The Washington Demons picked up another conference and district football win on the road Friday night, beating their rivals from Mount Pleasant 39-28. Washington got off to a fast start by scoring touchdowns on their first two possessions.
The Demons opened the game with a 10-play, 65-yard drive that quarterback Logan McDole capped off with a one-yard run into the end zone, and after the defense forced a three-and-out, McDole found fellow senior Mason Morgan on the very next play for an 83-yard catch and run to the house.
A 14-0 lead at the end of the first quarter would not stand, as Mount Pleasant scored on back-to-back drives near the end of the first half to tie things up, but Washington would strike just before halftime with a quick drive that ended in a 49-yard toss from McDole to Jayfred Espinosa for a TD and a 20-14 lead at the break.
The Panthers started the third quarter by marching down the field and getting a rushing touchdown to go up 21-20. The Demons would have their answer later in the period when McDole completed a swing pass to junior running back Kael Williams for a four-yard TD and a 26-21 lead that they would carry into the final quarter.
The Washington defense made its biggest play of the night in the fourth quarter when they stopped Mount Pleasant on fourth down as the Panthers were driving to retake the lead.
The Demons moved down the field on their ensuing drive, and while it came down to a fourth-and-goal, a shovel pass by McDole to Williams got them back in the end zone and up 33-21.
Mount Pleasant scored quickly on their next possession, but Washington would take nearly all of the final five-and-a-half minutes off the clock on a drive that ended with a Williams touchdown run.
McDole had a career night passing the football, completing 17 out of 21 attempts for 313 yards. Morgan played a big part in that success, making seven receptions for 179 yards. Williams finished with 82 total yards from scrimmage to go with his three scores as the Demons put up season highs in total yards and points.
After the game, head coach Kelly Williams told KCII Sports that his team rose to the challenge of facing their rivals in a charged-up road atmosphere.
“In the weight room, before we got on the bus to head down [to Mount Pleasant],” Williams said, “we talked about that there was going to be some adversity at some point throughout the game and how were we going to react to it. We were at the highest point, emotions were high, and then they came back.”
“Normally you’d be afraid to see what a team does getting up 14-0 and then coming back [from trailing], but [the players] responded well. It was just a great team win overall.”
The victory secures a winning season for Washington, as they improve to 5-1 overall and remain perfect against the rest of the Southeast Conference.
The Demons are also now 2-0 in Class 3A District 4 and looks for another district win when they next travel to Davenport Assumption Friday, a game you can hear on KCII starting with pregame coverage at 7 p.m. on 106.1 FM.