Eagles escape Marshall Co. with win

LEWISBURG -- No one expected it to be easy.

Shelbyville Central hit the road for the third week in a row in a non-district clash with winless Marshall County and escaped with a 13-8 victory Friday night to spoil the Tigers' homecoming.

It guarantees the Eagles (4-2) the most wins since 2003.

This game was about as even as they come.

Shelbyville had 288 yards of total offense and Marshall County 222. Both teams had four turnovers and each punted the ball five times.

The Tigers collected 15 first downs while the Eagles moved the chains 14 times. Time of possession was practically even, 24:39 for Marshall County and 23:21 for Shelbyville.

Penalties were the biggest difference.

Shelbyville was flagged 13 times for 71 yards Friday. Marshall County had two penalties totaling 10 yards.

"This is a tough place to play and Marshall County really has a great tradition," Shelbyville coach Jason Hardy said. "We all expected this to be a hard fought game and it was.

"They are much better than their record and I give them a lot of credit. They played harder and better in this game than I saw on film.

"I'm still disappointed in a lot of things but I'll take the win. We still had way too many penalties and missed assignments. We played with a lot of heart and made some plays to stay in it but we've got to get a lot better."

The score at halftime resembled baseball as the Tigers posted a 2-0 lead.

Marshall County drives stalled at the Shelbyville 26, 13 and 1-yard lines in the first half while the Eagle defense bent but never broke.

After holding the Tigers on a goal line stand, Shelbyville took over on downs inside their own 1.

The Eagles were stopped for no gain, then gained 8 yards on a carry by Will Trice before quarterback Tre Stewart was tackled in the end zone on third down for a 9-yard loss and a safety.

Shelbyville's Tyler Weaver recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff at the MC 29.

The Eagles drove to the Tiger 1 before talented freshman running back Marquis Morton fumbled in the end zone on what looked to be a touchdown before the fumble.

Shelbyville finally got on the board late in the third quarter when Stewart broke loose on a 61-yard run. Angel Jarquin connected on the point after for the 7-2 lead.

Marshall County responded with a 10-play drive capped off by a 1-yard run by Austin Rayes. The two-point conversion attempt failed leaving the score 8-7.

Shelbyville followed with a five-play drive and took the lead for good when Stewart scored on an 18-yard run with 8:58 left to play. The Eagles failed on the two-point conversion attempt.

Shelbyville's defense held strong from that point and secured the win when senior linebacker Hunter Brothers intercepted a pass to stop a Marshall County drive in the final minute.

"Coach Hardy just told me to shade a little and he put me right on the ball," Brothers said. "I just watched (the quarterback's) eyes and went right to the ball."

The Eagle defense allowed 76 yards rushing.

"We preach that defense wins ball games and our defense really stepped up tonight," Hardy said. "Other than a couple of missed assignments, it was really good football on the defensive side."

Stewart led Shelbyville's offense with 121 yards on 14 carries.

"Tre Stewart injured his hand last week and it's still not 100 percent but he really did a good job running the football when he was in," Hardy said. "He couldn't throw the ball real well because of that so we wanted to get Luke Faulk involved as well. Luke also had a couple of nice runs towards the end of the first half."

Shelbyville hosts District 8-AAA foe Lawrence County Friday night for homecoming.