Jamal Jackson sprints into the end zone on his 33-yard punt return. | Richard Hollingsworth: http://nikonrick.smugmug.com/

Hartselle gets a breather in easy win over West Point

Chase Gillott made the highlight of the night with a spectacular one-handed interception of a West Point pass in the third quarter.

However, the Tiger senior was quick to point out that he and his teammates still have plenty of work to do after Hartselle’s 35-7 homecoming win over West Point Friday night.

“Even with the interception tonight, we all have a lot we can work on,” Gillott said. “We’ll get at it next week and get ready for East Limestone.”

Although the Tigers finished the night with 331 yards of offense, Hartselle got off to a sluggish start. The defense had its struggles giving up a few big plays.

Godsey said that could be attributed to the tough four-game stretch the Tigers just played beginning with Athens and ending with Muscle Shoals. However, he was proud of his team finding a way to keep fighting through the entire season.

“It’s hard to be sky high – at your best – every night,” Godsey said. “We still found a way to win a game. To be the kind of team we want to be and be at our best in the playoffs, we’ve still got to keep pushing and get better.”

The injury bug has also bitten the Tigers throughout the season. Several key players have missed games due to injuries, including running back Masio Stover and cornerback Jaylan Jackson.

“We’re banged up still and got another one hurt tonight,” Godsey said. “One of these days we’re going to get everyone healthy and on the same page. I just want to be there when that happens.”

The Tigers ran the ball well against the Warriors, rolling up 233 yards on the ground. Most of that came by the way of D’Andre Mack, who rushed 185 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries.

Junior Mykel Welch said they got off to a sluggish start, but the success started after the offense started playing together.

“We were just blocking man. We weren’t blocking as a unit,” Welch said. “Once we got as a unit, we started blocking really well.

“It feels good for us not to have to play four quarters worrying about (the outcome),” he added.

Quarterback Jake Tiffin rallied from an early interception to throw for three touchdown passes and 97 yards. Malcolm caught the first one on a one-yard pass less than three minutes into the game.

Malcolm’s interception set up Mack’s one-yard touchdown run midway through the second quarter.

Malcolm’s other touchdown pass came on a 26-yard strike from Tiffin, a drive that got new life from a roughing the kicker penalty by West Point, giving the Tigers a 21-0 lead at the break.

Tobias Mitchell got in on the action with an 11-yard touchdown early in the third quarter.

West Point rallied with an eight-play, 80-yard drive late in the third quarter. A three-yard run by Bryant Farley capped the drive midway through the third quarter.

After back-to-back tackles for losses by Jorden Robinson forced West Point to punt from its own one-yard line, Jamal Jackson ended any threat of a comeback with a 33-yard punt return for a touchdown. Jack Waterman hit his fifth extra point of the night for the game’s final point.

The Tigers will travel to East Limestone next week for a chance to draw nearer to a playoff berth.