By By Chandler Myers
An early field goal by Northview Chiefs place kicker Brad Lowery sealed a 10-7 win over the Sneads Pirates Friday night in Bratt, Fla.
The Chiefs (6-2, 5-2) play a defensive game against the district foe Sneads Pirates (4-3) only allowing them 13 plays in the second half and a total of 55 yards.
Offensively, the Chiefs picked up 224 yards of offense with 220 of those yards coming on the ground.
Chiefs Head Coach Sid Wheatley said the win was special for 21 players who played their final game on their home field.
The battle started rough for the Chiefs who fumbled the opening kick off giving the ball up to the Pirates.
After holding the Pirates to a three-and-out, the Chiefs got the ball back, but fumbled a handoff on their first offensive possession that gave Sneads prime field position.
With the turnover, the Pirates took advantage eating the clock and marched down the field to take a 7-0 lead with a touchdown on the ground.
It seemed like deja vu as the Chiefs fumbled another kick off this time with freshman La’Mikal Kyles mishandling the ball giving it right back to the Chiefs.
The Chiefs defense stiffened though and got the ball back as they forced the Pirates to punt the ball.
Wheatley said his defense did a great job of keepingi the Pirates in check.
Northview pushed the ball down the field with junior running back Dustin Yuhasz busting a 40-yard dash to the end zone to tie the game at seven.
Yuhasz led the Chiefs with eight carries for 68 yards and a touchdown. Kadaris Grice and La’Mikal Kyles each had 13 carries with Grice picking up 55 yards and Kyles gaining 58.
In the second quarter, the teams went back-and-forth exchanging possessions.
The Chiefs defense got a present on the Pirates second possession of the quarter as their quarterback and running back collided in the backfield causing a fumble.
The Chiefs took advantage of their luck and pushed the ball down the field before stalling, which set up a field goal.
With the wind blowing at him, senior place kicker Brad Lowery hit a 35-yard field goal that gave the Chiefs the only lead they would need for the rest of the game.
In the second half it was all about clock management as the Chiefs controlled the ball and killed time to secure their sixth win of the season with a10-7 win over the Pirates.
Wheatley said it was a great team win with a lot of drive from his players.
Next week, the Chiefs visit Vernon High School. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.