VAN – Wet, rainy, muddy conditions hampered both teams Friday night as Class A No. 10 Mount View scored 12 third quarter points for a 12-8 victory over 10th-ranked Van at Herschel Jarrell Field.
Both teams entered the contest ranked 10th in the West Virginia Secondary Schools Activities Commission Class A ratings.
Van was done in by five turnovers killing two promising first half drives that saw the Bulldogs turn the ball over inside the Mount View 20.
“We just killed ourself with mistakes,” Agosti said. “The first two drives of the game we drive inside their 20, but put the ball on the ground.”
Van coach Mark Agosti said both teams were effected by the weather.
“We both had to play in it,” Agosti said. “The weather probably contributed to our five turnovers and probably contributed to their lack of passing.”
Coming into the game, Agosti was worried about the speed of the Golden Knights, but felt his team did a good job of limiting the big plays. One player Agosti was worried about was senior running back Thomas Bell, who rushed for 135 yards on 11 carries Tuesday night against Man.
“We did a good job on their run game,” Agosti said. “I was about about number 12 (Bell) going into the game after watching him last week, but he never got going.”
Even the rain and the mud wasn’t enough to slow down the speedy Knights.
“They are fast even on a muddy field,” Agosti said. “They get loose and they are fast. That was the difference.”
Brady Green carried the ball 22 times for 98 yards while Byron Stewart rushed 12 times for 89 yards and one touchdown. Guner Flores carried the ball 10 times for 42 yards and a two-point conversion. Shaun Booth had five carries for 15 yards.
Flores was 1-of-3 passing for 18 yards and two interceptions. His lone completion was to Booth.
Van finished with 262 yards of total offense, including 244 yards on the ground against a Mount View that stacked nine men in the box.
“Our offensive line played very well, played hard and I am proud of their effort,” Agosti said.
Ridge Flores had 17 tackles on defense for the Bulldogs while Isiah Perdue had 12 tackles, Guner Flores had eight stops and Weston Gunnoe, Jacob Reed, and Stewart had six tackles each.
Nicholas Chambers and Reed recovered a fumble and Guner Flores, Ridge Flores and Perdue each had a quarterback sack.
Mount View (5-1) will host Tug Valley Friday night while Van (3-2) will host county rival Sherman.
“Sherman is a good team and they are well coached,” Agosti said. “It’s going to be tough one and it’s a rivalry game that kids on both teams get excited for.”
