The Loyd Star defense scored the first two Hornet touchdowns inthe first quarter.

The Loyd Star defense scored the first two Hornet touchdowns inthe first quarter. Then the Hornet offense took over for the nextthree and handed the visiting Hinds AHS War Dawgs a 39-8 Division6-2A beating Friday night at William E. “Sambo” Smith Field.

Loyd Star improved to 2-0 in the division and 6-1 on the season.Hinds AHS fell to 1-5 on the season and 0-1 in division play.

On Hinds first possession in the first quarter, Loyd Star seniordefensive back Deke Purdy intercepted War Dawg quarterback JuliusDavis’ pass and returned it 25 yards for the first Hornet touchdownof the game. Jody Britt missed the PAT and the Hornets led 6-0 with10:50 left.

At the 1:45 mark, junior defensive back Demarcus Barnesintercepted a Davis pass and ran it back 39 yards for the secondHornet TD of the game. Britt’s kick failed and the Hornetsincreased their lead to 12-0 at the end of the first quarter.

“Anytime you can get that kind of scoring, it’s good,” said LoydStar head football coach Anthony Hart of the two pass interceptionsfor touchdowns.

Loyd Star took control of the football at the start of thesecond quarter and marched 65 yards to score on a three-yardtouchdown by junior runningback Derrick Johnson. Britt nailed thePAT kick to give the Hornets a 19-0 lead with 4:19 left untilhalftime.

In the third quarter, junior fullback Adam Speeg rushed for a13-yard touchdown on a 68-yard drive for a 25-0 lead following ablocked PAT kick by Hinds AHS with 7:35 remaining.

Loyd Star marched 87 yards on its next possession and scored ona 30-yard burst by Barnes. The Hornets increased their lead to 32-0following Britt’s successful PAT kick.

In the fourth quarter, Loyd Star marched 68 yards and recordedits final TD of the game on a 25-yard run by senior GarriethCalcote followed by a PAT kick by Hunter Case with 6:52 left toplay.

In the final seconds of the game, Hinds AHS scored a five-yardtouchdown run by Davis against the Loyd Star third string. Thetwo-point conversion run was good.

“It’s a good win for us,” said Hart. “Our defense did well. Westruggled offensively early. They (Hinds AHS) are young. They arein transition,” under a new head coach.

Loyd Star collected 12 first downs to Hinds AHS’s eight.

The Hornets rushed the football 35 times for 289 yards. The WarDawgs carried 34 times for 125 yards. Loyd Star totaled 298offensive yards while Hinds AHS picked up 133 yards.

Powering Loyd Star’s running game with 11 rushes for 83 yardswas Johnson. Barnes carried seven times for 59 yards. Speeg pickedup 51 yards on seven carries. Calcote ran once for 25 yards.

Defensively, junior linebacker Cody Covington led theHornets with 12 tackles. Making nine stops was Logan Portrey. Speeghad eight tackles. Derrick Smith intercepted a pass.

Loyd Star visits Wesson Thursday night at Stone Stadiumfor a key Division 6-2A battle. This game is being played onThursday night because Co-Lin celebrates homecoming against PearlRiver Saturday.

Wesson (3-4, 0-1) fell to Bogue Chitto in a non-divisioncontest last Friday.