The Hornets scored 21 points in a span of 3:36 late in the third quarter to upset Walton 28-24. The Raiders had dominated the first half and held a 21-7 lead midway through the third quarter.
That’s when Roswell capitalized on Walton’s turnovers to take control of the game. After the Hornets scored on a 49-yard run by Mechane Slade with 5:23 left in the third quarter, they struck again less than a minute later.
Walton quarterback Parker McLeod, who had missed the past five games due to injury, was intercepted by Roswell’s Grant Beidel. Beidel returned the interception 23 yards for a game-tying touchdown.
McLeod then fumbled the snap on Walton’s next possession and the Hornets took the lead for good two plays later. After the fumble, Roswell quarterback Ryan Monty hit Bennett Barton on a 50-yard touchdown pass. Barton kicked the fourth of his extra points on the night to put the Hornets ahead 28-21.
The Raiders, who fell to 7-3, did manage a 34-yard field goal by Anthony Price midway through the fourth quarter to pull within four points, but couldn’t do enough to win in the end.
A disappointed Walton coach Rocky Hidalgo said his team played a tale of two halves against the Hornets.
“If we’re going to have any success, we’ve got to be prepared to play an entire 48 minutes and we didn’t do that tonight,” Hidalgo said. “We played some of the best football we’ve played all season in the first half and some of the worst that we’ve played in about five weeks in the second half.”
Roswell, which ended the season with a 3-7 record, is a much better team than its record indicates, according to coach Justin Sanderson.
“I guarantee you that we’re the best 3-7 team in the state of Georgia,” Sanderson said. “We just didn’t really show up in the first half, but we got our sea legs in the second half and the interception by Grant was huge.”
Price Wilson started the game for Walton at quarterback, but McLeod came in during the first series and played the rest of the game. Despite his fumble and interception, McLeod finished the game 10-for-15 for 92 yards.
D.J. Smith had a game-high 187 rushing yards on 32 carries for the Raiders. Barton did the most damage to Walton by leading the Hornets with 232 receiving yards on six receptions.
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This shows the strength and resolve of the Walton program that while banged up and bruised, they still keep fighting and step in where needed. AND still make the playoffs.
There are 4 Division I commits on the team and all 4 were on the sidelines until Parker stepped back on the field after 6 weeks. There are currently 4 sophomores on the offensive line and have done a great job with on the job training.
Keep pouting about a 'move in' from 2 1/2 years ago. Walton has one and Tyren belongs to the Walton family. We treasure him and his wonderful family. He got hurt on a flukey play (6th play of the game) against Etowah and hope he's healing quickly. If anyone should be congratulated on their move ins, it's Lassiter. They went above and beyond this season with their FIVE. Ryan Jennings (Milton), Eric and Quincy Perdue (Campbell), Chris Murphy (Harrison) and the linebacker from Wheeler have done a spectacular job with their new teammates this year.
The Walton players and coaches will continue to work hard this week and hope for the best against Parkview. No matter what, we're proud of the team and will continue to support them.
No Tyren no Win...
...back to back losses.
Point the finger to try to cause a distraction. LOL Please get to the third round(never happen). Would love to see that game with impartial refs. No refs who live in your Walton neighborhood.
BTW, no Tyren, No win.
He arrived at Walton in January of his sophomore year and ran track so Walton does think it's ridiculous that Lassiter still holds a grudge. The decision was the correct one and Tyren received a scholarship to the top program in the country. If you want to be really upset, wait until you see Tyren's two younger sisters when they perform on the track. They are a thing of beauty.
Tyren's move affected one player who ended up still contributing to Walton's state championship appearance in many ways. Jim Hogue was a team captain and team leader and played in many roles to help with the team's success. I wouldn't be so gracious if my kid were one of the 5 affected by those that moved in this season to Lassiter. That's a lot of home grown talent that gets pushed aside for a 1 or 2 year player.
We'll miss Tyren on Friday but DJ Smith is more then capable to fill his shoes. Instead of harboring such hostility, why don't you try supporting all Cobb County teams so we're represented well up against the giants of Gwinnett and south Georgia. It'll make you feel better about yourself. Trust me.