Homecoming week is always packed with excitement—dress-up days, a pep rally full of games, the crowning of a new queen, and of course, the football game that caps it all off. On Friday night, the Chuckey-Doak community got to celebrate in style, as the Black Knights defeated Claiborne 19-13 on the game’s final play.
Chuckey-Doak entered the night riding a three-game skid after starting the season 3-0, while Claiborne came in winless at 0-5. Both teams battled to the very end, but it was the Black Knights who delivered the dramatic finish.
“We didn’t play that well at times tonight,” admitted Coach Billy Kayler. “But the fight and determination after last week’s tough loss, to battle back in a game like this and find a way to win, was impressive.”
The Black Knights opened the game moving the ball behind the legs of Brayden Greene and the arm of quarterback Kypton Ball, but stalled on fourth down inside the Claiborne 20. The Bulldogs responded with a steady ground attack featuring Kaden Lovin, Aden Roark, and Colton Brewer, but they too came up short in Chuckey-Doak territory.
The first quarter ended scoreless, but early in the second, Ball found Dominic Hahnlan for a 34-yard touchdown to give Chuckey-Doak a 7-0 lead with 9:11 left in the half. Neither team would threaten again before the break, as the Knights went to the locker room with a slim advantage despite nearly identical offensive totals (140 yards to Claiborne’s 130).
Claiborne came out strong in the second half, but a defensive stop by Skyler Davis and a penalty forced a punt. Moments later, a Chuckey-Doak interception set up the Bulldogs’ first score of the night, knotting things at 7-7 late in the third quarter.
The Bulldogs then gambled on an onside kick and recovered, marching to the Black Knight 15 before Gustavo Alvarez stripped the ball away to end the drive. But Chuckey-Doak immediately gave it back on a fumble, and Claiborne capitalized. Lovin finished the short drive with a 7-yard touchdown, putting Claiborne ahead 13-7 with 6:26 left.
The Knights answered with poise. Ball, who completed 15 of 18 passes on the night (including 9 of 10 in the second half), led a crucial drive with key third-down completions to Hahnlan and Dom Atchison. On first down from the 26, Ball connected with Davis along the sideline for the tying score. But the extra point attempt was chaotic—appearing to be disrupted by an uncalled offsides—and was ultimately blocked, leaving the game tied at 13 with 2:32 remaining.
After a defensive stand capped by a Turbervile tackle for loss and a Hahnlan pass breakup, Chuckey-Doak regained possession at their own 38 with 1:21 to play. A tipped pass that Davis hauled in for a first down flipped momentum, and Ball followed with two completions to Atchison to move the ball into striking distance.
With just four seconds remaining, Ball calmly found Hahnlan on an 11-yard strike for the game-winning touchdown. Hahnlan, who had been battling double coverage all night, explained the decisive play: “They were covering my slants, so I faked inside and broke back out. Kypton put it right where it needed to be and I caught it for the score.”
The Black Knights improved to 4-3 on the season, finishing with 244 total yards to Claiborne’s 245. They’ll step out of conference play next week for Senior Night against the Volunteer Falcons. Kickoff is set for 7:00.
