The 7th seed (Class A) Tug Valley Panthers hit the road for the long trip to take on the 2nd seed Tucker County Mountain Lions on Saturday in the second round of the West Virginia State Championship Playoffs.
The Panthers (9-2) knocked off 10th seed Tyler Consolidated, 28-26, in the opening round. Bryson Elia handled the quarterback duties with Preston May out due to injury. Elia completed 9-of-18 passes for 103 yards, 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions. He also carried the ball 24 times for 159 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Adam Slone will join Elia in the backfield. Against Tyler Consolidated, he carried the ball 10 times for 51 yards and 1 touchdown and caught 3 passes for 52 yards.
Elia has several talented receivers, including Cameron Slone, Buddy Marcum, Brady Brewer and Ashton Davis.
Tucker County (11-0) comes into the game after defeating Midland Trail, 46-6, in the opening round of the playoffs.
Ethan Rosenau put up big numbers, completing 15-of-19 passes for 283 yards and 5 touchdowns.
Jared Reall was the team’s leading rusher with 16 carries for 127 yards and 1 touchdown.
Maddox Anderson caught 7 passes for 167 yards and 2 touchdowns. Blaike Adams caught 6 passes for 95 yards and 2 touchdowns.
The Panthers come into this game as underdogs, but Hady Ford’s crew is sure to put up a fight. The opening kick is set for 4 pm on Saturday in Tucker County.
