The Tucker County Mountain Lions put on a show Friday night in front of a home crowd, delivering a 50-0 rout of the Tygarts Valley Bulldogs. From the opening whistle to the final horn, Tucker owned every facet of the game, offense, defense, and special teams, in a complete team performance.
The Mountain Lions set the tone early on defense. Cayden Arnold picked off a pass on the Bulldogs’ opening drive, his second interception in as many games, giving Tucker early momentum. The offense quickly capitalized as Luke Barb powered into the end zone from 3 yards out, and Sam Marks, newly cleared to play, connected with Keelyn Eichelberger for the two-point conversion to make it 8-0.
That would be the only score of the first quarter, but Tucker’s offense caught fire in the second. Marks found Reid Kisamore on a 13-yard touchdown pass, and Cade Rapp converted the two-point try to extend the lead to 16-0. On the ensuing Bulldogs possession, the Tucker defense forced a safety as the Tygarts Valley punter stepped out of the back of the end zone on a mishandled snap.
A few plays later, Marks hit Arnold over the middle for a 13-yard touchdown, and Eichelberger added the conversion. At halftime, Tucker led 26-0 and showed no signs of letting up.
The offensive onslaught continued in the third quarter. Marks connected with Eichelberger for a 26-yard catch-and-run touchdown, and Rapp punched in the two-point conversion. Arnold then scored again, this time on a 15-yard reception, and followed it up by converting the two-point try himself. The final score came in the fourth quarter when Rapp scampered into the end zone from 14 yards out, with Barb adding the conversion to cap off a 50-0 final.
The Tucker defense was relentless, holding Tygarts Valley to just 79 total yards, while the Mountain Lions’ offense piled up 390 yards, almost evenly split with 196 passing yards and 194 rushing yards.
Individual Standouts: Sam Marks: 12-of-20 passing, 177 yards, 4 touchdowns, Cade Rapp: 12 carries, 86 yards, 1 TD; Luke Barb: 11 carries, 74 yards, 1 TD; Cayden Arnold: 7 receptions, 67 yards, 2 TDs, 1 interception; Keelym Eichelberger: 2 receptions, 44 yards, 1 TD; Reid Kisamore: 2 receptions, 37 yards, 1 TD.
With the win, Tucker County improves their record and carries momentum into a key rivalry matchup next week. The Mountain Lions will travel to Baker to face East Hardy on Saturday, September 13th at 7 p.m.
