Warriors suffer a tough loss to the Marist War Eagles.

Sports, Team FYN Sports

In what was the expected result coming into the game, the Marist War Eagles were able to defeat the White County Warriors 35-19. 

The beginning portion of the game was controlled by Marist.

The War Eagles were on the hunt early. After a White County 3 & out to start the game, Marist QB Connor Cigelske scored a 58 yard rushing touchdown on one of their first offensive plays to almost immediately gain the lead. They would soon score again after another rushing touchdown midway through the first quarter, making the score 15-0 after a two point conversion. 

The Warriors would have multiple ups and downs throughout the game.

Seth Stonecypher before his TD.

Meanwhile, it was a rough start for the Warriors. It was in the 2nd quarter after four offensive drives to finally gain a first down after a fourth down conversion. Later on during that same drive, J. Ben Haynes would find Cooper Turner for a deep ball, and Turner would be stopped at the 1 yard line. Junior running back Seth Stonecypher would score his first career rushing touchdown on the next play, making the score 15-7.

The Warriors had another golden opportunity to score shortly afterwards. Marist would fumble the ensuing kick return and Jesse Moose would recover the fumble at the Marist 3 yard line. However, Marist would make an impressive goal line stand, stopping the Warriors from scoring on all four downs. On the War Eagles first play back on offense. Fullback Lincoln Parker scored a 98 yard rushing touchdown, killing all of White County’s momentum in a matter of seconds. To further deplete themselves, J, Ben Haynes would throw his first of two interceptions in the game. Marist would score another touchdown and a field goal in the remaining minutes of the half to go into halftime with a 32-7 lead.

Jaquez Williams after his fumble recovery.

To begin the 2nd half, Marist kicked another field goal to give themselves a 35-7 lead. After this, it was clear that they took their foot off the throttle, as they would put in their second unit on both offense and defense. Early on in this stint, the Warriors had trouble. After Jaquez Willimas recovered a fumble on defense, Haynes would throw his second interception to immediately give the ball back. 

The Warriors slowly began to crawl towards a comeback as the game progressed.

J. Ben Haynes after his 2nd interception

Things started to lookup for the Warriors afterwards. White County kept their first string units in for the game, and they began to look good. They forced Marist to punt on their next two defensive drives. Meanwhile, the Warrior offense began to gain momentum. Haynes was firing the ball downfield as Jesse Thomas and Cooper Turner were his leading targets. However, it was Reece Dockery that would catch a 17 yard receiving touchdown to bring the deficit to 22. On the Warriors next offensive drive, Haynes would rush in for an 8 yard TD, making the score 19-35 with less than six minutes remaining. . Both of these touchdowns were on fourth down. All game long, the Warriors were converting fourth downs, as they only punted the ball 4 times, all in the first half.

Marist was feeling the pressure of a Warrior comeback, and put in their first string offense maintain the lead and to seal the victory. They would run the clock out, and end the game with a 35-19 victory. 

What’s next for the Warriors?

Ultimately, the Warriors were always going to have a tough time tonight. Marist came into the game undefeated and are widely regarded as one of the top teams in the entire state of Georgia, and they proved why they are ranked so high tonight. Meanwhile, the Warriors have another tough road game next week as they travel to Flowery Branch to take on the Falcons before a bye week. To keep up with more White County Warrior news, follow Team FYN Sports on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Back to Top