Union’s Ethan Johnson scrambles to the outside on a quarterback keeper.

Union’s Ethan Johnson scrambles to the outside on a quarterback keeper.

<p>Lakewood’s Bobby Henry with a plenty of running room on a carry.</p>

Lakewood’s Bobby Henry with a plenty of running room on a carry.

<p>Lakewood’s Zhymir Powell looks for the hole, dancing near the line of scrimmage.</p>

Lakewood’s Zhymir Powell looks for the hole, dancing near the line of scrimmage.

<p>Lakewood’s defense stares down the Spartan offense.</p>

Lakewood’s defense stares down the Spartan offense.

It was a night for huge celebration at Lakewood on Thursday. Facing off in a county rivalry game on Senior Night in Carolina 1A Conference football action, it was smooth sailing for the Leopards from the very beginning all the way to the final score that saw them race away to victory, 48-0.

The game was settled by the end of the first half due to Lakewood’s solid showing on both sides of the ball. The offense was pretty much unstoppable, scoring on almost every possession in the first half. Lakewood’s defense was on par and allowed only one or two first downs, forced it over on fourth down, and forced turnovers.

The only hiccup they had during the entire first half was a lost fumble during their second drive.

With the way the were ticking on both sides, it’s hard to believe that the Leopards are not running at full capacity since injuries still plague them. Something Lakewood head coach Barrett Sloan remarked on after the contest along with praise for his only two senior.

“We played pretty good tonight. We’ve still got some injuries so we’re banged up and backed up but we’ve got to get better,” Sloan said. “That’s all I want our kids to do each and every week is to get better and I feel like we got a little bit better tonight in some areas.”

“We had some guys step up tonight and play some positions they wouldn’t normally play and they did what they needed to do,” Sloan continued. “I’m just proud of our kids and our two seniors. I couldn’t ask for two better captains and leaders. They’re the first ones in and last ones out so I’m very proud of Tillyon Williams and Brandon Pope.”

Lakewood was simply the better team in this game and big plays was their forte as they had one after another on the way to their 48 first half points. After going up 8-0 on their opening drive with an easy touchdown, the Leopards’ following drives were pretty much the same.

They’d fumble on the next drive but that would be their only turnover and loss of the ball that wasn’t because of a kickoff. Trey White was in on the first big play after catching a deep, wide-open pass that ended with a 49-yard touchdown. Then, the defense got in on the scoring on Union’s next possession. Zane Faircloth scooped up a loose ball at midfield and had nothing but green in front of him that led to another touchdown.

The Leopards went for two the entire night and converted on every attempt. After Faircloth’s score, it was 24-0 to end the first quarter. They were immediately on the board again to start the second quarter, doing it on another long touchdown pass. Williams was the receiver and went 78 yards untouched. Throw in a pair of long touchdown runs and the Leopards had the Spartans wrapped up.

Bobby Henry got the first, going 29 yards for the score and Zhymir Powell was in on the second after finding room to the outside for a 57-yard dash. After the two point conversion, the mercy clock kicked in at 4:09 in the second quarter. The clock rolled by after that with no action on the scoreboard the remainder of the night to conclude the game.

The win for Lakewood puts them at 2-5 overall and 2-3 in the conference to round out their regular season. Unfortunately for the Spartans, it was a rough season that never let them savor the sweet taste of victory.

Reach Sports Editor Daron Barefoot at [email protected].