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Gallatin rushing attack breaks out in win over Hillwood




Spencer BriggsRICK MURRAY

Spencer BriggsRICK MURRAY

NASHVILLE – Gallatin’s mantra all season long has been to finish strong. On Friday night on the road against regional rival Hillwood, the Green Wave did just that.

The Green Wave (2-3, 2-0) stubbornly pounded away at the Hilltoppers’ defense with their rushing attack and it paid off in a big way en route to a 60-24 victory.

Gallatin used a carousel of running backs to finish with 235 total rushing yards and six rushing touchdowns in the victory. Spencer Briggs and Reggie Morris led the group, with Briggs serving as the workhorse back and Morris punishing the Hillwood defense at the goal line.

Briggs finished the game with a game-high 114 rushing yards and a touchdown on 23 carries while Morris added two short-gain rushing touchdowns and 38 yards on just five carries.

“The second half is our half; we want to finish strong every game and we did that tonight,” Briggs said.

While Gallatin leaned heavily on the ground game, Hillwood (1-4, 1-1) found success through the air in a wild, back-and-forth first half to push the Green Wave into an uncomfortable spot.

Early in the second quarter, after the Green Wave jumped out to a 10-0 lead, Hillwood quarterback Hale Page picked on the Gallatin secondary with an 80-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Eric Kinnard — the first of three touchdown receptions for Kinnard — to put the Hilltoppers on the board.

On their next drive, Page connected with receiver Kyle Carder for a 96-yard score to give Hillwood a 12-10 edge with 5:42 left in the first half. But that lead was very short-lived.

Gallatin kick returner Soloman Yarbrough stopped the bleeding seconds later with a 66-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to help the Green Wave retake the lead.

After the Hilltoppers wrestled the lead back with another touchdown pass from Page to Kinnard, Morris busted through the Hillwood defense on the ensuing drive for a 4-yard touchdown run with less than a minute left in the second quarter, giving the Green Wave a 25-18 lead at halftime.

Gallatin’s defense tightened up in the second half, forcing two turnovers — one fumble and then an interception — early in the third quarter that the offense turned into touchdowns give the Green Wave some much needed breathing room.

A fresh set of running backs rushed for three more touchdowns in the fourth quarter to turn what was a close game at halftime into a blowout victory.

After a tough loss to Mt. Juliet last week, the win was a much-needed boost for the Green Wave as they remain unbeaten in regional play and set their sights on making a playoff run.

“This was a good team victory for us,” Gallatin Head Coach Mark Williams said. “It’s a huge win for us and every one of those regional wins matters when you talk about playoffs, so we have to keep fighting for those.”

Gallatin returns home to face Wilson Central next Friday at 7 p.m.

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