The Chelsea Hornets (4-0) stopped Tarrant on a two-point conversion near the end of regulation Friday night to seal a 27-26 homecoming victory.

Chelsea jumped out to an early 21-0 lead in the contest, but Tarrant continued to battle and eventually came within five yards of upsetting the Hornets.

&uot;We did pretty well to start out with,&uot; Chelsea head coach Watt Parker said. &uot;But we really lost focus in the second half.&uot;

The Hornets were only able to put one score on the board in the second half, an 82-yard fumble return by David Strider, after lighting it up in the first to quarters.

Walker Kent kicked the scoring off for the Hornets on the first play from scrimmage, running the ball on a toss play for a 77-yard score.

The Hornets added two rushing touchdowns by Doug Stanbro and Billy Barnhill before allowing Tarrant to score on a 14-yard pass play near the end of the half.

Tarrant came out fired up in the second half and scored three rushing touchdowns, one for 72 yards, before the final horn sounded.

&uot;We had a lot of mental lapses,&uot; Parker said. &uot;And defensively, we have a lot of little things to work on.&uot;

Chelsea quarterback Coty McLaughlin finished the night completing 2-of-6 passes for 33 yards.

Stanbro, Kent and Davin Palmer combined for 36 rushing attempts for 183 yards.

The Hornets were led on defense by Preston Roberts, who finished the game with 17 solo tackles.

Chelsea will travel to Chilton County this Friday, and Parker said he is having his team concentrate on making plays when they need to be made.

&uot;I’ve been telling my guys that this will be the best team we’ve played all year,&uot; Parker said.

&uot;We need to create more opportunities and avoid giving up big plays.&uot;

Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m