Manchester’s Amillion Brown (12) hangs on to the jersey of North Adams’ Camren Childress (23), trying to make a tackle during last Friday night’s battle at Veterans Stadium. (Photo by Sarah Wilson-Dinsmore)
Manchester improves to 7-1 on the season
Manchester defenders Hunter Raines (21) and Amillion Brown (12) go high to break up a pass intended for North Adams’ Jackson Moore in the third quarter of last Friday night’s game at MHS. (Photo by Mark Carpenter)
North Adams’ ball carrier Bradley Robinson looks for running room in action from the Green Hornets’ 52-9 loss at Manchester on October 8. (Photo by Sarah Wilson-Dinsmore)
By Mark Carpenter
People’s Defender
It was an all-county gridiron battle at Veterans Stadium in Manchester on October 10 as the Greyhounds played host to the North Adams Green Hornets. The slot was originally meant to be a home game with Hannan (West Va.) but when Hannah disbanded their team, the Green Hornets stepped in as the opponent.
Coach Justin Schmitz’s Greyhound squad has only lost once in 2025 and they chalked up another mark on the left side of the ledger as they easily handled the visiting Green Hornets. The Hounds scored on their first play from scrimmage and never looked back as they cruised to a 52-9 victory to improve their overall mark to seven wins against just the one loss. Though defeating a non-OHSAA sanctioned team did not earn the Hounds any computer points, because of results from some other teams, Manchester jumped back into the playoff picture, moving up two spots to #12 in Division VII, Region 28.
“I’m really proud of the way our guys battled tonight,” said Coach Schmitz. “Our defense set the tone early, flying around and making big stops when we needed them. Offensively, we executed well and capitalized on opportunities to put points on the board.”
The Greyhounds wasted no time on Friday night taking control of the contest, scoring on their very first snap from scrimmage, a 24-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Amillion Brown to receiver Hunter Raines. The two-point run by Brown made it 8-0 with 8:59 left in the first quarter. After the North Adams offense went three and out, their punt was fielded by Manchester’s Joel Blythe and returned to the house for a 14-0 advantage.
“Hunter Raines stepped into a role on offense this week due to a player suspension,” explained Schmitz. “I was really happy with the way he stepped up for us. Amillion did a good job managing the game and keeping us on schedule. Joel had a huge game for us couldn’t be any prouder of his performance.”
The Manchester defense forced a fumble, setting the Hounds up at the Green Hornet’s 13. A two-yard scoring run by Blythe and a Levi Hargis two-point conversion run made it 22-0 with 2:39 left in the opening stanza. North Adams got their first points of the night just 31 seconds later when quarterback Chance Disher found receiver Jackson Moore in the end zone. The extra point kick was good to make it 22-7 after the first quarter.
Early in the second period, Blythe repeated his first quarter performance by returning another punt for a score, this time from 35 yards out and a two-point run by Brown made it 30-7. The Green Hornets’ offense was force to punt again and the result was disastrous as the snap was high and the punter was smothered by Manchester tacklers at the North Adams 10. The turnover resulted in a two-yard TD scamper from Brown and a two-point conversion run by Braylon Rickett and when the halftime break rolled around, it was the Greyhounds with a big 38-7 lead.
With that gap on the scoreboard, the running clock rule was in effect for the second half which made it go by rather quickly. In the third stanza, the Hounds got a two-yard touchdown run from Hargis with a Rickett conversion that made it 46-7 and later in the third after a brown interception, the home team got another scoring run from Brown to boost the lead up to 52-7. A fast-moving final quarter saw the teams trade interceptions and the final points of the night came when the Green Hornets recorded a safety on the game’s final play, making the final score 52-9 in favor of the home team.
“Defensively Avery Gilliam, Gage Stephens, Mason Vaughn, and Remington Hayslip built a brick wall up front,” said Schmitz. “A lot of the success we saw on the defensive side of the ball was attributed to them. Special teams also came up big — whether it was in the return game or putting us in good field position on kickoffs, they made a difference. At the same time, we shot ourselves in the foot with some dumb penalties that we have to clean up if we want to keep playing at a high level.”
“At 7–1, we’re in a good spot, but we have to keep sharpening the little details if we hope to stay in playoff contention.”
With their playoff hopes still very much alive, the Greyhounds have two regular season games remaining to secure a postseason berth. On Friday, October 17 they will travel north to face the Vanlue Wildcats, a team they defeated 48-0 back on September 30 and then close the regular season at home on October 24, hosting Fisher Catholic.
