If you like high-scoring football games and don’t mind a little cold and rain, you should have been at Newton-Conover High’s Gurley Stadium on Friday night.
The Red Devils emerged from an early back-and-forth scoring battle to outscore visiting West Caldwell 57-30 and close out regular season play with a win.
Newton-Conover (5-6, 2-5 Catawba Valley Athletic 2A) got a big game from quarterback Kevin Cline, who ran for 171 yards and three touchdowns and completed 3-of-4 passes for 79 yards and two more scores.
“I really felt good about the way we moved the football,” said Newton-Conover head coach Nick Bazzle. “We won the line of scrimmage and that’s what we always try to do.
“The big performance of the night came from our quarterback without a doubt. I just get more proud of him every week. Thank goodness he’s got another year here.
“He just led the team and orchestrated our offense and executed it as good as anyone could.”
The game looked more like a track meet at the outset as West Caldwell (0-11, 0-7) took the opening kickoff and drove 80 yards on eight plays for a Mekhi Dula 6-yard TD run.
The Red Devils answered with Cline’s first score, on a 7-yard run to cap a five play drive of 68 yards. Cline’s 49 yard run set up the TD, and the Red Devils led 7-6.
It was then West Caldwell’s turn as Aaron Rowe (11 carries, 163 yards) scored his first of two TDs to put the Warriors back on top 12-7.
Newton-Conover wasted little time regaining the lead as Cline hooked up with a wide-open Sam England for a 41-yard TD to put the Red Devils ahead 15-12 after Matt Coulter’s 2-point conversion run.
Again the Warriors then scored in six plays – on Robert Caldwell’s 52-yard run – for a 19-15 lead.
After the Red Devils regained the lead again 22-19 on a Chekeem Hickman’s 22-yard run, the Red Devils defense decided the back-and-forth drama had to end.
Newton-Conover forced a three-and-out for the first time and the offense scored when Cline ran 16 yard for a TD and a 29-19 lead at the half.
“We finally started tackling people,” Bazzle said of his defense. “I kept on asking ‘What’s going on’ and Coach Tim Harvell said ‘We are there we just can’t tackle them’.
“And when we finally stopped them the first time, we were able to get a two-score lead and then we were OK.”
Newton-Conover got four more scores in the second half. Cline had a 41-yard TD run and hooked up for a 25-yard TD with Michael Owens as Cline scored from 41-yards out and hooked up with Michael Owens on a 25-yard TD pass. Coulter added a 9-yard TD run and Josh McGee scored on a 21-yard run.
West Caldwell got 108 yards rushing from senior Tyler Dula.
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