BY BRITTNI MCCOY
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
PIKEVILLE — Special teams blunders cost Martin County in a Class 2A district matchup Thursday as Shelby Valley ended the Cardinals’ three-game win streak 47-34.
Martin County dropped to 4-3 while Shelby Valley improved to 5-2.
The Cards came out with guns blazing and were looking to run the Wildcats off Hobart Clay Johnson Field. Junior Madden Miller lined up to the left and broke right after the snap. Quarterback Weston Jude handed it off and Miller sprinted down the right sideline for an 18-yard touchdown run to put Martin County in front.
On the next Cardinal drive, Jude ran the same play and Miller ran in for a 4-yard TD.
The Wildcats were on the Cardinal 33-yard line when Ja Quan Rufus intercepted a pass and ran it down to the 11-yard line to put the Cards in scoring position.
On second-and-8, Jude faked a handoff and ran the QB keeper for a 9-yard TD to put the Cards up 21-0 at the end of the first quarter.
Shelby Valley scored on the next possession with 9:04 remaining in the half.
The Wildcats kicked off and the ball bounced off a Cardinal player. Valley recovered the onside kick and scored a TD a few plays later.
With 6:24 remaining and down 14-21, Shelby Valley recovered yet another onside kick after bouncing off a Martin County player.
The mistake led to another Wildcat TD to knot the game at 21-21 going into the locker room.
Valley came out of the half with another quick score.
Rufus had a big run for 20 yards to continue his strong performance.
On third-and-5, Miller received the handoff and fired straight through the middle to hit paydirt from 30 yards out for his third TD.
The try was no good and the Cards were down 28-27.
After a penalty and a loss of yards on a Cardinal tackle, Shelby Valley was looking at third-and-23. The Wildcats converted and put another on the board to extend the lead to 34-27.
Rufus was unstoppable and ran another on the ground to move the Cards from the 50 to the 28-yard line.
He ran again on the next play for a 5-yard gain.
Facing a fourth-and-1, Miller leaped through multiple defenders for the first down.
Rufus took off again, got hit at the 17 and bullied his way for another 6 yards to the 11-yard line to end the third quarter.
The Cards took a walk to the other end of the field.
Brock Messer hit the ground for a first down and put the Cards at the 1-yard line.
Miller strong-armed his way through the line and added another TD for good measure. The point-after tied the game at 34.
Valley scored two more TDs. With the Cards hanging on, Valley punched another onside kick into a Cardinal player and recovered.
“Jay” Rufus had 79 yards on 10 carries.
“The boys played as hard as we could. We knew it was going to be a competitive game, but they wanted it more than us,” Rufus said. “We’ve got to play more aggressively. Our mistakes were a lack of discipline and maybe too big for the moment. But for the most part, the boys played and did what we were supposed to do.”
Rufus transferred in this season and is proving he’s a threat.
“It’s a different ballgame down here, and I really like playing with these guys,” he said.
Miller ended with 104 yards and 4 TDs.
“We played amazing; the line blocked perfectly for us. It was a battle, and we didn’t come out on top this time. But I believe we will make a playoff run and see them again – and it’ll be a different story,” Miller said.
“I’m not used to playing wing; I’m fullback usually,” added Miller. “I was loving how the line was blocking. Jay [Rufus] out of the backfield at fullback, was blocking perfectly. Everyone was doing their job on offense. They figured out our scheme. We will definitely work on it and come out better than before.”
Jude finished the game with 13 yards and a TD.
Messer had 45 yards on 14 carries for the evening.
Maddox Johnson was good on two point-after attempts.
The Cards host district rival West Carter (1-6) Friday at 7:30 p.m.
KHSAA Class 2A stat leaders
Last week, Martin County was ranked No. 1 in the state in Class 2A in team rushing, averaging 338 per game for 2,030 total rushing yards in six games.
Martin County was in the No. 5 spot in team interceptions with 1.3 per game for eight total.
The squad was No. 9 in team scoring with 34.2 points per game for 205 total points in six games.
Martin County ranked No. 10 in team defense, allowing 17.5 points per game for 105 total.
The Cardinals also were No. 10 in team scoring margin, averaging 16.7 margin points per game for a total of 100 margin points in six games. They scored 205 points and allowed 105 points.
In team rushing defense, the Cardinals were in the No. 10 spot with 93 per game and 560 total.
The team was 17th in sacks with 1.2 per game for seven total. The Cards were also 17th in team fumbles with 0.7 per game, four forced fumbles and four fumbles recovered.
Miller sat in the No. 3 spot in defensive fumbles, forcing three in six games.
Dawson Mills was No. 5 in rushing, averaging 130 per game for 783 total yards. Brock Messer was No. 6 with 121 per game for 726 total yards.
Messer was No. 5 in scoring with 12 points per game for 72 total points. Dawson Mills was 19th with 8.3 points per game for 50 total.
Damian Cheek was No. 12 in interceptions with three interceptions and 80 return net yards in six games.
Bryston Wells was 25th in defensive sacks with three in six games while Miller was 37th with two in six games.
Weston Jude was ranked No. 32 in passing with 30 per game. He completed 11 of 31 (35.5%) for 177 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions.
Rankings for this week were unknown at press time Tuesday as the KHSAA had not yet received Thursday’s game stats for Martin County.
The Cards will host district rival West Carter (1-6) at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
