CLEMENTS – Two Caleb Hill-to-Thomas Russell touchdown passes and a tough second half defense allowed the Danville Hawks to travel to Limestone County last Friday night and come away with a 21-7 victory over Clements.
The victory did not come easy as the two teams were tied at 7 going into the second half before the Hawks pulled away for the win.
Neither team was able to score in the opening quarter but Danville got on the scoreboard midway through the second on a 37-yard Hill-to-Russell pass.
Lawrence Jacko added the extra point and the Hawks held a 7-0 lead.
The scoring drive covered 80 yards in five plays with 66 yards coming on three passes by Hill.
Hill finished the night with 213 yards passing with 17 completions on 26 attempts.
The Danville lead was short-lived as Clements tied the game just 37 seconds later on a 55-yard run by Brandon Sandefer.
The Hawks dominated play in the second half, holding the Colts to just 34 yards for the entire half.
Danville forced three second-half turnovers with the last one coming late in the game on a Trey Jones interception that he returned 20 yards for a Hawk touchdown.
Jacko’s extra point put Danville in front 21-7.
Danville had taken the lead late in the third quarter on a 51-yard scoring play from Hill to Russell.
For the game, Russell caught four passes for 118 yards and two touchdowns.
The drive covered 64 yards in eight plays with the Hawks converting two key third downs.
Hill played a major role in each drive, running for two yards to convert a third-and-1 situation, while later in the drive he hit Jacko for a 13 yard completion and another Hawk first down.
With the win over Clements, Danville is now 1-2 overall and 1-1 in region play. The Hawks will travel to Leighton tomorrow night to play the Colbert County Indians (1-2 overall, 1-1 region).
Kickoff for the matchup with the Indians is set for 7 p.m.