KING — Friday night lights and the excitement has returned to King with West Stokes winning their fifth consecutive game with a 30-21 victory over North Forsyth in a pivotal Mid-State 2A Conference game.
The Wildcats hosted their 26th annual homecoming activities with Sophie Pratt being crowned homecoming queen, Allie Willard Miss Congeniality, and Kylie Holmes and Tessa Hatchett Princesses.
“Homecoming is a very special night, and it also comes with its own challenges,” noted West Stokes’ coach Trent Lowman. “There are a lot of things going on all week and especially on Friday that’s out of the norm for a football team, which can alter the normal level of focus.
“We had some hiccups early, but I’m very proud of the grit and perseverance these players continue to show. Our defense came up huge again and put two defensive touchdowns on the board.
“Offensively, Lindann (Fleming) was Lindann again and Sam (Reeves) had his best performance all year. Derek Studer made some big plays and showed the threat he is, and Myles Knox added to his program record by driving another field goal through for us.
“Overall I’m proud of our guys, grateful for our staff, and extremely happy to come away with a win against a very well coached and solid North Forsyth team.”
The Wildcats got on the board midway through the first quarter when North Forsyth quarterback fumbled the ball with Nate Akers scooping and scoring the first of two defensive touchdowns for West Stokes. Knox added his first of three extra-points in the game.
West forced another fumble that was recovered by Jackson Sammons, but a fumble by the offense gave the ball back to the Vikings on the West 30-yard line. North Forsyth needed two plays to score. The extra-point was missed still giving the Cats a narrow 7-6 lead.
On the ensuing kickoff, the Wildcats fumbled giving the visitors excellent field position again. North Forsyth took advantage of the turnover and scored at the 10:06 mark of the second quarter. The extra-point was made making the score 13-7.
Fleming and the Wildcats’ offense responded from being behind, which has not happened a lot this season. Fleming dashed 73 yards with 6:17 left before the half. Knox’s extra-point gave the home team a 14-13 lead.
Knox added a 20-yard field goal right before the half, his school record of seven in a season, and 16th in a career. The Wildcats led 17-13 at halftime.
The Purple Cats added a two-yard touchdown by Fleming on their first possession of the half. Knox made it 24-13 with 8:09 left in the third quarter.
West Stokes added their second defensive touchdown with 48-seconds left in the third after defensive back Jonah McCoy intercepted a pass by North Forsyth and returned it 59-yards for pay dirt. The extra-point was blocked making the score 30-13.
North Forsyth added their last score of the day with 1:58 left in the game on a 3-yard run. After the two-point conversion, the Wildcats still held the 30-21 advantage.
The Wildcats amassed 337 yards of offense with Fleming recording his third game of 100 plus yards. He rushed for 157 yards on 20 carries with two touchdowns. Receiver Derek Studer had three catches for 86 yards. Quarterback Sam Reeves was 8-of-17 for 167 yards with no interceptions.
Daniel Stanley led the Wildcats with 15 tackles. Akers and Jackson Roscoe added 11 tackles each, and Aydden Cherry recorded 10. Along with McCoy’s interception, Devan Gastley recorded his first of the season. Akers added his second fumble recovery of the season with Sammons getting his first.
West Stokes improves to 6-1 on the season and 3-0 in conference play and will play reigning conference and state champion Reidsville (6-0) on Friday, Oct 11 at 7:30 p.m.
“Reidsville is Reidsville,” Lowman said. “We know the task in front of us and I expect a good week of practice to prepare. Our focus doesn’t change; we will stress to do your job, the best you can, on every play.”
West Stokes 30, North Forsyth 21
North Forsyth 6 7 0 8 — 21
West Stokes 7 10 13 0 — 30
Scoring
First Quarter
WS (5:30) — Nate Akers fumble recovery, Myles Knox kick (7-0)
NF (1:18) — Varteice Hamilton 29-yard reception from JQuez Jackson, kick failed (7-6)
Second Quarter
NF (10:06) — Eric Archie 4-yard run, Orane Forbes kick (7-13)
WS (6:17) — Lindann Fleming 73-yard run, Knox kick (14-13)
WS (3:16) — Knox 20-yard field goal (17-13)
Third Quarter
WS (8:09) — Fleming 2-yard run, Knox kick (24-13)
WS (0:48) — Jonah McCoy 59-yard interception return, kick blocked (30-13)
Fourth Quarter
NF (1:58) — Karon Lindsay 3-yard run, James McCaskill reception (30-21)
Individual Statistics
North Forsyth
Rushing: Amare Mitchell 2-24, Varteice Hamilton 3-66, Karon Lindsay 19-64, TD, Elias Kellum 2-0, JQuez Jackson 8-(-1), Eric Archie 4-37, TD
Passing: Amare Mitchell 1-1-0, 29-yards; JQuez Jackson 9-19-2, 57-yards, TD
Receiving: Amare Mitchell 1-3, Domnick Mounce 1-29, Varteice Hamilton 3-26, TD, Karon Lindsay 1-14, James McCaskill 4-14.
West Stokes
Rushing: Lindann Fleming 20-157, 2TDs, Sam Reeves 1-0, Aydden Cherry 6-13
Passing: Sam Reeves 8-17-0, 167-yards
Receiving: Mikah Webster 1-(-3), Lindann Fleming 1-13, Aydden Cherry 2-26, Nate Akers 1-45, Derek Studer 3-86
Records: West Stokes 6-1 (3-0); North Forsyth 3-4 (1-2)
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