The Greene County football team came out on top against the Towns County Indians 23-6 in Hiawassee last Thursday night, getting moved from Friday night due to inclement weather.
The Tigers’ defense was able to hold the Indians to just one score coming in the first half and shut out the Indians in the last two quarters.
Head coach Terrance Banks acknowledged how important it was to have a good performance on the defensive side of the ball, especially after giving up 34 points to Oglethorpe County two weeks before.
“They played well and limited explosive plays, which was good. We needed to limit those,” Banks said. “We did a good job of that last week after not doing so the week before.”
Greene’s offense got cooking towards the end of the first quarter when sophomore quarterback Steve Miller found Radarius Miller on a 21-yard touchdown pass. However, the Tigers were unable to find any more offensive success in the first half and led the Indians 7-6 heading into the locker room.
Banks’ defense started the second half on the field and immediately shut Towns County’s offense down. The Tigers were able to get the ball back and capitalize on multiple possessions throughout the third and fourth quarters.
Miller threw his second touchdown pass of the night late in the third quarter and found senior Arkiyus Wright on a fourth-and-three for a 23-yard touchdown.
After a field goal, the Tigers led the Indians 16-6 until the final couple minutes of the contest. Senior running back Malik West broke off a 21-yard touchdown run to put Greene County up 17 with 1:52 left in the game.
Banks attributed the win to his players’ abilities to keep grinding, regardless of whether they were down or up.
“As a whole, the team played better [with Javaris Harris out],” Banks said.
“Quay [Burdette] made multiple plays, Radarius [Miller] line blocked and Malik [West] ran the ball well. It was the whole nine [yards] as a team, and we knew it was in them and that they could play to that level.”
The win over Towns County was Greene County’s first region win of the season. They will have four more area opponents to face before the season’s end.
The team’s next matchup will be at home in Tiger Stadium against the Warren County Screaming Devils, who are currently 2-4 on the year.