Christian County High School football head coach Steve Lovelace doesn’t need to wait for Sunday’s film session to know which aspect his team needs to address.
For the second week in a row, the Colonels’ special team unit left something to be desired, contributing to County’s 36-0 loss to Christian Academy of Louisville in the Toyota of Hopkinsville Jerry Claiborne Bowl on Friday at Stadium of Champions.
After playing the state’s No. 1 ranked team in Class 3A tough for the first 12 minutes, County allowed a punt return for a touchdown for the second straight week, as Luke Leeper went 63 yards with no time on the clock to end the first quarter.
Throughout the remainder of the contest, the Cols (0-2) would see two of its punts blocked, both leading to scores for the Centurions, who are tied with South Warren for Kentucky’s longest streak of consecutive wins with 17 in a row.
County’s defense managed to keep powerhouse running back Brandt Babin relatively in check, and even held its own against the likes of University of Kentucky commit John Young (6-foot-6, 280 pounds) and Stingray Miller (6-foot-8, 290 pounds) on the offensive line.
CAL (2-0), led by first-year coach and former University of Louisville quarterback Hunter Cantwell, got a Babin 4-yard touchdown catch and a Harrison Zimmerer one-yard TD run during the final 7:40 of the second quarter, putting CCHS in a 22-0 hole.
Neither team scored in the third quarter, but the Centurions would not be denied down the stretch, as Gage Geren hauled in a 47-yard rainbow pass from Sabatino and Leener struck again for a 22-yard catch, forcing a running clock during the final 4:23 of the contest.
CAL only outgained Christian County by a margin of +73 (219-146), but the Centurions took advantage of their big plays in the fourth quarter. The teams combined for 19 penalties, each picking up 85 yards each via the yellow flag.
Despite their deficit, the Colonels never stopped fighting until the final whistle. RJ Falvey, Ty-Darius Kelly and AJ Harvey all had standout moments during the defeat. Austin Grant-Hall also showed his ability to run with power during the fourth quarter.
Christian County hasn’t lost three straight games to start a season since 2014. The Colonels will attempt to avoid such fate next week when they travel to take on Henderson County.
— Chris Jung
SCORING PLAYS
1Q (0:00): Luke Leeper, 63-yard punt return (Anthony Sabatino to Brandt Babin 2-point conversion)
2Q (7:40): Babin, 4-yard pass from Sabatino (Jackson Barrickman PAT)
2Q (1:10): Harrison Zimmerer, 1-yard run (Barrickman PAT)
4Q (11:35): Gage Geren, 47-card catch from Sabatino (Barrickman PAT)
4Q (4:23): Leeper, 22-yard catch from Sabatino (Barrickman PAT)
