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The Hale County Wildcats, (5-1) defeated the Sulligent Blue Devils (1-5) by a score of 34-7 on Homecoming night.

With the stands packed to the brim and the lights shining bright, Hale County put on a show for their home crowd. They'd lost the last few homecomings and definitely didn’t want to watch another slip away.

The Blue Devils got the ball to start the game and chewed 10 minutes of the opening quarter by running the ball 15 times and only passing it twice. Starting running back Neil Strickland had over 50 yards rushing, but the Wildcat defense came up big and stopped them in the red zone.

"We were not as physical in the beginning, on either side, but played more physical as the game went on. We definitely need to be more focused from the beginning and be more consistent on both sides of the ball," said Hale County head coach Mark Hastings.

The Wildcat offense had a 55-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Matthew Swartz to wide receiver Jamarion Ryan’s on the team's opening possession, which was a common theme for the night. The dynamic duo had a hat trick on the night and accounted for three of Hale County’s four touchdowns.

Hastings had a lot of good things to say about his rocket arm quarterback and stud wide receiver.

"Ryan’s just went up and got the ball a couple of times but Matt put the ball right on the money a couple of times too. They both have gotten better every week. Matt has improved his decision-making a great deal; he always had the arm," Hastings said.

Hale County will face the Monroe Tigers (2-2) on the road next week, and Sulligent will host the Winston County Hornets (3-3).

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