WALNUT GROVE, Ga. – The Eagles soared over the Warriors with ease, capturing a 34-6 win on the road. With the victory, Eastside improved to 4-3 on the season and 2-1 in region play.
Last week Eastside earned a 30-14 win against Madison County, ending their losing streak and improving to 1-1 in region and 3-3 on the season. The Walnut Grove matchup looked to be a solid litmus test for the rest of the season since the Warriors were a perfect 5-0.
Walnut Grove started the game with the ball and totaled just 9.5 yards of offense on the opening drive. An incomplete pass on fourth down resulted in outstanding field position for the Eagles.
The Eagles got up early and were firing on all cylinders heading into the second defensive possession, where they forced a three-and-out. The offense returned to the field just 53 seconds after scoring their first touchdown thanks to a wide open Chase Jordan in the endzone.
Quarterback Payton Shaw delivered a second touchdown pass in the first quarter with 7:22 still on the clock when wide receiver Jace Taylor beat his man for a 43-yard score.
“He [Shaw] did a great job tonight, he took what the defense gave him,” said Head Coach Jay Cawthon.
Kicker Jonathan Gomez nailed a 37-yard field goal and extended the lead to three scores with still 1:16 left in the first quarter.
Eastside did not take its foot off the gas in the second quarter, blocking a punt and scoring off another Shaw-Jordan deep bomb. The score was 24-0 with 10:54 to play in the first half.
Just moments later, the Eastside defense picked off the Warriors offense and it looked like the difference might extend to 30 or more. Unfortunately for the Eagles, the ensuing possession was the first of the game to not result in some form of points.
As the first half winded down, the Eagles found one more score to make it 27-0 heading into halftime. Gomez was able to find a friendly bounce from 46 yards off the right upright. He was perfect on both field goals and extra points in the first half.
The first real blemish on the performance Eastside put together was in the second half on the opening kickoff. Walnut Grove forced a fumble and recovered it just outside of the red zone.
Fortunately for the Eagles, they were able to force a field goal, which was missed despite the favorable field position.
Halfway through the third quarter, Gomez barely missed a field goal attempt from the left hash, 45 yards deep. That would’ve been the first score of the second half, the second proving much less eventful than the first.
Nevertheless, the Eastside defense stayed on top of the Warriors offense, forcing a fumble on an option run and recovering it on the Warriors 15-yard-line.
Running back Myles Mims promptly laid a linebacker out on the 4-yard-line en route to a touchdown run to put the Eagles up comfortably at 34-0.
Walnut Grove finally found a way into the board with a two-yard touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter. The Warriors went for two, but were unsuccessful.
The rest of the game went quickly and smoothly, and the final score was 34-6.
“The defense was awesome tonight,” Cawthon said. “Every man executed and did their job.”
The Eagles defense had one of their two best performances of the season, conceding only six points.
Eastside played a great game against Walnut Grove, but next up will likely be the test of the season, North Oconee. The good news for the Eagles is that they’ll be at home. The bad news is te defending 4A state champion is undefeated, averaging 43.5 points per game (not counting their home contest against Madison County). They have also yet to give up more than seven points in a game.
“We had a really good game against them last year,” Cawthon said. “But I’m more focused on us. We’ve gotta have a great week of preparation.”
