BUCKHANNON, W.Va. – Lewis County has reclaimed the pick.
The Minutemen picked up a tight 14-6 win in a low-scoring game in Weston on Friday. Marshall Hobbs rolled to more than 100 yards on the ground and scored both touchdowns for Lewis County, which won despite compiling just 136 yards in total offense.
Turnovers were a big part of that. The Buccaneers coughed up the ball six times, losing five of those fumbles. That spoiled a good game for quarterback Ryan Strader in the air, where he completed 8-of-12 passes for 126 yards.
The rivalry game started slow for both sides, with plenty of punts but not much else in the first quarter. The Minutemen broke up the deadlock in the second quarter, completing a 11-play, 80-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown run by Hobbs to put the game at 7-0 in favor of Lewis County.
Perhaps Buckhannon’s most costly turnover came in the third quarter, when Jacob Loudin muffed a punt. Lewis County picked up the ball and took it to the 3-yard line. Hobbs would rumble the remaining distance for his second score that put the game at 14-0.
The Bucs narrowed the margin to a single possession late in the fourth quarter. With a minute showing on the clock, Strader completed a 22-yard pass to Loudin for Buckhannon-Upshur’s first score of the night. That capped a nine-play, 78-yard drive that ate three minutes off the clock.
The score stood at 14-6 after a missed extra point.
B-U attempted an onsides kick, but the Minutemen recovered and ran out the clock to reclaim ‘the pick’ and boost their record to 4-3. The Bucs, meanwhile, fell to 2-4 heading into an away game at University on Friday.
Buckhannon-Upshur finished the night with 140 yards rushing on 37 carries, while Strader when 8-for-12 for 126 yards passing, for 266 yards of total offense. That nearly doubled the 136 yards racked up by Lewis County, which had 117 on the ground and just 19 through the air.
Friday’s game at University will kick off at 7:30 p.m., and the Bucs will return home to host Brooke on Oct. 19.
