Jamal Jackson, Caleb Finn and others combine to tackle Connor Hollingsworth. | Richard Hollingsworth: http://nikonrick.smugmug.com/

The No. 3 Muscle Shoals Trojans took advantage of two big plays in the second quarter to defeat the Hartselle 24-9 Friday night at J.P. Cain Stadium.

Hartselle (4-2, 2-2) did everything it could to erase the 14-0 deficit, but the Trojans (6-0, 4-0) proved to have a little too much for the young Tigers to overcome.

Head coach Bob Godsey said he was proud of the team they way the continued to fight throughout the entire night, which gave the Tigers an opportunity to win the game in the fourth quarter.

“We gave ourselves a chance and that’s all we can ask,” said head coach Bob Godsey. “All the good things in life are represented by that group right there – unselfishness, hard work, toughness.

“You play with what you got and that’s what we guys do. They play with whatever hand their dealt. I’ll take them and play anywhere in the state because they’ll play with all they’ve got.”

The Trojans broke the scoreless tie with Kavonte McDonald’s 97-yard touchdown run moments into the second quarter. Kenri Howell returned a blocked punt five yards for a touchdown.

See a photo gallery of Hartselle vs. Muscle Shoals at http://nikonrick.smugmug.com/.

Even though Hartselle struggled to move the ball, the Tigers didn’t quit on either side of the ball.

Shortly before the half, Hartselle’s defense held Muscle Shoals to a three-and-out possession. The snap to punter Rhett Morrison went over his head and into the end zone. To prevent the Tigers from recovering the ball for a touchdown, he kicked it out of the end zone for a safety, leaving the halftime score at 14-2.

Hartselle grinded out a seven-play, 64-yard drive to cut the lead to five points. Jake Tiffin converted first downs on back-to-back third down plays. The first was a six-yard reception to Tobias Mitchell.

He then hit a wide-open Tanner Oakes in stride for 40 yards to the Trojan 2. D’Andre Mack did the rest scoring on a one-yard touchdown run. Jack Waterman added the extra point to make it 14-9 with 5:22 left in the third quarter.

During the third quarter, Muscle Shoals was held to just two yards of offense.

In the fourth quarter, Trojan quarterback Landon Smothers broke free for a 50-yard run, which allowed Morrison to hit a 22-yard field goal with 8:25 to play in the game.

The Tigers had a chance to tie the game with 4:41 to play in the game. Tiffin hit Mitchell for a 13-yard gain, but Ja’leen Ricks intercepted a pass on the next play to end the threat.

Muscle Shoals put the game away on Zachary Sullivan’s 1-yard touchdown with 2:21 to play.

The Tigers will return to J.P. Cain Stadium next week, as Hartselle hosts West Point for homecoming. Kickoff will be at 7 p.m.