Callaway defeated Morgan County in a contested top-10 matchup this past Friday to capture the Region 4-2A title.
The Cavaliers held on late to win 33-26 at Callaway Stadium, while the Dogs suffered their first loss of the year.
It was an exciting first half.
The Cavaliers led the Dogs 21-20 at halftime. They jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead as talented tailback Tyren Buggs broke the goose egg on the scoreboard with a 5-yard rushing touchdown early in the first quarter.
Callaway’s defense stood tall on the next drive, getting the ball back. It wasn’t long before the Cavaliers scored another touchdown as quarterback Blake Harrington connected with wideout Kaiden James for a score.
Before the end of the first quarter, Morgan County finally got on the board, cutting the deficit to 14-7.
However, Harrington connected with James again on 4th-and-15, extending their team’s lead back to two scores.
Trailing 21-7, the Dogs put the pedal to the medal.
Senior Draco Frazzitta caught a touchdown pass on a drag route from quarterback Davis Strickland, who ended the night with three passing scores. Junior tight end Drew Ainslie then joined in on the scoring fun, catching a touchdown pass from Strickland before the end of the half, making it 21-20 after a missed extra point.
Morgan County got the ball to start the second half and quickly took the lead.
Junior running back Christian Monfort put the offense on his back and moved the chains, setting up Strickland for a short rushing score. The Dogs tried for a two-point play but couldn’t convert it, leading 26-21.
The game remained tied until the first play of the fourth quarter as Buggs put Callaway back in the driver’s seat. The senior running back, who rushed for over 100 yards, scored his final touchdown on a 16-yard carry.
The Cavalier defense stood tall in the fourth quarter, stopping Morgan County on fourth down twice. Their two stops came at the 6:28 mark and with under two minutes remaining, while their offense added another score.
Harrington punched it into the end zone for Callaway from a few yards out, capping off a long touchdown drive around the four-minute mark. The Cavaliers tried a two-point conversion, but Buggs was stopped short.
Strickland finished the game by completing 10 of 16 passes for 79 yards and three touchdowns. His favorite target, Jaylen Elder, who led the state in receiving yards entering the game, was held to only 28 yards.
Strickland struggled to get the ball to the team’s leading receiver because Callaway’s defense locked in on him. Regardless, the Cavaliers played with a lighter box, leading Monfort to rush for a season-high 199 yards.
Callaway, now ranked No. 4, improved to 8-2 and won the region title with a 5-0 mark. Morgan County, which fell three spots in the rankings to No. 5, finished the regular season at 9-1 overall and 4-1 in the region.
Despite losing their regular season finale, the Dogs are projected to host a first-round playoff game on Nov. 15.