In a District 1 matchup on Friday night that often resembled surfing more than football, the Madisonville-North Hopkins Maroons couldn’t keep their heads above water in a 19-0 defeat to hosts Graves County.
Playing in a driving rain with swirling winds and a very soggy field, neither team could come to grips with the conditions in a scoreless first half. The opening 24 minutes were played almost entirely in the middle of the field, with neither offense driving into the red zone.
However, after a risk-averse first half, Graves County opened up the playbook on its first drive of the second half. Quarterback Kaden Gregory completed a pair of passes to put the Eagles in the red zone for the first time, and Denis Marrs finished off the drive with a 16-yard scoring run. The extra point was good and Graves led 7-0 with 9:43 left in the third.
With Madisonville-North Hopkins still unable to move the ball, Graves County added a second touchdown on a 71-yard reception by Wilson Thomas with 2:34 left in the quarter. The Maroons were able to block the extra-point attempt for a 13-0 score.
A Madisonville fumble in its own territory set up Graves County’s final touchdown. The Eagles took over on the Maroon 39-yard line and capped a short drive with a 21-yard scoring run by Gregory with 38 seconds left in the third. The two-point try was unsuccessful and Graves County settled for a 19-point cushion.
A pair of Maroon turnovers were the only plays of note over the final 12 minutes. Madisonville fumbled on a kick-off return and Kanyon Johnson’s pass was picked off by the Eagles’ Raygon Mathis with just under eight minutes left to play.
First downs were nearly even with the Eagles collecting 11 to the Maroons’ 10, but Madisonville was held to only 78 yards of offense. Johnson was 4/13 for 33 yards, and Markezz Hightower rushed for 51 yards on 13 carries.
Marrs ran for 121 yards on 24 attempts with a touchdown for the Eagles, and Gregory picked up 56 yards on 10 carries with a score. Gregory was an efficient 5/7 through the air for 94 yards and TD to help Graves to 268 yards of offense.
Madisonville slipped to 4-2 with its second loss in the last three weeks. The Maroons will look to get back on track next week when Muhlenberg County visits.
Graves County also stands at 4-2 with a matchup against visiting Apollo on tap next Friday.
