Kenyata Carbon reached the end zone five times to lead an overall dominant night for the offense, special teams had some big plays, and the defense shook a slow start as the Owensboro Red Devils overpowered Apollo for a 62-18 rout at Rash Stadium Friday night.
“I think in particular we didn’t play very well on defense in the first half,” OHS head coach Jay Fallin said. “… Aside from an interception, I don’t think we could have played much better offensively. We were pretty efficient offensively. Defensively we have to start much better than that.”
Carbon was rolling out of the gate, taking a short pass 12 yards for an easy score on Owensboro’s first possession.
Most of Carbon’s damage came in the ground game, where he finished the night with 204 rushing yards on 17 carries. He was humble about his performance after the game.
“I feel like I did OK. I think there’s still a lot that I need to work on,” he said. “A couple of (the big gains), I just hit the right holes and was taking the right steps before I made my cut.”
After OHS stopped Apollo quickly again, Carbon had a long punt return to set OHS up at the Apollo 18-yard line. He then reached the end zone again but the play was called back due to an offensive penalty.
On the next play quarterback Kasey Boone hit Khalil Rogers in stride in the end zone for a 28-yard touchdown toss, and the Red Devils were up 14-0 less than 9 minutes into the game.
That’s when Apollo’s offense found some momentum that lasted well into the second quarter. Quarterback Christian Combs was finding holes in the OHS defense, and the Eagles receivers were able to turn those catches into big gains.
AHS got on the board with a 7-yard pass to Carter Contratto, but the extra point was blocked and the OHS lead remained 14-6 through the end of the first quarter.
Carbon came up big to start the second by converting a 4th-and-1 near midfield. On the next play, Rogers caught a screen pass then flew past the defense for a 38-yard score, though the extra point was blocked.
Much of the second quarter featured big plays by both teams.
Apollo’s Bryson Velotta made a toe-tapping catch in the corner of the end zone, but a missed extra point left the Eagles trailing 20-12 with 10:40 until halftime.
OHS was rolling down the field on the next possession, but Boone zipped a pass straight into the hands of an Eagle defender. However, Apollo went 3-and-out to give it back to the Red Devils at midfield.
On the first play of the OHS drive, Carbon split the defense and carried the ball 51 yards for he second score.
Apollo answered quickly. On their first play, Donte Dixon took the handoff and rolled right, beating everyone up the sideline for a 74-yard touchdown run. The 2-point conversion attempt failed, leaving the Eagles trailing 27-18 with 5:50 left in the half.
OHS freshman Evan Hampton returned the ensuing kickoff 90 yards to set up the Red Devils on the 2-yard line, and Carbon lunged in one play later. A few minutes later, Carbon broke off a 39-yard run then carried it again on the next play, when he dove across the goal line for his fourth score.
OHS was in full control at that point, carrying a 41-18 lead into the half.
Fallin gave credit to the Eagles and their head coach John Edge for keeping things close for a while.
“He had his guys ready to go and had a great game plan,” Fallin said. “He found some things that we weren’t prepared to defend, and he exploited those and took advantage of them.”
On their first possession of the third quarter, Carbon capped off the drive by shaking one defender and splitting two more on the way to a 15-yard touchdown.
OHS then forced a fumble, and Sahvon Hines scooped up the ball and returned it 17 yards for a touchdown. OHS went up 55-18 with 10:24 to play in the third quarter, starting a running clock. The final score came when Boone pitched it right to Deion Winstead, who dove across the line for a 17-yard score.
Fallin said the scoreboard reflects a dominant game all around, but noted there’s still plenty of room for improvement. He said they’ve played two very different games, as they lost 28-14 in a tight battle with one of the state’s top teams in St. Xavier.
“It’s funny how it ebbs and flows because last week against St. X, we sort of felt like defense was our calling card and we were going to have to grow up a little offensively as we went,” Fallin said. “Tonight it felt like the offense carried the day, and special teams (played well too).”
Owensboro (1-1) will remain home next week for another city-county game, this time again Daviess County. The Panthers improved to 2-0 after pulling away late for a 32-13 win over Owensboro Catholic.
The Eagles (0-2) will hit the road again to take on Central Hardin (2-0), who beat DeSales and Butler by a combined 82-7 in their first two games.
