Here’s how the battle of Cleveland County was won between rivals Crest and Shelby

After a hard-hitting, back-and-forth game, Shelby defeated Crest, 38-28, to improve to 6-1 on the season.

Crest falls to 4-2 with its only two losses coming outside of 3A West Conference 50.

From the opening kickoff this game appeared to be headed for a Shelby blowout victory. Shelby forced a fumble on the opening kickoff — recovered by defensive back Dominique Terrill — to set up the Golden Lions inside the red zone. Two plays later, they scored.

“A game like this is all about momentum,” Shelby head coach Mike Wilbanks said. “That really gave us some momentum and propelled us to start the game. It was kind of like getting the ball twice to start each half. It was huge for us.”

After Shelby extended the lead to 14-0, Crest running back Mari Adams shot out of a cannon for a 75-yard touchdown rush to quiet the Golden Lion faithful. However, they would not be silenced for long as Shelby scored two more touchdowns before the end of the first half to take a 28-7 lead at the break.

Crest came out of the halftime and scored two consecutive touchdowns to tighten the game back up.

“I just reminded our guys that we have a great defense,” Wilbanks said. “They (Crest) are a great team that is going to make some plays, but we just have to make plays and not let them in the end zone. We have a lot of senior leadership on defense as well.”

It was Shelby quarterback Daylin Lee’s turn to get the home crowd on their feet when he launched a deep pass to Izay Bridges for a 62-yard score.

Again, Crest would have an answer, marching down the field for another Adams touchdown to make the contest a one score game. The Charger defense made a stand and got the ball back, but nothing came of it.

Shelby chipped away at the clock and kicked a late field goal to finish the scoring.

Three who made a difference

Daylin Lee, Shelby: Lee was making plays all game long to extend the Golden Lions’ drives. He finished the game with three touchdowns, all of which came in the air. He scrambled and improvised to extend plays when the offensive line collapsed.

Mari Adams, Crest: The Chargers’ senior running back is making a name for himself on the football field, averaging more than 100 yards per game on the ground. He finished with 163 yards rushing and two touchdowns. He was the catalyst to the Chargers’ offense in this game and made big plays in big moments to keep them within striking distance.

Izay Bridges, Shelby: Only a sophomore, Izay Bridges was Daylin Lee’s favorite target. Lee looked for Bridges more than half of the time. Bridges caught eight targets for 121 yards and two touchdowns.

Worth mentioning

▪ Crest defensive lineman and Wake Forrest commit Eli Hall had five tackles and two sacks on the game. He was in the Golden Lion backfield a ton, but his best play might have come on offense. The first Charger score of the second half came after a blocked punt setting the Chargers up in good field position. Carter Greene took the direct snap and tossed it softly over the line to find Hall in the endzone.

▪ Kickers Jack Berkowitz and Julian Arreola for Shelby and Crest respectively were perfect in the game not missing any extra points or field goal attempts. Berkowitz would be the only one to attempt a field goal, but nonetheless it was good.

▪ Shelby defensive back PJ Hopper had two interceptions during the game, one of which came at the end of the game allowing the Golden Lions to kneel the ball the remainder of the game.

What’s next

Crest will be at home next week against conference opponent Forestview, while Shelby will also be at home against conference opponent Bessemer City.

Scoring

Shelby 7 21 7 3 — 38

Crest 0 7 21 0 — 28

S: Izay Bridges 11 pass from Daylin Lee (Jack Berkowitz kick)

S: Demetrius Thompson 9 pass from Lee (Berkowitz kick)

C: Mari Adams 75 run (Julian Arreola kick)

S: Jaylon Petty 6 run (Berkowitz kick)

S: Bricen Kee 49 rush (Berkowitz kick)

C: Eli Hall 3 pass from Carter Greene (Arreola kick)

C: Javarious Green 39 pass from Nytavious Huskey (Areola kick)

S: Bridges 62 pass from Lee (Berkowitz kick)

C: Mari Adams 1 run (Arreola kick)

S: Berkowitz 27 FG

Photos from the game

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This story was originally published October 9, 2021 at 12:44 AM.