Coosa Valley snaps losing streak

Published 11:47 pm Friday, September 10, 2010

Cornerstone Christian School running back Clayton Halbert is brought down by Coosa Valley defensive lineman Matt Zettler in the Rebels 27-6 win over Cornerstone in a region battle Sept. 10. (Contributed/Cindy Wingard)

By WESLEY HALLMAN / Sports Editor

The Coosa Valley Academy football team snapped a seven-game losing streak against rival Cornerstone Christian following a 27-6 win over the Chargers in an Alabama Independent Schools Association Class 1A, Region 2 battle Sept. 10.

“We had to fight off adversity on and off the field,” said Coosa Valley coach Vince DiLorenzo. “The seniors did a great job of fighting through the adversity and we played hard for four quarters. We felt like it was an important game for a lot of reasons. Not only was it a big rivalry game, but it was also a big region game.”

Coosa Valley got on the scoreboard first following a 35-yard touchdown pass from John Bullen to Preston Parker. Cody Garrett added the extra point to give the Rebels a 7-0 lead with 11:03 remaining in the first half.

Tanner Wood reeled in a 7-yard touchdown pass from Bullen with 35 seconds remaining in the second quarter to push the lead to 13-0 at halftime.

Ryan Batson added to the lead with his 7-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, which pushed the Coosa Valley lead to 21-0 following his successful two-point conversion.

Bullen capped the scoring for the Rebels with his 36-yard touchdown reception from Hunter Rowe in the fourth quarter.

Clayton Halbert scored the final touchdown of the game on a 2-yard run with 6:36 left in the fourth quarter to put Cornerstone’s first points on the scoreboard.

Bullen completed 6-of-13 passes for 62 yards with a touchdown and an interception in the win. Rowe completed his only pass for 36 yards and a touchdown.

Parker, Bullen and Wood finished with one touchdown reception each.

Batson rushed for 94 yards and a touchdown on eight carries. Bullen added 56 yards on 14 attempts.

Batson led the Coosa Valley defense with 12 solo tackles and six assists. Bryce Cook finished with six solo tackles and three assists.