YSE File Photo
Quarterback Aiden King scored his first touchdown of the season after a two-week hiatus and Treston Kay dazzled with a 90-yard kickoff return to give Hopkinsville a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns, but it wasn’t enough to dig out of a 27-point hole as the Tigers fell 33-12 Friday at Warren East High School.
The Raiders, who won for the third straight game, got a monster night out of Tray Price, TDs on both sides of the ball from Maddox Tarrence, and a hail mary touchdown pass from Dane Parsley as time expired in the first half to earn a Homecoming triumph and remain unbeaten (2-0) in Class 4A, District 1 play this season.
Tarrence, who also had a four-yard TD run with 4:17 left in the contest, got the scoring started when he picked off King and returned the interception 52 yards for a 7-0 WEHS advantage. It was Tarrence’s second pick-6 of the year. In the second quarter, over 10 minutes after a one-yard QB keeper put his team ahead 13-0, Parsley heaved a 38-yard bomb to Brayden Lightfoot at the buzzer to create a 20-0 halftime deficit for Hoptown in Bowling Green.
Price had just three catches in the victory but racked up a game-high 110 receiving yards and had a one-yard TD run to pace the Raider offense. The senior wideout came into the game with a team-high 13 receptions, but it was his first score of the 2023 campaign.
Trailing 27-0 with 11:41 remaining in the game, HHS used its only forced turnover — an Artavius Moses fumble recovery — to set up King’s four-yard QB keeper and avoid Hoptown’s second shutout of the season. Moses also had three carries during that scoring drive following his strong defensive play.
Tarrance struck again just under three minutes later with his aforementioned offensive TD, but Kay responded and earned the nickname T-KO by rushing up the right sideline and beating every defender in front of him for a 90-yard return on the ensuing kickoff. It’s Hopkinsville’s third kickoff return for a TD this season.
The Tigers, who were forced to punt six times, had one final chance to cut into the Warren East lead late in the contest but a Parsley interception in the end zone all but ended the game with 47 seconds to go. Parsley, who has interest from several colleges, including Eastern Kentucky University, finished with 14 carries for 83 yards and went 12-of-19 for 184 yards through the air.
Friday’s district matchup was the first meeting between these schools since the Class 4A state playoffs in 2018 and the first regular-season meeting since 2014. Hoptown still owns a 4-3 lead in the all-time series despite the setback.
In addition to his highlight-reel kickoff return, Kay also had team leads in receptions (8) and receiving yards (72) in defeat. The Tigers were held to just 77 rushing yards on 27 carries, led by 25 yards (on nine carries) by Darrius Green. King, who was back after suffering an injury against Christian County on Sept. 1, finished 11-of-23 for 95 passing yards.
This is the first time Hopkinsville has started a season with six consecutive losses since 2011. The Tigers have also dropped their first two district games but will now prepare for next week’s home meeting with Calloway County — a team Hoptown has dropped by a combined 108-9 the past two seasons. The Lakers (2-4) fell to Logan County 34-0 on Friday.
1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q
HHS (0-6) 0 0 0 12
WEHS (4-2) 7 13 7 6
SCORING PLAYS
WEHS: Maddox Tarrence, 52-yard interception return; Jefferson Alvarado kick (7:24, 1Q)
WEHS: Dane Parsley, 1-yard run; PAT blocked (10:34, 2Q)
WEHS: Brayden Lightfoot, 38-yard catch from Parsley; Alvarado kick (0:00, 2Q)
WEHS: Tray Price, 1-yard run; Alvarado kick (8:51, 3Q)
HHS: Aiden King, 4-yard run; PAT no good (7:11, 4Q)
WEHS: Tarrence, 4-yard run; PAT no good (4:17, 4Q)
HHS: Treston Kay, 90-yard kickoff return; two-point try no good (4:03, 4Q)
