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Hawks shut out Station Camp, get needed help to clinch 5-5A crown in first year of playoff eligibility
MT. JULIET – When asked how the Green Hill offense was able to overcome Station Camp’s defense en route to their 48-0 region clinching victory over the visiting Bison, Hawk receiver Kaleb Carver didn’t hesitate.
“See that man over there?” Carver said, pointing across the field to an imposing figure wearing number 77 in green. “That man is a ‘dog.’ Yes sir, Tyson King. (He) opened up holes that caused touchdowns the whole game. Without the whole O-line and him, nothing. They tore (Station Camp’s) line up.”
Green Hill (8-1 overall, 5-0 Region 5-5A) put together a stunning offensive performance that saw the Hawks rack up 509 yards of total offense that put them atop the region. Mt. Juliet’s 13-7 loss to Hillsboro later in the evening guaranteed the Hawks their first-ever region title in their first year of playoff eligibility.
“By far one of the best games our offensive line has played,” Green Hill quarterback Cade Mahoney said. “All of them are stellar people at blocking, opening up holes and just getting our running backs where they need to go, Brax (Lamberth) hitting holes, me with time in the pocket to deliver the ball, they executed great.”
Green Hill head coach Josh Crouch was also complimentary of his line.
“Preparation-wise, we knew we were going to have to be able to beat them in a phone box and be physical,” Crouch said. “That offensive line, those five guys that come back all the time and are still starters, they’re the heart and soul of our offense. Number 17 (Carver) benefits off of number 10 (Mahoney) playing well. But number 10 benefits off those front five.”
The Hawk offense asserted itself early as Braxton Lamberth took off for 50 yards on Green Hill’s third play from scrimmage. The play set up a 22-yard field goal by Sam Crickmar that gave Green Hill a lead they did not relinquish.
Green Hill extended their lead on the next drive when Niko Duffie found a seam off the right side and ran 30 yards to the end zone for a 10-0 lead.
The Bison moved the ball on the next two drives, but a fumble in Hawk territory along with a turnover on downs turned them away as the Green Hill defense bent but did not break early. As the game went on, Station Camp, (7-2, 4-1), found it more difficult to run as Green Hill held the Bison to 90 yards rushing and only 130 total yards. They also sacked Parker Brown four times and turned the Bison over three times.
“I feel like we played well,” Crouch said. “We had some things, we put in a couple of new fronts this week based on what they did offensively and our kids came in and soaked it right in. We had the intensity of us thinking we have the opportunity of winning a region championship, of having a home playoff game, things that no one dreamed of before this school, and they accomplished it.”
“Our defense played stellar the whole night,” Mahoney said. “(They) knocked them down and kept them locked pretty much all night.”
Carver took a screen pass for 42 of his 147 total receiving yards down the left sideline to put Green Hill up 17-0, the first of three Carver scores in the contest.
Crickmar added a 28-yard field goal as the first half expired to give the Hawks a 20-0 lead at the break.
“We just really didn’t show up,” Station Camp head coach Brent Alexander said. “We kind of lost our identity at some point and time in the last couple of weeks and we’ve been here before, and we have to regroup and get back in the correct state of mind.
“We’ve been beaten up the last couple of weeks and we’ve known it and we’ve tried to make some accommodations. But I don’t think that was the decider tonight. We just didn’t execute in any phase of the game.”
Any chance at a rally was quickly doused on Green Hill’s first possession of the second half as Carver took a reverse 76 yards to the end zone on first-and-20 and put the Hawks up 27-0.
A 12-yard Lamberth touchdown run, followed by a 96-yard Mahoney-to-Carver strike got the running clock moving early in the fourth quarter. Mahoney, who finished with 12 completions on 16 attempts for 224 yards, capped the scoring with an 18-yard pass to Sean Aldridge for the 48-0 final.
Crouch, still dripping wet from the water bath his players had provided him earlier, took in the excitement around him. “I thought we turned out well tonight,” Crouch said, “I thought Green Hill was on display for what we’re doing and who we are. I thought our guys really exemplified what we want to be as a program. I’m proud of our guys, that’s the first shutout in school history, we’ve got great coaching and great players.”
GREEN HILL 48, STATION CAMP 0
| Station Camp (7-2 overall, 4-1 5-5A), Green Hill (8-1, 5-0) | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final |
| Station Camp | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Green Hill | 10 | 10 | 14 | 14 | 48 |
SCORING SUMMARY
1st Quarter
G – Sam Crickmar 22 field goal, 9:32.
G – Niko Duffie 30 run, 5:38. Crickmar kick.
2nd Quarter
G – Kaleb Carver 42 pass from Cade Mahoney, 3:51. Crickmar kick.
G – Crickmar 28 field goal, 0:00.
3rd Quarter
G – Carver 76 run, 10:13. Crickmar kick.
G – Braxton Lamberth 12 run, 1:43. Crickmar kick.
4th Quarter
G – Carver 96 pass from Mahoney, 10:10. Crickmar kick.
G – Sean Aldridge 18 pass from Mahoney, 9:00. Crickmar kick.
INDIVIDUAL STATS
Rushing
Station Camp: Luke Dickens 12-63, Robert Bogus 6-29, Cooper Green 5-16, Parker Brown 3-8.
Green Hill: Braxton Lamberth 19-138, Kaleb Carver 1-76, Niko Duffie 2-40, Cade Mahoney 3-14, Jake Thompson 1-14, Lamar Wade 2-11, Ethan Choate 1-2, Thatcher Davis 1-(-8).
Passing
Station Camp: Parker Brown 6-18-0 40.
Green Hill: Cade Mahoney 12-16-0 224.
Receiving
Station Camp: Jackson Pomeroy 3-28, Blake Lancaster 1-5, Conner Kemp 1-4, Ashton Moore 1-3.
Green Hill: Carver 5-147, Sean Aldridge 4-65, Fredwon Dixon 1-8, Braiden Staten 1-4, Lamberth 1-0.
