Published: September 20, 2008 01:52 am      

Lions bounce back in big way

Boyd County sweeps past Pike Central

CANNONSBURG — Boyd County responded nicely from back-to-back defeats by rolling over Pike County Central 39-15 on homecoming Friday night.

Boyd County coach Lee Evans was not pleased with the Lions’ intensity in last week’s loss to Breathitt County and he let the team know about it this week in practice. The results were good for Evans and the Lions, who got back on track heading into crucial district play next week.

“They responded well,” Evans said. “They came out tonight ready to play...I could see it in their eyes we were going to be ready to roll.”

The Lions came out firing, scoring touchdowns on two of their first three possessions. Both touchdowns came courtesy of 3-yard runs by Kevin Stewart, who finished with 66 yards rushing on eight carries.

Boyd County quarterback Zac Wilson turned in another outstanding performance. He scored running, throwing and receiving while accounting for 271 all-purpose yards. Wilson ran for a 50-yard TD, threw a 30-yard scoring pass to Danny Waller and caught a 62-yard TD pass from Tyler Arthur.

When asked about the unusual triple play after the game, Wilson said “The quarterback coach had been saying I was going to do it...I guess I finally got to do it. It was pretty exciting.”

Pike County Central chose to go by air most of the night. Quarterback Aaron McGuire threw 53 passes, completing 24 for 269 yards and two touchdowns. Both of the touchdowns went to Michael Chandler. Boyd County was able to intercept McGuire twice.

Along with the improved intensity, Evans wanted more players to be involved with the offense besides Wilson. He got his wish there as well. Waller, a wide receiver, caught four passes for 94 yards and a touchdown and also returned a kickoff 95 yards for another TD.

Pike County Central trailed 13-0 before scoring its first touchdown in the second quarter to make it 13-7. The Lions answered with a little trickery. With Wilson lined up as wide receiver, Arthur threw a long bomb that he hauled in for a 62-yard touchdown. Wilson dragged the last defender into the end zone to make it 19-7.

Boyd County tacked on two more touchdowns in the third quarter, both long plays, to make it 32-7 after three quarters.

The Lions play Lawrence County in their district opener Friday at Lions Stadium. The Bulldogs fell to 0-4 with their third loss against a state-ranked opponent. Prestonsburg downed Lawrence County 19-12 last night.