East Hardy’s Chance Dove caught a pass and slipped as Pyles stepped in to make the tag on the 16-yard sequence for a first down at the 29-yard line.
A hit by Moorefield’s Ethan Sines appeared to cause a fumble, but Alt was down and smothered it.
Funkhouser hurdled a defender and was tackled by Noah Ketterman and Riley Hedrick with the Yellow Jackets sidelines shouting for a penalty regarding the hurdle, but instead a flag was thrown on a Moorefield infraction placing the Cougars in the red zone at the 14-yard line.
Chance Dove was dropped for a one yard loss by Funk and Seth Wilson.
Alt picked up three yards and was brought down by Weatherholt, then Christian Dove caught a pass diving to the nine yard line with an ankle tackle by Funk.
Facing 4th down, the Cougars used a hard count and Moorefield was called for an offsides penalty shifting on the line which created a first down.
Chance Dove drove the ball up the middle and was denied a touchdown at the goal line by Wilson.
On the ensuing play, Funkhouser punched the ball in for the one-yard touchdown with 2:10 left in the first quarter and the extra point was nullified on a penalty with the second attempt going awry for a 6-nil lead.
Moorefield’s Jackson Weese made a 22-yard return on the kickoff, but a holding penalty put the ball at the 21-yard line.
Fawley bounced outside and was tripped up by Tharp during a first down gain of 13 yards for the Yellow Jackets.
Fawley added five yards and was brought down by East Hardy’s Logan Whetzel and Aaron Fishel.
Moran was tackled by Ryan Rogers with a personal foul face mask moving the chains at the Cougars 49-yard line.
Pyles made a diving catch with Mills coming in for the tackle on another first down at the 38-yard line and an incomplete pass ended the first quarter.
East Hardy’s Adam Larson’s coverage forced a deep throw going overhead.
Rogers sacked Moran and a holding penalty was added as the Yellow Jackets punted from the 45-yard line.
Funkhouser was met at the sidelines on a two-yard pickup by Moorefield’s Jenkins and Matthew Wright at the 21-yard line.
After a play for no gain, the third down pass from Funkhouser to Christian Dove was grabbed along the sidelines for a first down at the 38-yard line.
Mills was kneeling on a catch for a seven yard gain as the Cougars kept the momentum going.
Funkhouser dodged tackles collecting a first down at the Moorefield 35-yard line on a 20-yard carry before being chased down by Sines.
After a low pass was not hauled in by Dove, Alt added eight yards on the ground with a tackle by Mongold.
Moorefield was flagged for being offsides which created a first down for the Cougars at the 22-yard line.
A pass went too high, then Chance Dove carried the ball six yards, then the Yellow Jackets were called offsides again for another East Hardy first down at the 11-yard line.
Cyrus and Funk tackled Alt on a four yard gain, then Funkhouser was stopped for one yard loss by Weatherholt despite an extra effort to reach forward.
Mills made the eight yard touchdown reception at the 5:27 mark of the second quarter, then during a block on the extra point a personal foul was called allowing another attempt with East Hardy electing to go for a two-point conversion with Christian Dove catching it for a 14-0 advantage.
“I was excited about it coming into the game and I wish the score would have reflected the excitement coming in to it and that’s just how it is. They were excited for the game. They had a good week of practice and prepared well. The intensity was good. I can’t fault them of their effort, their effort was great,” Moorefield Coach Matthew Altobello commented.
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“We just got into a point where we have costly penalties. When we get into the red zone we have mistakes on a snap, fumbles, busted coverage and it’s mental stuff. It’s not the ability of their play or the ability of them playing as a unit no matter what unit is on the field. It is being able to focus for a second play to do their job. We have to cut out the men tap mistakes if we want to be a great football team. [East Hardy] They get the momentum and it’s funny when people say momentum doesn’t play a factor in any athletic event, it sure does. Our kids battled the whole time. They have been there before having adversity, but when the momentum is on the other side we’ve got to be able to fight and do our job when it comes down to it when it comes down to the mental aspect of the game. We had some busted coverage and I thought we would have been in some good spots, but it was mental mistakes coming from the ability to focus and making sure you are in the right spot in your coverage or even wrapping up when it comes down to it making a tackle and containing the quarterback in the pocket. He is a great athlete and they are a great football team, but their record doesn’t reflect it. We talked about it all week about doing the right thing and being in the right spot. We just have to make sure as a team we don’t hurt ourselves with penalties behind the sticks when we can go forward to make points. This is your next opportunity to go on and be better. We try not to focus on it being our cross-county rival. We look at it as making sure we keep the focus on ourselves and play the way we’re supposed to play when it comes down to it no matter who we play.”
The kickoff went out of bounds, so Moorefield started at its own 35-yard line.
Fishel grabbed Fawley’s face mask on the tackle creating a penalty moving the ball to the 40.
Weese was grabbed on the sleeve by Alt and tossed to the ground for a one yard loss.
Jenkins picked up a first down at the 46-yard line where Mills and Alt got the stop.
Moorefield was called for an illegal procedure on the ensuing play, then Jenkins took a pitch from Moran and entered Cougars territory at the 47-yard line on the 12-yard gain and was tackled by Funkhouser and Chance Dove.
Jenkins gained a first down at the 42-yard line and was tackled by East Hardy’s Adam Baker, but a holding penalty was called on the Yellow Jackets pushing the ball back to midfield.
It was time for the two minute drill to close the first half and Fawley took the handoff finding 11 yards before being tackled by Alt, then Fawley added a first down with Mills recording the stop with a timeout called.
Jenkins plowed through a couple defenders and was brought down by Mills and Chance Dove at the 17-yard line and a timeout was called with one minute left.
Jenkins caught a pass for six yards and Mills made the tackle.
The Yellow Jackets were threatening in the red zone as Moran was chased out on a three yard gain tot he eight yard line.
Fawley advanced the ball two yards and a timeout was called with 18 seconds remaining.
Facing fourth down and one, Moorefield made a hard count and there was no movement by the Cougars before the handoff to Fawley which could have gained a first down if it wasn’t for a Yellow Jackets holding penalty backing up the scrimmage to the 14-yard line.
There was another penalty on Moorefield during an incomplete pass on the turnover on downs with Cougars winding out the last second of the first half with a 14-0 lead at the intermission.
During halftime, Benjamin Pyles was named the Moorefield Homecoming King and Morgan Armentrout was crowned the Moorefield Homecoming Queen.
There was a delay of game penalty assessed to East Hardy to start at the 19-yard line, but the negative yardage was quickly erased on a strike from Funkhouser to Christian Dove making a leaping sideline catch for 15 yards and the first down at the 34-yard line.
Funkhouser was tackled by Weatherholt on a two-yard pickup, then the Cougars went back to the aerial attack as Adam Larson hauled in the ball for a 33-yard catch to the Moorefield 31-yard line.
Alt rushed for seven yards with Jenkins leading a group of Yellow Jackets for the stop.
Funkhouser dashed to the outside and was tracked down by Mongold on an 18-yard carry deep into the red zone at the six yard line.
After an offensive penalty and incomplete pass, Funkhouser escaped the pocket rush adding six yards with Wilson making the tackle.
Funkhouser dodged tackles reaching the end zone, but a penalty negated this core.
Facing fourth down, Mills made the 15-yard touchdown reception despite defensive pass interference with 8:31 remaining in the third quarter to give the Cougars a 20-0 lead.
Moorefield started at its own 20-yard line and Jenkins broke free from potential tackles and Funkhouser raced across the field to make the touchdown saving tackle at the East Hardy 16-yard line.
Fawley added four yards on the next play with Miller and Alt recording the stop.
Jenkins rushed into the end zone, but there were offsetting personal foul penalties preventing the score.
The Yellow Jackets moved the ball to the 10-yard line, then a bad snap turned into a fumble with East Hardy’s Jeffrey Mills scooping the ball up for the turnover and was tackled at the 38-yard line.
Chance Dove rushed for eight yards and was tackled by Cyrus.
Funkhouser broke free from backfield trouble, but managed only a yard before being met by Jenkins and Wilson.
Sines slammed Funkhouser outside the pocket for an eight yard loss which led to a Cougars punt.
Moorefield started at the 22-yard line and Moran was chased out of bounds by Fishel on a three yard gain, the Fawley picked up the first down at the 36-yard line.
After an incomplete pass, Fawley added four yards on the ground and was stopped by Baker and Whetzel.
Fawley caught a pass for a first down at midfield where Alt came in for the tackle.
Fawley rushed for 19 yards creating another first down for the Yellow Jackets at the 31-yard line and Larson recorded the stop.
A timeout was called, then Fishel sacked Moran for a nine yard loss.
Moran fracked a handoff and rushed 15 yards and was brought down by Alt and Chance Dove.
Facing third down, Moran picked up the first down on a keeper in the red zone at the 13-yard line.
Whetzel dropped Fawley for a two yard loss, then Fawley gained the yards back reaching the 12-yard line to close the third quarter with Alt making the tackle.
On the exchange from Moran to Fawley, the ball was ricocheted up in the air and landed for a fumble with the Cougars pouncing for the recovery made by Alex Miller.
East Hardy started at the 25-yard line and Alt was tackled fro a one yard loss by Funk.
After a pass went too high, Chance Dove caught the ball and raced near midfield where Caden Kimble got the stop and the play was negated on a holding penalty plus personal fouls placing the ball back at the 35-yard line.
Funkhouser grabbed a first down on a two-yard carry, then Chance Dove drove the ball toward the middle of the line before bouncing outside creating a first down at the 48.
Hedrick and Sines crunched Funkhouser near the sideline for a three-yard loss.
Mills gained separation from Kimble and made a 45-yard catch into the red zone with Kimble getting up to make the tackle, but that sequence was deemed an offensive pass interference.
Cyrus dropped Funkhouser for a loss, then East Hardy punted.
After a return of 23 yards by Moorefield’s Coleman Mongold to the East Hardy 46-yard line, the Cougars were called for an unsportsmanlike penalty moving the chains to the 31.
During the carry by Jenkins with a tackle by Miller, Whetzel and Tharp there was a personal foul called on the Yellow Jackets placing the ball at the 40-yard line.
Fawley dashed around to the outside, while Fishel made a takedown away from the play causing him to be ejected.
Moorefield now had 2nd and one from the 22-yard line and Jenkins picked up the first down on a two-yard carry with East Hardy’s Patrick Helsley making the stop.
The Yellow Jackets went to the air as Moran connected with Matthew Wright leaping in the back of the end zone among triple coverage for the touchdown with 7:07 left and Atikilt Tamiru added the extra point to cut the deficit to 20-7.
East Hardy burned off three minutes from the clock getting one first down in the process on a catch by Mills for 11 yards and Chance Dove made a number of carries on that series before punting.
Moorefield had 3:44 to work with to try for a rally and Fawlty grabbed a first down at the 29-yard line.
Three consecutive passes went awry which included one deflection by Funkhouser to force fourth down, then Moran eluded the defense for a first down at the 40-yard line.
Moorefield’s Derek Hoyt missed the ball ball and East Hardy’s Chance Dove came in with a late hit causing an ejection.
Moorefield now had the ball on the 45-yard line with 2:50 to go, then Jenkins was tackled for a one-yard loss by William Strawderman.
The Cougars sealed the victory on the next play as Christian Dove made an interception and the Yellow Jackets were assessed a personal foul for possession at the Moorefield 33-yard line.
Alt garnered a first down in the red zone on two carries, then Funkhouser kneeled twice sandwiching a timeout to finish the game for East Hardy’s first win of the year coming in the 40th Hardy Bowl disrupting the Yellow Jackets homecoming.
The East Hardy students rushed the field to celebrate with the team.
“The fans were louder than they have been in past years and that made a difference. It even made it hard for us to hear and they have to quiet down bit when we have the ball. I am extremely proud to see a fan base so excited. The rivalry is fun, but getting the first win is sweet no matter who we played. A victory is a victory. Walking off the field, one of the boys said this feels natural. They are used to winning,” Coach Orndorff concluded.
Moorefield hosts the Vikings (4-2) for the Summit Bowl this Friday, while the Cougars host Pendleton County (5-2).
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