by Jamie Harris
This past Friday night, October 25, the Berkeley Springs Indians hosted the #1 ranked Frankfort Falcons at Morgan Field for their highly anticipated homecoming game. Pre-game festivities saw senior quarterback Aiden Cain and senior Natalie Andrews crowned homecoming king and queen, bringing excitement to the crowd before kickoff. Unfortunately, this would prove to be the high point of the evening for the Indians, as the Falcons showed up with an unstoppable force on both offense and defense, spoiling the homecoming spirit with a 52-7 rout.
Frankfort, undefeated and ranked as the top team in Class AA, wasted no time demonstrating why they’ ve claimed that #1 spot. It took only 16 seconds from the opening whistle for the Falcons to jump to an early lead, scoring on a 52-yard touch-down pass. The momentum only continued as Frankfort punched in three more touch-downs in the first quarter, putting up 28 points by the end of the opening frame. Aiden Cain threw an interception late in the quarter, which the Falcons returned 27 yards for a score, leaving the Indians reeling as the score ballooned to 28-0.
In the second quarter, the Falcons continued their dominance, scoring two additional touchdowns to stretch the lead to 42-0. Just before halftime, Frankfort converted a 34-yard field goal to make it 45-0, all but sealing their victory before the break.
The third quarter was scoreless, offering a brief respite for the Indians. How- ever, Frankfort added one final touchdown early in the fourth quarter on a 1-yard run, pushing their lead to a staggering 52-0.
With just over four minutes left to play, Berkeley Springs finally found the end zone and managed to avoid the shutout. Cain connected with senior Kyle Moore on a 28- yard touchdown pass, giving the home crowd something to cheer about in the final moments. DJ Hinkle’ s extra point was good, bringing the final score to 52-7.
Aiden Cain was 12/17 passing, 216 yards, one touchdown pass and 96 yards rushing. Kyle Moore had 7 receptions, 111 yards and Jake Aulabaugh had 3 receptions, 64 yards and 1 touch-down reception.
While game stats were unavailable, the Indians (2-6) will look to regroup as they travel to Flatwoods, to face the Braxton County Eagles (1-7) on Saturday, November 2. Kickoff for this game is scheduled for 2 p.m.