Indians remain undefeated

The Hayti defense is ready for another stop.

Going into Friday night’s game against New Madrid County Central (0-4), Hayti head football coach Dominique Robinson knew the Eagles would be prepared, and they were. Despite the Indians’ lopsided victory of 62-14, NMCC gave Hayti no little trouble on the Eagles’ opening drives of the first and second half. On both possessions, NMCC marched up the field and into the end zone with relative ease.

Hayti’s offensive line was in control of the line of scrimmage against the Eagles.

“They’re just well coached, and they came well prepared for us. They had a bi-week. They saw some films. They saw some things they liked, and they took advantage of it,” Robinson said in a postgame interview. “We just have to get better as a team and better as coaches. We’re going to have prepare a little harder and prepare a little better. They’re a good team, and they have some great athletes. We made a few mistakes, but we have to learn to seize the moment.”

However, other than those two NMCC scoring drives, the Hayti Indians pretty much played flawless football, as the final score of 62-14 well indicates. On their first possession of the game, the Indians responded with a scoring drive of their own, led by Hayti QB Chrivonate Moore’s 24-yard rushing gain. On fourth-and-13 with the drive in jeopardy, Moore connected with Ivory Winters for a 14-yard gain. On third-and-three at the Eagles’ 20, Moore found Tylor Wooden in the flats for a 20-yard touchdown pass. The 2-point conversion was stopped, and the game was tied at 6 apiece with 5:22 on the clock.

On the ensuing kickoff, Hayti’s coverage was good. The defense stepped up as well, stopping NMCC in three downs. The Eagles were forced to punt at their own 28, but the punt was blocked on an impressive effort from Cedric Barber. The Indians took over on the Eagles’ 19-yard line. Ivory Winters picked up a first down on the ground, and then he found the goal line for a 9-yard TD scamper. Hayti signal-caller Chrivontae Moore kept the ball for a blast up the middle to covert the 2-point attempt, putting the Indians up 14-6 at the 1:55 mark of the first period.

Once again, Hayti’s kickoff coverage was stellar. Leading the charge were Trevontae Stevenson and DeAnthony Reed. Reed would go on to record two more kickoff team tackles. The first quarter ended with a 14-6 Hayti advantage.

As the second period began, NMCC still retained possession of the football, but to no avail. As a matter of fact, the Indian defense shut down the Eagles for the remainder of the half. In starring roles for the Hayti D in the second period were Ivory Winters, Kelvion Pressberry, Shaq Abbott, Tylor Wooden, Jashauntii Downey, Norshawn McIntyre, Cedric Barber, Deva’nte Robinson and Chrivontae Moore.

Also in the second quarter, the Indians were all about putting the ball in the end zone. Ivory Winters crossed the goal line on a 43-yard run from scrimmage. Deva’nte Robinson got into the act with a 5-yard run for a score. Moore hit Robinson for a 25-yard touchdown pass, and Moore then put the ball on the money to Tylor Wooden for another Hayti touchdown. Wood went 3-for-4 on PATs in the second period. Despite the Indians’ shaky defensive start, Hayti scored 41 unanswered first-half points, and they would go into the locker room with a 41-6 lead.

Hayti continued with outstanding defensive play in the third quarter, led by Nakwon Harris with a key interception. A couple of more kickoff team members found the right seam and made an impact in the third quarter: Jerrod Covington and Larrontae Carter.

On the offensive side of the ball, the Indians recorded three more touchdowns. Indian QB Chrivontae Moore zipped the ball to Ivory Winters who made the reception for a 60-yard TD play. Deva’nte Robinson recorded another score with a 15-yard touchdown sprint. In the Indians’ final score of the night, Moore found Tylor Wooden for the reception. After the nifty grab, Wooden dashed to the goal line, jumping over an Eagle defender to get into the end zone. Neither team scored in the fourth frame, as reserves entered the game. The final score, Hayti, 62, New Madrid County Central, 14.

Pleased with his team’s overall effort, Coach Robinson was exceptionally happy with the performance of his offensive line. “The offensive line (Jordan Allison, Tyler Green, Darreon Johnson, Isaiah Liddell and Dakota Morgan) blocked really well tonight, letting us do what we usually do – using our speed to get to the edge.” he said. “I’m proud of those guys.”

Hayti had 18 first downs in the matchup, while NMCC had 10. Through the air, Hayti chalked up 175 yards and NMCC logged in 57. Total yardage went to Hayti with 413, while NMCC archived 191.

On the ground, Ivory Winters picked up 80 yards on five carries, as Chrivontae Moore ran for 75 yards on six totes. Deva’nte Robinson finished with 48 rushing yards, and Tylor Wooden had 22. William Dunn logged in a 23-yard run, and David Covington came into the game and recorded a 13-yard run. On the receiving end, Ivory Winters was 3 for 89, leading Hayti. Wooden hauled in three receptions for 42 yards, while Robinson had two grabs for 33. Nakwon Harris snagged a pass for 11 yards.

Defensively, Ivory Winters led the way for the Indians with nine tackles, followed by Tylor Wooden with four. Norshawn McIntyre, Jashauntii Downey, Cedric Barber and David Covington had three tackles each.

Hayti will face a very tough Malden team this Friday night at 7 p.m. at Malden. Coach Robinson had this to say about this week’s matchup: “We’re just going to have to do what we do and do it better,” he said. “We’re going to work on the little things – making tackles and getting in their backfield, putting pressure on [Malden’s] offensive line and making them have to play with us at our speed.”