After playing one of their most physical games of the season last week at Coosa Valley, the Cornerstone Chargers knew they had to hit Lyman Ward hard and early to have a strong shot on the road Friday.

Safety Patrick Shaw took the lead, nailing a safety on the first play of the game to put CCS up, 2-0.

“We wanted to start fast,” Cornerstone head coach Tim Smith said. “It’s hard to start faster than that.”

Midway through the opening quarter, Chargers tailback Cory Woodall entered the game after leaving early last week due to a knee injury. It didn’t take Woodall long to find the end zone, scoring on a 20-yard run to give CCS an 8-0 lead after one quarter of play.

That lead grew in the second quarter, as Woodall added his second of three touchdowns on a 6-yard scamper, followed by a 34-yard run and 2-point conversion by J.V. McKinney and 40-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown by Josh Dunnaway. The Chargers were in complete control after one half of play, leading 28-0.

The scoring didn’t fade at the break, as McKinney took the second half opening kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown, his second kick return for a score this year.

“He just hit the seam, and he was gone. He’s become a dangerous kick returner,” Smith said.

Woodall, who had 103 yards on the night on 13 carries, tacked on his third touchdown from 59 yards out in the fourth quarter. Woodall’s rushing effort was joined by Brandon Johnson’s 81 yards on the ground and McKinney’s 39 yards.

Lyman Ward scored late in the fourth against the Chargers’ reserves, kicked an onsides kick and scored again to round out the night. CCS held Lyman Ward to 129 yards of total offense.

Cornerstone (3-1, 3-0) sits tied with Crenshaw for first place in AISA Class 1A, Region 1 after Crenshaw’s win over Ashford on Friday. The Chargers will host Chambers next week.

“We’re taking it one game at a time,” Smith said. “Chambers is going to be big and physical. We’ve just got to keep getting better ourselves.”