The Milton Eagles beat their cross-county rivals, the Roswell Hornets, 34-14 on Friday on the road.
With the win, the Eagles, ranked No. 8 in 7A, move to 2-1, while the Hornets, ranked No. 5 in 6A, drop to 3-1.
“It definitely meant a lot to the program beating the crosstown rival,” said Eagles tight end Ryan Ghea, whose 8-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter all but put the game away. “They supposedly had a really good team this year, so it was great to come in here, play as a team and get the win.”
The Eagles scored 27 unanswered points between the first and fourth quarters to seal the win. Before and after the run, the Hornets scored their points on a pair of 20-yard touchdown passes from KJ Smith to Dylan Williams.
The Eagles were led by Luke Nickel, who accounted for all but one of the team’s touchdowns. He finished with 244 passing yards and three touchdowns, and also rushed for a 3-yard touchdown. Debron Gatling had two touchdown receptions and 84 yards on six catches, and CJ Wiley had six catches for 98 yards.
Ghea’s touchdown — his only catch — came with 5:31 remaining and pushed Milton’s lead to 27-7.
“I feel like we’re definitely coming together, which is how we want it to be,” he said. “We’re playing really good football now.
The Eagles host another North Fulton rival, Alpharetta, next week. The Hornets are on bye next before traveling to Johns Creek for their Region 7-6A opener.
Milton 7 6 7 14 - 34
Roswell 7 0 0 7 - 14
R — Dylan Williams 20 pass from KJ Smith (Brett Gonda kick)
M — Debron Gatling 5 pass from Luke Nickel (Alex Nover kick)
M — Nickel 3 run (run failed)
M — TJ Lester 1 run (Nover kick)
M — Ryan Ghea 8 pass from Nickel (Nover kick)
R — Williams 20 pass from Smith (Gonda kick)
M — Gatling 49 pass from Nickel (Gonda kick)
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