In the trip to West Virginia last weekend, it was a big night for the Manchester offensive line as they manhandled the Hannan defense while their skill players racked up nearly 300 yards rushing in a 42-6 Greyhound victory, their first of the 2017 campaign.

 

271 rushing yards lead to Manchester road victory – 

Story by Mark Carpenter –
Photos by John Sowards –

It took nearly seven hours of bus riding for the Manchester Greyhounds on Friday, Sept.8, but the long trek was well worth it as they came back with their first win of 2017. The Hounds traveled to Hannan, W. Va. To face the host Wildcats and were rude visitors as they thrashed the Hanna defense to the tune of 271 rushing yards and six touchdowns on their way to a 42-6 triumph.
The pounding Manchester read-option attack was paced by three players with at least 80 yards, led by senior Mason Bilyeu, who racked up 104 yards on just eight carries. Back in action after an injury in Week One, quarterback Shaun Gould ran for 86 yards on 10 carries and halfback Nick Woolard contributed 83 yards on 10 rushing attempts. Kudos to the Greyhound offensive line, who opened up big running lanes all evening and helped the offense rack up 327 total yards.
The Greyhounds got on the board first on Friday night, when Woolard took the sixth offensive snap of the game and raced 20 yards for a a score and a 6-0 lead. The Manchester defense tacked on the next points, tackling Hannan quarterback Matt Qualls in the end zone and the Hounds held an 8-0 advantage at the end of the first period of play.
The Greyhound “D” forced a Wildcat turnover on downs and took advantage, drving 63 yards and getting a Gould to Denny Polley 22-yard scoring pass on a fourth and 13 play. Trent Dryden booted the extra point to put Manchester up 15-0 with 7:07 left in the first half. With just seven seconds left on the first half clock, Hannan’s Logan Nibert, who totaled 196 yards on the ground, busted loose on a 70-yard touchdown scamper, the first Wildcat points of the 2017 season and at the intermission, the Greyhound lead had been sliced to 15-6.

Returning from an injury suffered in the first game of the season, Manchester quarterback Shaun Gould prepares to handle the snap in action from the Greyhounds’ Sept. 8 trip to Hannan, W. Va. Gould had a big return to the gridiron, rushing 10 times for 86 yards and completing 3 of 8 passes for 56 yards and a touchdown as the Hounds came home with a 42-6 victory.

Hannan received the second half kickoff but were forced into another turnover on downs and the Hounds again made their defense’s effort worthwhile, as Bilyeu took a lateral from Gould and raced 55 yards to pay dirt and the Manchester lead had swelled to 21-6.
The Hounds took that 16-point margin into the fourth quarter, where they salted away the win with three touchdowns in the final 12 minutes. The first of that trio of scores came on a two-yard run by Gould and a Dryden extra point that made it 28-6. The Manchester defense continued to dominate the line of scrimmage and the offense put up another score on a 20-yard run by Woolard and a Dryden extra point that pushed the lead to 35-6.
The final score of the Greyhound victory came with just 1:28 to play in the game, a one-yard scoring jaunt by Polley. When Dryden booted through the uprights his fourth extra point of the night, it was time for the Hounds to not worry about a long bus ride home, but to celebrate their first win in three outings this fall by the 42-6 final score.
The string of appearances on the road continues this Friday night (Sept. 15) for the Hounds take their 1-2 record and travel to South Gallia to face the Rebels in a 7:30 p.m. kickoff.

Manchester
8 7 6 21 –42
Hannan
0 6 0 0 –0

Scoring Summary:
First Quarter:
MHS- Woolard 20-yd. run (kick failed)
MHS- Safety, Qualls tackled in end zone
Second Quarter:
MHS- Polley 22-yd. Pass from Gould (Dryden kick)
HHS- Nibert 70-yd. run (kick blocked)
Third Quarter:
MHS- Bilyeu 55-yd. run (kick failed)
Fourth Quarter:
MHS- Gould 2-yd. run (Dryden kick)
MHS- Woolard 20-yd. run (Dryden Kick)
MHS- Polley 1-yd. Run (Dryden kick)