Charlotte Christian takes advantage of Latin’s mistakes, wins big
By Tim Donelli
October 20, 2017 11:02 PM
The final stat sheet told a totally different story than the final score. The Charlotte Latin Hawks dominated the stats but lost on the scoreboard 34-0 to the Charlotte Christian Knights Friday night at Christian.
Five turnovers and a 96-yard opening kickoff return for a touchdown by Christian doomed Latin. The Hawks had 377 total yards to the Knights’ 301.
Chip Kasay, a freshman and the son of former Carolina Panthers kicker John Kasay, took the opening kickoff 96 yards to give Christian a 7-0 lead.
After a quick Hawks three-and-out, the Knights got the ball on Latin’s 39-yard line after a short punt. The ensuing eight-play drive culminated in a 1-yard touchdown run by Christian’s Justus Woods and the Knights led 14-0 just seven minutes into the contest.
Latin’s offense was led by senior running back Demarkes Stradford, who ran for 166 yards on 29 carries and was a handful for the Knights all night.
One area of concern in the win for Christian coach Jason Estep was penalties. The Knights were whistled for 12 infractions while the Hawks were penalized only four times. Eleven of Christian’s penalties were committed by the offense.
RECORDS: Charlotte Latin is 5-4, 0-2; Charlotte Christian is 7-1, 2-0.
Three who mattered
JT Killen: Christian’s linebacker picked up a Latin fumble and ran 25 yards for a touchdown. He also had a 10-yard sack.
Demarkes Stradford: Latin’s Harvard-bound running back carried the ball 29 times for 166 yards.
Chip Kasay: Christian’s freshman running back got the Knights on the board quickly with a 96-yard opening kickoff return for a touchdown, and had a 25-yard run from scrimmage.
Observations
▪ Latin had five turnovers, including four fumbles and two interceptions, while Christian did not turn the ball over.
▪ The Knights’ Obi Egbuna and Alex Nations each had an interception.
▪ After dropping its opening game of the season to Charlotte Catholic, the Knights have ripped off seven wins in a row.
Worth mentioning
▪ The Hawks had two long drives inside Christian’s 10-yard line but came up with zero points after being stopped on downs both times.
What’s next
Latin will host Charlotte Country Day next Friday in the Hawks’ regular-season finale. Christian will end its regular season at Providence Day next Friday. The winner will likely earn a No. 1 seed and enjoy home-field advantage throughout the NCISAA football playoffs.
