Closing out the last game at the Colt Stadium this season did not go as planned. Coahulla Creek fell to Union County Friday night 35-20. The seniors all hoped for a win that night, but shared some bittersweet moments regardless, on Senior Night. “You walk in, and it doesn’t hit you until that buzzer goes off for the last time,” senior Andrew Russell reflects, “you begin to realize that’s it.”
The Colts were coming off a high from the win against Murray County last week, they knew Union was a tougher opponent but did not let that discourage them as they played through the night. “We lost the turnover battle 3-0,” Coach Carter explained, “and we gave up too many explosive plays.” They started off slow, and began to make a comeback by the fourth quarter with the connections from Waelyn Baliles to Andrew Russell. “Our offense kept clicking from last game,” Russell said. Russell had 6 catches for 101 yards and 2 touchdowns. Execution was evident for the Colts offense as they fought for yardage against the Panthers. Baliles had his second highest passing total this sesaon with 181 yards, and ran for 48 yards as well. He scored the final TD for Coahulla during the 4th quarter, bringing the final score to 20 for the Colts. “It was a testament of our guys by staying locked in there,” Carter brought up the “groove” the offense developed and was proud of their fight.
River Choate and the other defensive guys managed to hold their ground against Union County, but “lacked physicality” against the Panthers offense. Choate was the leading tackler Friday night with 6 total tackles and praised the coaches on their defensive strategies for this game; he says that most of the time the guys were in the right place, but the Panthers were more physical than them throughout the game. Russell, who also plays defense, compared the defensive drive to the Murray game, and noticed how they “lacked” in areas they shut-out the Indians in last week. Another defensive standout was Jackson Lowery, as he had 2 tackles for loss, bringing his season total to 10.5 TFL this season.
As many know, this was the final game at The Creek for our 6 seniors. Jaden Silvius, Carson Weaver, Hudson Sherrets, Andrew Russell, Isaac McGill, and Brett Pause all were recognized prior to the game. They explained the night as “surreal” as they heard the ending sound of the clock, finalizing their last game. “It felt like I just started playing yesterday,” Hudson claims. However, they are all thankful they were able to share these moments together, and play on the field one last time, together. Issac said, “I felt like it would never end,” as he summed up his final home game after 4 years at The Creek. Putting the losses and mistakes from the matchup aside, they were able to absorb the last bit of memories on the field after the game as a group.
Coach Carter explained how the letting up on defense cost the Colts a lot, and the team had a “lack of focus” throughout the game Friday Night. He hopes to correct this and get dialed back in as they hit the road against North Murray on Friday. Choate and Russell each wish to end the season with another win, and will push themselves to achieve that over the final 2 games.
Coahulla will travel to North Murray Friday evening with Kickoff at 7pm. The game will be televised on The CW Chattanooga!
Article written by Ava Howell