The Roswell Hornets overcame early adversity, seized control at the end of the first half and ultimately coasted to a 51-14 win over the Marietta Blue Devils Friday at Ray Manus Stadium.
The Hornets (3-0), ranked No. 5 out of Region 7-6A, threw an interception on the first play from scrimmage, then gave up a 27-yard touchdown run the next play to quickly fall down 7-0. They would respond with a 21-0 run, then scored two touchdowns inside the final two minutes of the second quarter, including an 11-yard pass from KJ Smith to Synkwan Smith, which made it 35-14 with 0:03 left.
With 2:04 remaining in the half, Roswell blocked a punt and recovered it on the Marietta 16. Synkwan Smith ran 16 yards the next play to make it 28-14 with 1:55 left. The Hornets quickly forced another three-and-out, and took over on the Marietta 49 with 0:38 left. Three plays later, the Hornets scored again and never looked back.
“To me, that swayed the game,” Hornets coach Chris Prewett said of the two scores to close the half. “You can’t script it better than that. We work those scenarios all day long at practice. Wednesday practice, it’s getting their offense off the field. Tuesday practice, it’s the two-minute drill, go down and score. It’s so nice to see the time and effort we put in come out on the field and executed well.”
The Hornets outscored Marietta 23-0 in the second half, including a safety, and forced a running clock in the fourth quarter.
KJ Smith was 12 of 15 passing for 215 yards and four touchdowns to one interception. Dylan Williams had two catches, each touchdowns, of 18 and 11 yards. Synkwan Smith four catches for 98 yards and a touchdown, and three carries for 54 yards and two more scores. Nykahi Davenport had three catches and a touchdown, and 13 carries for 58 yards and two touchdowns.
The Hornets set a school record for points in a game in last week’s 71-7 road win over Centennial, which came a week after a 41-0 road win over Denmark in their opener. They host 7A’s No. 8 Milton next week. They went 12-2 and reached the semifinals last year, their best finish since reaching the 7A title game in 2016.
The Blue Devils (1-2) of 3-7A, were led by Russell Bey, who had 100 yards and a touchdown on eight carries, and two catches for 52 yards and a touchdown.
The Blue Devils are just 16-22 since winning the 7A championship in 2019, including a 5-7 finish last year. They host 5-7A’s North Cobb next week.
Marietta 7 7 0 0 — 14
Roswell 21 14 14 9 — 51
M — Russell Bey 27 run (Cole Baumgartner kick)
R — Synkwan Smith 37 pass from KJ Smith (Brett Gonda kick)
R — Nykahi Davenport 1 run (Gonda kick)
R — Dylan Williams 18 pass from Smith (Gonda kick)
M — Russell Bey 38 pass from Chase McCravy (Baumgartner kick)
R — Smith 16 run (Gonda kick)
R — Williams 11 pass from Smith (Gonda kick)
R — Davenport 18 pass from Smith (Gonda kick)
R — Smith 30 run (Gonda kick)
R — Team safety
About the Author
