Grangers Hang 39 on Columbus; Cavaliers Win and Cougars Lose

Chris Fernsler

Sports Editor

LaGrange High football is not all the way back, but the Grangers are getting there.

In the first season of the Matt Napier era at LHS, the Grangers have already won as many games as they did all of last season. LaGrange High went 2-8 last year.

But this isn’t last year. The Grangers are starting over with the energetic and the positive-thinking Napier, a coach who is pushing most of the right buttons. Napier has La-Grange High off to a 2-1 start this fall.

And the Grangers second straight win came on Friday night with a high scoring 39-32 conquest against the Columbus High Blue Devils at Kinnett Stadium in Columbus.

LaGrange High trailed 25-22 at the end of the third quarter. So what? The Grangers went back to work in the final period of play. LaGrange High outscored Columbus, 17-7 in the last 12 minutes of the game.

And the Grangers won. They put their foot on the gas in the fourth quarter.

Callaway High took another step forward on Friday night, too. Coach Pete Wiggins and the Cavaliers pitched a 35-0 shutout against the Douglass Astros in Atlanta.

The Callaway High football team is now 3-0 on the season. The Cavaliers are ranked fourth in the state in Class AA. Callaway High scored in every quarter against Douglass.

Another local team, Lafayette Christian, also played on the road on Friday night. The Cougars, however, lost to Southwest Georgia Academy, 41-7 in Damascus, Ga.

The only touchdown of the evening for LCS was a 7-yard scoring run from senior tailback Ben Dixon in the third quarter. Dixon also kicked the extra point for the Cougars, who fell to 2-1 on the year.

Lafayette Christian also got a 25-yard punt return from senior Nathan Karvelas. But it wasn’t enough for the Cougars – not on this night.

“Southwest Georgia is talented and well coached. They were prepared, and they have a good defense. They also have an offense that will score points,” said Lafayette Christian head football coach Billy Bryant.

He still believes in his Cougar team despite the loss.

“We are still competitive, and we’re going to win some (more) games,” said Bryant.

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