The Tattnall County High School (TCHS) Battle Creek Warriors celebrated homecoming with a 35-0 win over the Windsor Forest Knights on Wednesday, September 28, 2022, in the Badlands.
The game was moved up from Friday to Wednesday when the threat of Hurricane Ian was expected to impact the Coastal Empire.
The Warriors received the opening kickoff. Isaac Brown gave Tattnall good field position with a return to the Warrior 32-yard line. Both teams then traded punts to start the game. A short punt by the Knights gave the Warriors excellent field position near midfield. A few plays later, David Hill scored for Tattnall County on a seven-yard run. Angelo Bonilla added the PAT, and Tattnall led, 7-0, with 3:11 minutes left in the first quarter.
After another punt by the Knights, the Warrior offense went back to work. Hill then scored his second touchdown on the night. This time, on a 38-yard scamper, Bonilla kicked the PAT, and the Warriors led, 14-0, at the end of the first period.
Bonilla then boomed the ensuing kickoff into the end zone, so the Knights started from their own 20-yard line. Another three and out again gave the Warriors great field position after a short punt. Two 15-yard penalties pushed the Warrior offense into the red zone. Aaron Proctor did the rest, as he took the hand-off and bullied his way 15 yards for the touchdown. Bonilla’s kick was true, and Tattnall County led, 21-0, with 10:30 minutes to go in the half.
The Knights had a very good kick return to midfield. Windsor Forest then got a great run down to the Tattnall 25-yard line, but that is as close as they would get. The Warrior defense turned back the threat and held on fourth-and-seven. Four plays later, Xavier Friendy followed his blockers in the trap play and turned on the jets for a 64-yard gallop to the end zone. Bonilla once again split the uprights, and Tattnall County took a commanding 28-0 halftime lead.
After forcing the Knights to punt on their first possession of the third quarter, the Warriors got the ball back on their own 45-yard line. After two tough runs by David Hill, Kell Lawson scored on a 23-yard run to cap the drive. Bonilla, who was a perfect 5-5 on PATS, was true to form, and Tattnall County led, 35-0, at the 9:28 minute mark of the third period.
On the Knights’ next position, they missed their best chance to put points on the board. Windsor Forest ran a perfect option play, and the quarterback made the pitch. Just as he was being tackled, the Knight running back caught the ball in stride and streaked towards the end zone; he was tackled by the Warriors on the second-yard line.
The Warrior defense, for the second week in a row, made a goal line stand. Two running plays up the middle on the first and second down did not gain a foot. On third down, Tattnall County was able to crash through and tackle the ball carrier for a three-yard loss to set up fourth-and-goal.
On fourth down, an errant pass by the Knights’ quarterback fell incomplete, and the Warrior defense did its job. That is as close as the Knights would get to scoring. Both teams traded field position the rest of the way, and Tattnall got a key Region win, 35-0. The Warriors improve to 3-3 on the season, and Windsor Forest fell to 1-5.
