By Brian Beck
For the Daily Reporter
CHARLOTTESVILLE — The high-flying Eastern Hancock football team showed just how dominant it can be with a first-half offensive explosion against rival Knightstown Friday.
In the annual rivalry game between the schools, the host Royals put up 40 points in the first two quarters as sophomore quarterback Houston Swan threw for 215 yards and three touchdowns.
Eastern Hancock, after giving up over 200 yards rushing in the first half, held Knightstown in check the rest of the way in a 46-27 victory. With the win, the Royals reclaimed the coveted Plow Share & Anvil trophy that goes to the winner of the annual contest.
“We really wanted that anvil back in our trophy case,” Swan said. “Our offensive line blocked great up front and our receivers ran good routes and made plays after they caught the ball.”
The scoring onslaught started after senior Tyler Vandervliet recovered a fumble on the Knightstown 45-yard line. After a couple of big pass plays to Cayden Sotelo, Swan found J.P. Fuchs for the score.
Sotelo was a popular target in the first half, snaring four catches for 96 yards, including a 55-yard scoring strike that put the Royals up 16-7.
Knightstown stayed close on the legs of senior running back Nick Walsh, who ran for 188 yards and three touchdowns in the first half alone.
“(Walsh) is a terrific runner – we knew it was going to be a battle,” Eastern Hancock coach Doug Armstrong said. “Playing a guy like that with a line like that in front of him will make us better for future games.”
The Royals were able to counter the Knightstown rushing attack by adding touchdowns on the ground from Victor Olivo and Zach Arnold. A perfectly thrown ball from Swan to Cole Rainbolt finished the first half scoring, giving Eastern Hancock what proved to be an insurmountable 40-21 lead.
“Knightstown is a good team – they’re senior-dominated,” Armstrong said. “We’re more underclassmen-dominated. We met the challenge tonight and had some guys play really well. We can be very explosive at times on offense. Defensively, we have to keep playing our tails off and get better. We really have to fight.”
After surrendering big rushing numbers in the first half, the Royals gave up only 28 yards to Walsh over the final two quarters.
Eastern Hancock’s lone touchdown of the second half was scored by Olivo and was set up by a couple nice catches by sophomore Zach Arnold. Swan finished the game 20-for-38 for 309 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions.
The Royals moved to 4-1 on the season while Knightstown dropped to 3-2.
