No. 1 ranked Union now 5-0 with win over Lake

As the No. 1 ranked team in Class 2A, the Union Yellowjackets are getting everyone’s best shot.

They got another strong test last week but rallied from a halftime deficit to take a hard-fought 27-22 win over Lake on Friday night.

Union improves to 5-0 on the season and will hit the road this week to take on Eupora to open Division 4-2A play.

Union coach Jordan Wren said Lake challenged his team on both sides of the ball.

“I thought Lake really got after us,” Wren said. “I feel like they were the best team we have played in our first five games. I thought we came out flat on defense and they played with a lot more effort than we had seen on film. They were the more physical team in the box, especially in the first half. We only had 106 yards rushing and that’s not very good. As fast as they were on defense, we never felt comfortable in the pocket and we didn’t handle that very well.”

Union got the ball to start the game but was forced to punt.

Lake then went 53 yards in just three plays as Ken Spivey burst through the Union defense for a 45-yard touchdown run. The try for two failed and Lake held an early 6-0 lead.

Lake then recovered the ensuing kick but turned the ball over on downs. The two teams then traded punts before Union got going on offense. The Yellowjackets went 60 yards on 14 plays as U’Darrian Hickman scored on a 5-yard run early in the second quarter. Samuel Alawine hit the PAT and Union took a 7-6 lead. 

After trading punt again, Lake drove the field, going 83 yards in 11 plays and scoring on a 24-yard pass from Griffin Boles to Kentavious Gray. Spivey ran in the two-point conversion and Lake held a 14-7 lead. 

The Lake defense got an interception from J.D. Gibson before the half to take a 14-7 lead into the intermission.

“I thought the difference in the second half was Zi Buckley,” Wren said. “Zi and Keon got lose and we hit two bombs. In a matter of 30 second, we went from 14-7 to up 21-14. They went back up but we put a drive together at the end and hit Zi for another touchdown to get the win.”

Lake got the ball to start the second half but went three and out on offense.

Union then got the passing game cranked up as Hickman hit Keon Hutchins on a 53-yard touchdown pass, capping off a five-play, 73-yard drive. The PAT failed and Lake held a slim 14-13 lead. 

Union got the ball right back when Kale Grayson pulled down an interception. The Yellowjackets continued their air assault to find the end zone. This time, Hickman hit Zi Buckley on a 35-yard touchdown pass. Mason Tucker then shuffled a pass to Ky’Yon Harris for the two-point conversion to take a 21-14 lead.

But Lake answered right back scoring in two plays. After a big 40-yard run from Spivey, Jamarrion Blaylock scored on a 25-yard run. Demtrius Towner then scored on a two-point conversion to give Lake a 22-21 lead.

Union then got a break on special teams when Harris recovered a punt touched by a Lake player. Union then went 44 yards in seven plays as Hickman hit Buckley on a 5-yard touchdown pass midway through the fourth. The try for two failed for the final score of 27-22. 

Union had its worst offense night of the season but still totaled 290 yards. The Yellowjackets had 106 yards rushing on 33 carries. Ky’Yon Harris had 48 yards on 11 carries while Xavier Boler had 45 yards on 15 carries.

Hickman was 12-of-20 passing for 184 yards with three TDs. Keon Hutchins had three catches for 85 yards while Buckley had five catches for 44 yards and two TDs. Mason Tucker also had five catches for 40 yards.