For the Daily Reporter
CHARLOTTESVILLE — For the Eastern Hancock Royals, things are definitely pointing in the right direction. Another explosive display on Friday night produced a 48-29 victory over Monroe Central.
In a conference match-up of two ranked teams, both came out strong on both sides of the ball at the start. The Royals received the opening kickoff and went right down the field for a touchdown, with quarterback Houston Swan going five-for-five on the drive and scoring the two-point conversion himself.
Following an opening-drive three-and-out, the Bears tied the game on a drive in which they converted a fourth down and scored on third-and-10 from the 25-yard-line on a catch by Sam Feola.
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The first five minutes of the second quarter were — to put it simply — a bit wild. It all started when Swan’s screen pass was intercepted by defensive tackle Logan Swallow and returned for a touchdown to put the Bears up, 14-8. The lead would not last long. On the ensuing kickoff, J.P. Fuchs returned the kick 75 yards to tie the game at 14. Following the kickoff return, the teams again traded turnovers.
It was at this point that the Royals offense settled in to put distance between the two teams. Eastern Hancock was able to score two touchdowns before halftime following a long drive to take the lead and a short drive right before halftime after recovering a pooched kickoff.
Swan and his receivers put the game out of reach early in the third quarter with three quick touchdowns. At that point, the score was 48-14, and the rest of the game was academic. Swan would finish the game 17-26 for 280 yards and four touchdown passes. Sophomore Cole Rainbolt lead the receiving corps with five catches for 130 yards and two touchdowns, while Landon O’Neal had seven catches for 94 yards.
“Houston is a great kid and has really improved on knowing where his receivers are going to be,” Royals coach Doug Armstrong said afterwards. “But really, this whole unit has improved. The receivers are really making great plays and helping out their quarterback.”
The win improves the Royals’ record to 6-1, and their tough schedule has put them in position to finish out the year strongly with two challenging games: At Shenandoah and at Lapel.
“We’ve got two tough games left on the road, and you never know what is going to happen with a sectional draw,” Armstrong said. “But, the song remains the same: You have to get better, and we are going to get working at that starting Monday morning.”
The Royals travel to Shenandoah next week for a 7 p.m. kickoff. The winner will be crowned Mid-East Conference Champions.
No. 12 Eastern Hancock 48, No. 9 Monroe Central 29
MC (4-3, 1-1 MEC); 8;6;0;15; — ;29
EH (6-1, 2-0 MEC); 8;18;22;0; — ;48
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7 p.m., Eastern Hancock at Shenandoah
7:30 p.m., Delta at Greenfield-Central
7:30 p.m., Mt. Vernon at Shelbyville
7:30 p.m, New Castle at New Palestine
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