The Cornersville Bulldogs' competitive fire carried them to victory on a chilly Friday night, as coach John Denton's banged up CHS squad pulled out a hard fought 30-22 home win over the East Robertson Indians behind another sensational performance from quarterback Stone Riner.

After losing two-way starter Justin Black to a broken ankle earlier in the week, Cornersville saw center Dillard Hatchett and safety Devante Spencer both go down with injuries in the first half while building a 14-8 lead through the first two quarters of play.

East Robertson (3-6) then seized a 16-14 advantage late in the third quarter, but the Bulldogs (5-4) scored touchdowns on their next two drives and converted both two-point conversions to pull ahead 30-16 with 5:34 left in the fourth period before holding on for the eight-point victory.

Tough fight

"With the injuries that we've had, we had some guys grow up and come through for us tonight. We had some guys really fight through some stuff," said Denton. "We had only five offensive lineman at the end of the game and were down to our third string center."

With Friday's triumph, the Bulldogs clinched one of the at large bids for the upcoming Class A playoffs after missing the postseason the last two years.

"That's a tremendous accomplishment especially considering our numbers and our injuries. The kids have shown a lot of character and they're seeing the benefits of all their hard work," said Denton.

Although they were stopped on downs three times inside East Robertson's 20-yard line, Cornersville amassed a season high 432 yards of total offense, which included 309 yards rushing on 50 carries.

Riner on the run

Having accumulated over 350 all-purpose yards in each of their last two contests, Riner once again accounted for the lion's share of the Bulldogs offensive production. Along with completing 12-of-19 passes for 123 yards and a touchdown, Riner rushed for 257 yards and three TDs on 35 carries.

"Stone has really grown into the quarterback role. He loves having the ball in his hands every play. He's making a lot of big plays and doing a great job. The offensive line is also doing a good job of blocking for him too," said Denton.

Tailback Chance Dyer toted the ball 15 times for 52 yards as well, while Tyler Lowery led CHS' receiving corps with eight catches for 111 yards and a touchdown. Zack Welch also hauled in four passes for 12 yards.

The Indians relied primarily on their ground attack and churned out 308 yards rushing on 48 carries en route to finishing with 351 yards of total offense overall.

Bell rings out

Tailback Marquece Bell served as the workhorse for East Robertson and toted the ball 28 times for 217 yards and a touchdown. Clayton Key also tallied 60 yards rushing on nine carries, and fullback Cody Ring added a pair of short TD runs.

The Indians had limited success through the air, as quarterback Matthew Tomlin attempted just four passes, completing two for 43 yards, while Bell failed to connect on any of his three throws.

Linebacker Blake Tomlin led Cornersville's defense with 11 tackles, and Jody Sullivan recorded 10 tackles. Kyle Dickson and Curt Taylor both notched seven tackles as well with Dickson registering two sacks and Taylor recovering a fumble. Dyer also tallied six tackles for the Bulldogs, while Hunter Keel, Riner, Lowery, and Jesse Phillips had four tackles apiece.

Adversity struck early for Cornersville when Riner fumbled on the third play of the game and Matthew Tomlin recovered the ball to give East Robertson possession at their own 40.

The Indians were unable to capitalize on the break and failed to pick up a first down in three plays before Welch tackled Bell at the East Robertson 48 on a fake punt attempt.

First on board

CHS cashed in on the favorable field position and took a 6-0 lead when Riner scored on an eight-yard touchdown run nine plays later. East Robertson blocked Ivan Gutierrez's extra point attempt to keep the deficit at six.

Cornersville's lead would be short lived, as the Indians put together a nine-play, 75-yard scoring drive on their next offensive series that was punctuated by a three-yard touchdown plunge by Ring. Bell then ran in the two-point conversion to give East Robertson an 8-6 advantage with 3:11 left in the first quarter.

Following an unsuccessful onside kick attempt by the Indians, Cornersville drove from midfield to the East Robertson one-yard line behind runs of 19 and 24 yards by Riner. The Indians' defense, however, bowed it's neck and kept CHS out of the end zone by stuffing three runs by Dyer while Riner threw an incomplete pass on 2nd down.

Cornersville forced East Robertson to punt on their next two possessions, before pulling back ahead with 4:08 left in the second quarter when Lowery caught a screen pass over the middle and raced 34 yards to pay dirt. Riner then found Lowery in the end zone on the two-point conversion try to stake the Bulldogs to a 14-8 lead.

Missed chances

After stopping the Indians on downs at the CHS 23, Cornersville advanced down to the East Robertson 9 on the strength of a 19-yard run by Riner and a Lowery 27-yard catch before time expired in the half.

The Bulldog defense set the offense up with favorable field position at the start of the second half when Taylor pounced on a fumble at the Indian 41 after Phillips jarred the ball loose from Key.

Cornersville moved the ball to the East Robertson 13, but once again saw their offense stall in the red zone and lost the ball on downs after gaining only six yards on their next four plays.

Riding the momentum from yet another goal line stand, the Indians methodically marched 93 yards to pay dirt in 14 plays, capped by a Bell two-yard touchdown dive, before Matthew Tomlin ran in the two-point conversion to put East Robertson up 16-14 with :19 left in the third quarter.

Back in front

The Bulldogs quickly countered punched and retook the lead on their ensuing possession when Riner scored on a 14-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter. Lowery then hauled in the two-point conversion pass from Riner to give CHS a 22-16 advantage.

After stopping the Indians on downs at the Cornersville 37, the Bulldogs quickly covered the 63 yards to the end zone in nine plays to forge a 30-16 lead with 5:34 left. Following a 15-yard run by Dyer, Riner picked up 14 yards on three straight runs before Lowery caught an 11-yard pass to move the ball down to the East Robertson 23. Riner then scored on an eight-yard touchdown scamper four plays later prior to running in the two-point conversion.

The Indians wouldn't go away quietly and narrowed the gap to 30-22 on a two-yard touchdown run by Ring with 2:50 remaining, but Blake Tomlin blocked Bell's extra point attempt to keep the margin at eight.

Final moments

Following another unsuccessful onside kick attempt by East Robertson, Cornersville tried to milk the clock and ran the ball five straight times before being forced to punt.

After punter Ben Taylor pinned the Indians at their own six-yard line with :06 left, Bell tried to weave his way through the CHS defense on the final play of the game, but Riner tackled him at the East Robertson 31 to seal the victory for the Bulldogs.