[Stardust]

WESTWOOD — One down, four to go.

Fairview scored on every possession but its last to defeat Phelps 69-0 in the opening round of the KHSAA Class A playoffs on Thursday night at Fairview Stadium.

While some thought Fairview might overlook winless Phelps, Eagles coach Nathan McPeek credited the weather. Working inside most of the week helped keep his team focused.

“It was difficult,” McPeek said. “We didn’t get to go outside that much this week with the weather, we did a lot of work in the gym, a lot of prep work. If there was a week to do that, this was the week. The kids did a good job and they were dialed in.”

From the opening kickoff, it seemed like Devon Turner was dialed into the game.

Turner took the opening kick back 76 yards for a touchdown, but for a few seconds it seemed like the senior running back was down.

But a referee’s whistle never blew, so he got back up and ran the rest of the way for the touchdown.

“Honestly, I don’t know 100 percent, but according to the refs I wasn’t,” Turner said of the call. “I was shocked, because I was looking for the whistle to blow. I thought they were going to blow it. I didn’t see any mud on my pants so I kept going.

“I was just shocked, so I kept on running.”

On the following Phelps possession, the Hornets went three-and-out and were forced to punt.

Fairview freshman Tanner Dolen came through the line and didn’t block the punt, but tackled the punter for a loss of 11, and set up Fairview’s next possession.

An Elijah King 21-yard touchdown run ensued. This was followed by Turner tip-toeing his way to the end zone on a 55-yard run.

Senior receiver Mason Rutherford added a 40-yard touchdown reception along with another King touchdown run, and by the end of the first quarter Fairview had a 44-0 lead.

After the first quarter many of the Eagles’ senior players didn’t see the field again, even though it was Senior Night.

“They’re just a great group,” McPeek said of his seniors. “They’re 42-7 as a class, and they’ve been a part of almost all my wins. They’ve been a part of a lot of winning here and that’s just a credit to a lot they do, how they prepare, how they lift weights during the offseason.

“They also know we’ve got higher goals. We’ve been in the regional finals two years in a row, and we have to win next week to get a third berth in that.”

Looking toward a winless opponent like Phelps can be a little difficult for most teams concentration-wise, but for Turner it’s just another game his team had to win.

“It’s a faceless opponent and we can only control what we can control,” Turner said. “We can’t worry about the other team, only what we can do and how we can get better as a team. That’s what coach tells us — stay focused and keep getting better.”

Turner had just the one run for 55 yards and a touchdown, and King had three carries for 81 yards and two touchdowns. Fellow senior Chris Brewer, the area’s leading rusher, had no official carries in the game.

But the game belonged to the younger players, especially with a big game from Dolen.

Dolen carried the ball twice for 61 yards, including a 56-yard touchdown run. He also returned two fumbles for touchdowns.

In the second half sophomore Cody Stone added a 30-yard touchdown run and freshman Kyle Sesher added a 63-yard run for a TD.

Sesher ended up being the game’s leading rusher, with three carries for 86 yards.

But for McPeek, he expects this game to be the last in which the seniors are done playing by halftime.

“That’s the last gimme game, you can say, for us,” McPeek said. “You have to hand it to Phelps and coach (Jesse) Peck because they fought hard. They were a four-seed and haven’t won a game so that’s tough. Our kids did a good job and we have to keep getting better and do a good job.”

Fairview will take on the winner of tonight’s South Floyd/Nicholas County game at home.
http://dailyindependent.com/localsports/...agles-soar