Tiger Middle School teams sweep Houston

Fellow running back Kentley LaJoie had a great game as well with a long touchdown run to put Salem up two scores. A special moment in the game was when Running back Eli Gray converted on a two-point conversion with a run up the middle.

The offensive line of Cooper Case, Brayden Halinar, Brody Walker, Wesley Smith, Ryder Duncan, Trenton Taysom, Brayden Hughes and Maddix Lough controlled the game in this game with great blocks up front. On defense the Tigers were very aggressive not allowing much yardage the entire game. The defensive line of Brayden Hughes, Maddix Lough, Kordel Hayes and Cameron Utnage made play after play on defense. Safety Blake Manthey made an incredible play on the ball jumping in front of the wide receiver to get the interception to seal the game. This is Salem’s third shutout on the season. Salem’s seventh-grade is 4-0-1 on the season and wraps up the season this week at West Plains Thursday, Oct. 16.

Eighth-Grade

The Salem eighth-grade team dominated from the opening kick, winning 46-0 against Houston.

Running back Weston Tackett had an amazing game against the Tigers with three touchdowns in the game. Tackett had two touchdowns on offense and had an interception returned back for a score to complete the trifecta. Teammate Running back David Brooks, Jr. had an excellent game as well with three touchdowns of his own for Salem. Brooks, Jr had some very athletic runs where he made moves untouched through the Houston Tiger defense. The Houston Tigers were no match for this duo in the backfield. Fullback Eli Decker and quarterback Thomas Lewis had great games and opened the offense up with their inside runs and runs around the edge.

On defense Bryce Coates played like a man possessed. He had two sacks and one was a forced fumble which of course he also recovered. The pressure from our defensive line was really great to see and caused the Houston Tigers fits all night. Safety Ben Hobson capitalized on that pressure with an interception which he took back for a touchdown. The ball popped up in the air and Hobson snatched it and ran with it. Linebackers Braxton Hopkins, Weston Tackett and Eli Decker controlled the middle of the field for Salem and made several tackles and tackles for loss. I was proud of our team for the way we came out and played from the first snap. This is Salem’s third shutout on the season. Salem has outscored our opponents 214-34 this year. The Salem eighth-grades are 5-0 on the season and will finish up their middle school season this week at West Plains.