Knights Pick Up Second Win of the 2025 Season

In the Saturday night game with Tri-County the Knights’ defense held the Titans scoreless. Here several ALAH defenders including Elijah VanSyoc (0), Payton Warrior (5), Trey Strode (20) and others tackle a Titan runner. Photos by Sally McCarthy

By Sally McCarthy

The Arthur Lovington Atwood Hammond Knights football team played the Tri-County Titans on Saturday, September 6. The game got off to a great start when senior kick returner Easton Frederick returned the opening kickoff 92 yards for a touchdown. The point after kick was no good and the Knights led 6-0 just 17 seconds into the game.

The Knights had seven offensive series in the game, four in the first half and three in the second. They scored on every one of those possessions.

The first score from scrimmage was an 8 yard run by Marcus Otto from the quarterback position. Brayden Leech ran in the two point conversion to extend the Knights’ lead to 14-0 with 1:01 left in the first quarter.

A pass from Otto to Elijah VanSyoc of 16 yards and an EP kick by Martinez put ALAH up with 8:32 remaining in the half.

The red, black and gold scored one more time before the half ended on a 5 yard run by quarterback Cruz Hale and another Martinez kick gave the visiting Knights a 28-0 halftime.

The second half was a repeat of the first with ALAH having the ball three times and scoring on each series. The first score was an 18 yard pass from Cruz Hale to Cash Hale. The EP kick was not good and the lead was 34-0. The next Knight touchdown was on a 25 yard run by Payton Warrior. Martinez’s kick was good making the score 41-0 with 9:48 left in the game. The last points by ALAH were scored on a 54 yard td run by Brennon Hutson. Senior Edik Arwine ran in the two point conversion to make the final score 49-0.

The Titans had 8 series in the game and either turned the ball over on downs, were forced to punt, or ran out of time.

Next up for the Knights’ football team is a home game with the Cumberland Pirates on Friday, September 12. Both teams come into the contest with 2-0 records. Come out and cheer on the Knights in the Lincoln Prairie Conference battle. Game time is 7 p.m.

OFFENSIVE STATS
Rushing – Payton Warrior, 6 for 77 & 2 TD; Brennon Hutson, 4 for 63 & 1 TD; Easton Frederick, 4 for 46; Trey Strode, 2 for 39; Brayden Leech, 4 for 38; Marcus Otto, 2 for 7 & 1 TD; Cruz Hale, 2 for -13
Passing – Marcus Otto, 2 for 2, 40, 1 TD; Cruz Hale, 2 for 3, 37, 1 TD
Receiving – Cash Hale, 2 for 42 & 1 TD; Jayden Parsons, 1 for 19; Elijah Van Scyoc, 1 for 16 & 1 TD

DEFENSIVE STATS
Tackles – Easton Frederick, 8; Elijah Van Scyoc, 8; Payton Warrior, 7; Brennon Hutson, 6; Kaden Herschberger, 5; Josh Taylor, 5; August Burton, 5; Brayden Leech, 4; Jayden Parsons, 3; Kamden Morfey, 3; Donovan Vanausdoll, 3; Owen Hilton, 3; Trey Strode, 2; Brayan Martinez, 2; Mason Thomas, 2; Jackson Lebeter, 2; Cash Hale, 2; Blayne Louden, 2; Marcus Otto, 1; Hayden Ely, 1; Nick Hubster, 1; Ty Zander, 1; Dylan Ingersoll, 1; Jonah Burket, 1; Tristan Keagle, 1; Daylon Doggett, 1
Tackles for Loss – Kaden Herschberger, 2; Easton Frederick, Elijah Van Scyoc, Brayden Leech, Brayan Martinez, Trey Strode, Owen Hilton, Josh Taylor, Blayne Louden, 1
Sacks – Kamden Morfey, 1; Edik Arwine, 1
Pass Break-Ups – Payton Warrior, 1; Cash Hale, 1

SPECIAL TEAMS STATS
PATs – Brayan Martinez, 3 of 5
Kick-Offs – Brayan Martinez, 7 for 237; Alex Olivero, 1 for 28
Kick-Off Returns – Easton Frederick, 1 for 92 & 1 TD
Punt Returns – Marcus Otto, 1 for 2