Kings Mountain’s Caleb Holland returned the opening kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown to spark a 42-point first quarter and a 42-6 victory over St. Stephens in the opening round of the state 3A playoffs Friday night at John Gamble Stadium.
Before four minutes were gone off the clock, the Mountaineers had built a 21-0 lead and it was evident the Indians would be no match for the top-ranked KM eleven.
Following Holland’s return and Jaden Ellis’s PAT for a quick 7-0 lead, the Mountaineer defense held the Indians to three and out and Xzorion Lenair returned a punt to the visitors’ 44. Teddy Jeffries took a handoff from quarterback Lamont Littlejohn and went off right tackle for a 14-0 lead.
With the Indians facing third and 22 from their own 21 on the next series, Jake Lloyd broke in front of the Indians’ intended receiver for an interception and a 36-yard burst down the visitors’ sideline for a 21-0 lead with just 3:55 gone off the clock.
Following another three and out highlighted by a five yard tackle for loss by AJ Richardson and a nine yard loss on Antonio Armstrong’s sack, the Indians had to punt again and Lenair returned it 42 yards for a touchdown to make it 28-0 with 6:25 still left in the first period.
Another three and out forced the Indians to punt again. This time, the Mountaineers took possession at their own 49. Following two carries by Holland for 17 and five yards – sandwiched around a 13-yard reception by Ja’Qualyn Sanders - Littlejohn hit Bryson Brown on a slant for a 35-0 lead with 3:38 on the clock.
The Indians picked up their initial first down on a face mask penalty against the Mountaineers, but the defense quickly took charge again and held them at midfield. After a holding penalty on KM, Littlejohn hit Jake Lloyd with a pass for 19 yards and a first down at the Indians’ 41 and Jeffries took care of the rest for a 42-0 lead with still 1:17 left on the first quarter clock.
That would be the end of the Mountaineer scoring, largely because the home team did not wish to run up the score. The coaching staff began substituting and all starters were on the sidelines in the second half supporting the second unit.
“We got everybody in the game and that’s good,” noted Coach Greg Lloyd. “We were able to rest some people. I doubt if the first team offense played maybe 12 plays. They didn’t get a lot of work but getting the lead helped us keep people fresh for this week. Simpson rolled his ankle but otherwise we’re pretty healthy. I think he’ll be able to play Friday.”
The Indians were able to finally get into KM territory late in the half but Lloyd’s interception stopped them at the 43, and after another change of possession the Indians were able to make it from their own 26 to the KM 46 but Micah Ward’s interception ended their hopes on the last play of the first half.
With the running clock rule in effect, the Indians ate up most of the third quarter on a 15-play, 80-yard drive that ended with a quarterback Peyton Young’s 11 yard TD run with 35 seconds on the clock.  Facing fourth and seven at the KM 22, the Indians first went for a field goal, which was good, but KM was penalized on the play for roughing the kicker which set up Young’s TD.
Josiah Hill gained 37 yards on five carries and Ward 22 on four totes to take the game clock down to 5:11 and guys like Dariyon Black, Jason Melton and Jakarri Roberts held St. Stephens at bay the rest of the night.
Because of the outstanding defensive and special team efforts, the Mountaineers had very few running plays by the first unit. Jeffries had just two carries for 89 yards and Holland two for 22. Lloyd had one reception for 19 yards, Brown one for 16, Zay Smith one for 14 and Sanders one for 13.

One of Kings Mountain High’s all-time great athletes was in the stands and pulling for St. Stephens in the Indians’ opening round 3A playoff game Friday against the Mountaineers at John Gamble Stadium.
Chris Johnson, who was assistant principal at St. Stephens for many years before being recently moved to the Alternative School as its principal, was one of the Mountaineer greats in both football and baseball during his youth. He played football under Coach Bob Jones and baseball for Coach Barry Gibson. He was very versatile in football playing tailback,  defensive  back,  wide receiver, corner and safety and returning kickoffs and punts. He made trips to Kings Mountain and to their opponent’s field every Friday night when his son Xavier was playing for Coach Greg Lloyd’s Mountaineers in mid-teens. Xavier is now living in Raleigh.
Before going into administration, Johnson taught and coached some in Bessemer City and schools in Catawba County.
A member of the Kings Mountain Sports Hall of Fame, Johnson was three-time All-SAC8 and Honorable Mention All-American during a great four-year career at Gardner-Webb. He intercepted 25 passes that’s still a school record. He is the only football player ever to be named Kings Mountain’s most valuable player two years straight.
“Sports has been good to me,” Johnson said prior to Friday’s playoff game. “It made me what I am today. What lessons you learn as an athlete come back to you. You go through rigors and it makes you a better person.”
He recalled that the 1975 and ’76 KMHS baseball teams won the conference championship. He played in the outfield and was one of the team’s best all-around players standing out in the field, at bat and on the base paths.
“I had a lot of good teammates,” he noted. “The 1975 team went to the state tournament. That’s the year we had David Lancaster, Tony Payne and a lot of other good players. We went deep in the third round. We beat Shelby twice during the regular season and then lost to them in the playoffs.”
He also played on some good basketball teams under Coach Allen Dixon.
“I had good teammates in basketball, too,” he noted. “People like Jim Thompson, Tommy Manning, Charles Bell and Butch Blalock. They were really good athletes.
“My son Xavier played football for Greg Lloyd at Kings Mountain,” he noted. “I saw a lot of their games then. 2014 was his senior year and we went up to West Henderson in the playoffs and almost froze to death. I think that’s the coldest I’ve ever been.
“Just to be on the ball field is great,” he said. “That’s where my heart was. Sports is still a family thing for me. I grew up without a dad and people in sports really embraced me. It’s always been a tradition for me.”
Friday was the first time Johnson has been back to Gamble Stadium since the new Brinkley Field was built and artificial turf put down on the playing field.
“This is very nice,” he said.

Running for the Cleveland Community College Yetis, 2022 Kings Mountain graduate Kohen Johnson made the NJCAA all region 10 cross country team. Kohen held off regional champion Spartanburg Methodist's fourth runner by 6 seconds to make the all-region team.   Region 10 consists of junior colleges from NC, SC, and Virginia.  Kohen Johnson is a freshman at Cleveland Community College and will be competing in the National Junior College cross country championship this Saturday, November 12th in Tallahassee Florida.                                                                           

The Lady Mountaineers defeated East Lincoln 25-14, 25-18 and 25-10 in second round action last Tuesday night at Parker Gym.
Meile Songaila had 13 kills, eight serve receptions, 20 digs and two service points.
Myracle Davis had 17 kills and two blocks.
Paige Bagwell had 12 assists, seven kills and four digs.
Camden Pasour dished out 25 assists and had 21 service points, two kills, two serve receptions and 12 digs.
Carolina Barber had 21 serve receptions, eight service points, three assists and 14 digs.
On Thursday, the Lady Mountaineers defeated a good West Henderson team in a close match 25-16, 22-25, 25-23 and 25-19.
Songaila had nine service points, 20 serve receptions, 21 digs and 18 kills.
Davis had 23 kills, five blocks and two digs.
Pasour had 12 service points, 24 assists, eight digs and three kills.
Bagwell had six service points, 24 assists, 19 digs and 12 kills.
Barber had six serve receptions, 29 service points and 27 digs.
The Lady Mountaineers fell 3-1 to Fred T. Foard Saturday afternoon in a match to decide the Western Regional representative for the state tournament.
 

The 3A West Regional cross country championship was held at Freedom High School in Morganton last week.
The Big South Conference individual champion Isaac Watts of Kings Mountain High School had another personal best time of 16.59 to finish 13th overall and qualify as the third individual form the West for the State 3A Championship meet Saturday in Kernersville.
Other scores for the Mountaineers were Max Thompson who finished 47th with an 18:37, Marty Lovingood finishing 75th with a 19.31, Nathan Inthavong 99th with a 20:22, Elliot Habel 140th with a 22:08, Hunter Cruise 153rd with a 23:08, and Nicholas Horn 155th with a 23:31.
For the KM women, Divinity Ervin finished 36th overall with a 20:57 but a heartbreaking eighth place as an individual just missing the seventh spot by two seconds. Brooke Waseman finished 56th with a 22:24, Sarah Eagle 73rd with a 23:16, Nicole Poston 115th with a 25:40, Kinley Putnam 117th with a 25:52, Kallie Hope 118th with a 25:53 and Cindy Ulloa 126th with a 26:51.
Both teams finished 15th out of the 29 in the region. ‘
“There were six seniors running for Kings Mountain,” noted Coach Rayvis Key. “Their leadership, faithfulness and perseverance will truly be missed next year.”

Kings Mountain High’s cross country teams finished second to South Point in last week’s Big South Conference championship and the Mountaineers’ Isaiah Watts won the individual championship.
Watts took an early lead and never looked back as he controlled the race with a consistent 20-second lead for a final time of 17:54.
Max Thompson and Stuart Cramer’s Jordan Granados were in a photo finish for second at 18:05 with Granados winning by a lean. South Point finished with 39 points, KM had 45, Hunter Huss 81, Crest 113 Forestview 114 and Ashbrook 130.
Also finishing with All-Conference honors for the Mountaineers were Hunter Cruise, who ran eighth with a 19:38 and Marty Lovingood running 16th with a 20:40. Other KM finishes were Nathan Inthavong 21st, Elliot Habel 25th, Nicholas Horn 31st, Luis Cedillo 36th, Nathaniel Kiser 45th, Marcus Williams 46th, Eric Bell 54th and Hayden Huss 57th.
The girls race was a huge surprise as Forestview’s Emily Raspanti finished first in 21:13.71, barely edging out Kings Mountain’s Divinity Ervin with a 21:23.90
Again, South Point poured in the numbers with six All-Conference girls to win the team championship with 28 points to KM’s 54. Forestview ran third with 57, Crest 96, and Ashbrook 144.
Other Kings Mountain runners making All-Conference were Brooke Waseman with a sixth place finish in 22:58, and Sarah Eagle who was 12th in 23.55. KM’s other finishers were Sindy Ulloa 23rd, Nicole Poston 29th, Kallie Hope 30th, Parker Wilson 32nd, Wren Ballard 40th and Emily Phelps 43rd.
The next race for the Mountaineers will be the NCHSAA West 3A Regional Saturday, October 29 at Freedom High School in Morganton.

A crowd of approximately 400 people attended the Kings Mountain Touchdown Club’s 100th anniversary celebration of Mountaineer football Thursday night at John Gamble Stadium.
Danny Ford, retired head football coach at Clemson, was the guest speaker. He was introduced by Kevin Mack, one of his star running backs on Clemson’s 1982 team which defeated Nebraska for the NCAA championship.
Mack, who still lives in Cleveland where he was Rookie of the Year and the leading rusher for the Browns in the 1980s, introduced his coach and both he and Ford recalled Mack’s adjustment time after joining the team right out of KMHS in 1980. But, after that adjustment early in his freshman season, Mack became one of the Tigers’ all-time leading rushers.
Before introducing Ford, Mack said football taught him a lot from the high school to the professional level and he thanked his high school coach, Dan Brooks who was in attendance, and Ford for molding him as a player and a man.
Speaking of Ford, he said “he drove his team to be good. The first couple of days I didn’t know if I’d make it. I had to adapt.”
Mack recalled that his freshman year at Clemson the Tigers went 6-5 but Ford was laying the groundwork for the next three years when the Tigers lost just three games and won the national championship.
“He produced some of the great teams in Clemson history,” Mack noted. “In his first game as head coach Clemson won the Gator Bowl over Woody Hayes and Ohio State.”

Kings Mountain High’s women’s volleyball team wrapped un another undefeated Big South 3A Conference championship last week at home with a 25-11, 25-18, 25-15 victory over county rival Crest.
Kings Mountain’s JVs also wrapped up another undefeated conference slate with a 25-18, 25-21 victory.
Meile Songaila had her usual all-around great game with nine digs, 12 service points, 16 kills and four blocks.
Myracle Davis finished with 17 kills, six blocks and four digs.
Paige Bagwell contributed 18 assists, 15 digs, five service points and two kills.
Camden Pasour had 14 assists, eight digs, five service points and three kills.
Caroline Barber provided six assists, 10 digs and 22 service points.
They JVs had a good all-around performance from Abigail Hedgepath, Ruby Osborne, Megan Harrison and Kenzlie Morris.
Hedgepath dished out 13 assists to go with five kills, five digs and three service points.
Osborne contributed four kills and three blocks.
Harrison had six kills and six digs.
Morris had three kills, a block and six service points.

South Point wrapped up the Big South Conference championship and Kings Mountain’s Kaliyah Watson qualified for the NCHSAA Western Regional in last week’s final BSC tournament at Lincoln Country Club.
Watson shot a 43 and finished third overall in the conference with a season average of 47 and was named to the All-Big South Conference team. Her season average also qualified her for the Western Regional October 18 at Cedar Rock Country Club in Lenoir.
South Point’s Ameila Connors shot a 39 to earn medalist honors and was also selected Big South Player of the Year.
Following South Point’s 130 were Crest at 159, Forestview 180 and Ashbrook 187. No other team had enough players to qualify for a team score. Those four teams also finished in the same order for the season as no one else had enough players for team scores. 

After a slow start, Kings Mountain’s Mountaineers blew past the Stuart Cramer Purple Storm 63-24 Friday night in Cramerton.
The win improved the Mountaineers’ record to 5-0 in the Big South and 8-0 overall heading into their final regular season home game Friday against the Ashbrook Green Wave. Cramer fell to 2-3 in the Big South and 3-5 overall.
The Mountaineers never trailed but the Storm answered KM’s opening touchdown drive to tie the game. Kings Mountain went on to lead 28-17 at the half and then broke it open over the final two quarters.
“That was a good win,” said KM head coach Greg Lloyd. “We played okay but it was not one of our best efforts. We left a lot of points on the field in the first half but we played a lot better in the second half.
“Stuart Cramer had a good game plan,” he added. “They were spreading us out with five wide and they played a 2-3 stack on defense. We adjusted well and played much better in the second half. We were happy to win and stay undefeated.”
With the Mountaineers playing without the services of one of their top running backs, Robert Kendrick, and Caleb Holland playing sparingly with an injury Teddy Jeffries took care of business with 163 yards rushing and five touchdowns. One of their best lineman, Eli Lipscomb, also sat out. “All three should be good to go this week,” Lloyd said.
The Mountaineers had one of their best nights passing as six different receivers chalked up 302 yards on 18 catches from quarterbacks Lamont Littlejohn and TJ Armstrong. Bryson Brown led the way with three catches for 92 yards and Zay Smith had six for 71. Ja’Qualyn Sanders had three for 61, Xzorion Lenair two for 36, Jake Lloyd three for 28 and Jeffries one for 14.
Brown took the opening kickoff eight yards to the KM 35 set up KM’s first TD drive. Two passes from Littlejohn to Zay Smith for 12 yards and Brown for nine put the Mountaineers in Storm territory at the 44. From there it took just four runs from Jeffries – the fourth for 28 yards – to get the scoring underway. Jaden Ellis’s PAT made it 7-0 with just two minutes gone off the clock.
Cramer showed some spunk, though, as Kamari Houze returned the ensuing kickoff to the KM 42. Behind the running and passing of senior quarterback Justin Rocquemore, the Storm knotted the score at 7-all on a 24 yard pass over the middle to Isaiah Johnson and Drew Crotts’ PAT.
It took the Mountaineers just four plays from scrimmage to go up 14-7 on a 27-yard pass from Littlejohn to Smith, and another Ellis PAT. A 16-yard run by Holland and a 17-yard Jake Lloyd reception set it up.
That score stood for the remainder of the quarter but Cramer was threatening again early in the second quarter when KM was flagged for a 15-yard pass interference call resulting in a first down at the KM 18. A 12-yard sack by Curtis Simpson and AJ Richardson set the Storm back to the 35 but a 21-yard run around end by Rocquemore resulted in a third and six at the KM 14. Richardson recovered a fumble and returned it to the 27 to get the Mountaineers out of the hole.
After an incomplete pass, Littlejohn found Bryson Brown 30 yards behind the Cramer defense and hit him in stride for a 73-yard touchdown and a 21-7 KM lead.
Backed up to their own 18 facing fourth and six, the Mountaineers punted but it was blocked by a heavy rush and Cramer’s Drew Crotts recovered the ball in the end zone for a TD to cut the margin to 21-14 with 4:49 left in the half.
The Mountaineers responded, though, as Lloyd returned the ensuing kickoff 25 yards to the KM 45. A 21-yard run by Holland and a 16-yard reception by Ja’Qualyn Sanders resulted in a first down at the Cramer 17 from which point it took just two carries by Jeffries and the PAT for a 28-14 KM lead.
Cramer’s Drew Crotts booted a 23-yard field goal to make it 28-17 at the break.
KM turned up the pressure on both offense and defense in the second half, scoring on four of five possessions to go up 56-17.
Taking over after holding the Storm to three and out to open the third, KM drove 53 yards in just seven plays to go up 35-17. Jeffries carried five times for 46 yards and scored from the one.
Following a Cramer punt at the 4:08 mark of the third, KM launched a 77-yard, seven play drive culminating with Jeffries’ fourth TD from the six yard line. Along the way Littlejohn threw passes to Smith for five yards, Brown for 10 and Xzorian Lenair for 28 to put KM on the Cramer 33. After a 13-yard run by Smith, Jeffries covered the remaining 20 on two carries to run the score to 42-17 going into the fourth quarter.
Following a Cramer punt, KM took just seven plays to go up 49-17 on Jeffries’ fifth TD, this one from 49 yards out. Sanders’ 23-yard reception was the other big play.
With 7:14 on the clock, KM pooch kicked and Stuart Cramer took over at its 30. On Cramer’s first play, Curtis Simpson intercepted a pass near the KM sidelines and rambled untouched into the end zone. Max Thompson’s PAT accounted for the final point and a 56-17 lead.
Cramer’s final points came with 4:21 remaining on a four yard run by Darius Sykes and Drew Crotts’ PAT.
Following an 18-yard kick return from Kameron Adams, KM’s reserves marched
44 yards in six plays to score on Micah Ward’s 12-yard run with 1:17 on the clock. Thompson added the point after. Along the way freshman quarterback TJ Armstrong hit Lenair with an eight yard pass and Josiah Hill had runs of 11 and 13 yards.
“Jeffries had a great game. We are very pleased with how he played,” Coach Lloyd said. “Our offense played well minus a few plays. Everybody did a good job. We just didn’t have our A game. We have to play a lot better this week. Ashbrook has a very good team. They’re one of the best teams around. Their record doesn’t show it but they played Crest and South one of their toughest games. They are real big and aggressive on defense. We’ll have to play well against them.
“This is a very important game,” he added. “If we win this we can do no worse than sharing the conference championship. Of course, we want to win them all.”
So far, Ashbrook hasn’t thrown the ball a lot but their running back Carmelo Bess is closing in on a 1,000 yards rushing season, finishing last week with 869 yards on 141 carries. He rushed for 175 yards against South Point and the Raiders had to score late to win 28-19.
 

Josiah Hill went around right end for a 52-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage to spark the Kings Mountain JVs to a 47-6 victory over Stuart Cramer Thursday night at John Gamble Stadium.
The win improved KM’s perfect record to 7-0 heading into a game Thursday at Gastonia Ashbrook. The JV Mountaineers haven’t lost a game since the first game of the 2020 season. They hope to complete another undefeated season with a win over Ashbrook this week and their final game against Crest at Gamble Stadium on Thursday, Oct. 27.
Coach Diron Bell’s charges scored on all but one of their first half possessions to go into the break up 35-0. The half ended with the Mountaineers on Cramer’s 17 yard line.
After Hill’s initial score, the Mountaineers held the Storm to three and out and their punt went just 27 yards to their own 43. Quarterback TJ Armstrong hooked up with fellow freshman William Vaughn for a touchdown and a 13-0 lead.
The Cramer offense was able to pick up a first down but then went three-and-out and punted out of bounds at the KM 35. With 4:35 on the clock, the Mountaineers went on a 65 yard scoring drive that featured an 18-yard run by Jamerius Williams around left end, a 13-yard run by Tyler McIntyre for a first down at the 36, and a pass from Armstrong to Barry Moore to the 31. Hill went the distance on a reverse, but the TD was called back for holding. KM found itself on the 28 facing fourth and three and was stopped short of the first down but Cramer went three and out after a big tackle for loss by Izaiah Jones and was forced to punt. KM’s Jayden Watkins fielded it at the KM 35 yard line and rambled 65 yards for a TD. Dom Davis ran a two-point conversion to make it 21-0.
KM’s defense continued strong, forcing a punt. KM took possession at its own 35. It took the Mountaineers just two plays – a 17-yard Armstrong to Moore pass and a 48-yard touchdown on a catch and run by Tyler Furman on a quick-out from Armstrong with 6:34 left in the half. Vance Johnson added the PAT for a 28-0 lead.
Again, with good defense from the whole team including two big tackles by Mahki Borders and Jamel Lee, the Mountaineers held Cramer to three and out and the Storm had to punt with 4:15 left in the half. KM took possession at its own 14 and needed only five plays to go up 35-0 at the half on a five-yard yard TD by Vaughn and Johnson’s PAT. Other key plays were two runs by Hill for a total of 25 yards and a 56-yard catch and run by Williams to the five.
A pass interception and 31-yard return by Hill set the Mountaineers up at the Cramer 14 on the visitors’ first play from scrimmage in the third quarter. Armstrong hit Vance Johnson with a TD pass with just 58 seconds gone off the clock to put the Mountaineers up 41-0.
Coach Bell turned the game over to his reserves and Cramer was able to drive 69 yards in 10 plays to score on a six-yard reception by Braxton Sample.
With Vance Johnson at quarterback, the Mountaineers second unit moved 61 yards in seven plays to score on a 10-yard run by Kamari Coleman with 1:43 left in the game. Johnson got the drive going with a nine-yard keeper followed by a 17-yard burst by Trenton Pettus to the Cramer 35. Runs of three yards by Watkins and seven by Pettus resulted in a first down at the 25. A penalty of 10 yards after Johnson’s run to the three moved the ball back to the 15. Pettus picked up five and Coleman got the final 10 to end the scoring.

Kings Mountain’s JV Mountaineers rolled over the Forestview Jaguars 42-0 for their fifth straight victory Wednesday at John Gamble Stadium.
The Mountaineers built a 28-0 lead in the first half with good play on offense, defense and special teams.
The defense set the tone early, holding the Jaguars to three and out on the game’s opening possession. After a punt was downed on the KM 48, the Mountaineers took just four plays to score on a 23-yard pass from freshman quarterback TJ Armstrong to freshman receiver William Vaughn.
Following another Forestview punt, the Mountaineers drove 78 yards in nine plays to go up 14-0 on a 29-yard touchdown pass from Armstrong to Barry Moore. Dom Davis added a two-point conversion.
Again, the defense held the visitors to three and out and Watkins returned a punt from the KM 46 to the Forestview 23. Jeremiah Hill covered the distance on one run and Vance Johnson added the PAT from placement to make it 21-0.
Forestview managed to keep possession for six plays but then had to punt again and KM’s Jayden Watkins returned it 58 yards for a touchdown. Johnson’s PAT made it 28-0 at the half.
Midway of the third period, KM’s Cole Groves recovered a fumble at the Forestview one yard line and Johnson’s QB sneak and PAT made it 35-0. Shortly afterward, the Mountaineers recovered a fumble at the Forestview 18 to set up Johnson’s five-yard TD run with 5:32 left.
Kings Mountain tries to keep its unbeaten streak alive Thursday with a trip to Belmont to face the South Point Red Raiders.

Kings Mountain jumped on Forestview in a hurry and rolled to their sixth straight victory Friday night on the Jaguars’ field in Gastonia, 48-7.
The Mountaineers won the coin toss but deferred to the second half. After Jaden Ellis’s kickoff went into the end zone, the Jaguars took over at their 20 but facing a third and 10 they went to the air and KM’s Zay Smith picked it off and was tackled at the eight. Quarterback Lamont Littlejohn handed off to Caleb Holland and he went untouched into the end zone and Ellis kicked the PAT and the rout was on.
Another three and out resulted in another punt, this one going just eight yards to the Forestview 29. Teddy Jeffries carried three times for 22 yards and a first down at the Jags’ seven, and Littlejohn hit Jake Lloyd with a touchdown pass and Ellis’s PAT made it 14-0 with 6:56 on the first quarter clock.
The Jaguars were forced to punt again when three plays from the 20 resulted in minus four yards. Another short Forestview punt put KM in business on the Jags’ 45 and on a third and nine Littlejohn hit Xzorion Lenair for a 44-yard TD pass and a 21-0 lead.
Following the kickoff, the Jaguars were actually able to get a decent drive going but a fourth and one pass was broken up at the KM 26 by Zay Smith on the first play of the second quarter.
Highlighted by good runs by Jeffries and Robert Kendrick and pass receptions by Ja’Qualyn Sanders and Lloyd, the Mountaineers drove to the Forestview 16. After some penalty exchanges and a seven-yard Littlejohn to Sanders pass, Kendrick scored from two yards out and Ellis booted the point after for a 28-0 advantage.
After a pooch kick and return put the Jags at midfield, they were able to get to the KM 40 before Lloyd blocked a punt and the Mountaineers recovered it at the Forestview 37 with 5:22 showing on the second quarter clock. It took just two minutes and 11 seconds for the Mountaineers to cover the distance in five plays. A screen pass to Jeffries for 21 yards put the Mountaineers at the Forestview five, and Jeffries took it in at the 3:11 mark for a 35-0 lead at the break.
The Mountaineers took possession following a punt at the Jaguar 47 with 4:19 left in the third. It took just two plays – runs of 42 and five yards by Jeffries – to run the score to 42-0. After the ensuing kick, the Jaguars were facing a second and 20 at their own 20 when they fumbled and KM’s AJ Richardson picked it up at the 15 and took it to the house for a 48-0 Mountaineer lead.
After recovering a fumble at the KM 17 the Jaguars scored their only TD on a 20-yard pass reception by Tylique “va” Aldridge with 2:55 left in the game.
“I thought we played well,” noted Mountaineer head coach Greg Lloyd. “We got off to a great start. We won the toss and deferred and we had the wind and were able to back them up. We just played well in all areas.
“Our defensive line dictated the flow of the game. We put a lot of pressure on them.
“We had good balance,” he added. “We were beat up a little physically but nothing major.”

His blockers opened a lane wide enough to drive a couple of 18-wheelers through, so Caleb Holland hauled the opening kickoff 82 yards for a touchdown to get the Kings Mountain Mountaineers rolling to a 56-0 victory over the North Gaston Wildcats Friday night in Dallas.
The Mountaineers went on to score six more times to carry a 49-0 lead into halftime. The reserves took over in the second half and tacked on the final TD.
“We got off to a good start,” noted Mountaineer head coach Greg Lloyd. “We got our nerves out early. We dominated in all three phases of the game. We tackled well, we blocked well and we made plays. Everybody (49 players) got to play and they all did a good job.”
Kings Mountain’s defense, which would hold the Wildcats to minus 22 yards rushing and just 44 passing for the game, held them to minus seven on their first possession. With the Cats taking over at their own 20 after KM’s kickoff went into the end zone, AJ Richardson’s quarterback sack left the hosts facing a fourth and 13 at the NG 19 and their punt only went 22 yards to the 41. After a two yard loss, KM quarterback Lamont Littlejohn threw a pass to Xzorion Lenair for 18 yards, then hit Ja’Qualyn Sanders for a 25-yard touchdown and Jaden Ellis’ PAT made it 14-0.
The KM defense held the ‘Cats to another three and out and Lenair returned a punt 15 yards to the North 44. A Littlejohn pass to Bryson Brown plus a five-yard NG penalty put the Mountaineers at the North 20. Littlejohn hit Sanders with a 12-yard pass and Teddy Jeffries’ run covered the final eight yards for a 21-0 lead.
Aided by a 15-yard penalty against the Mountaineers, the ‘Cats were able to get to the KM 33 yard line but a fourth and eight sack by Eli Lipscomb stopped them at the 42. The Wildcat defense was able to stop the Mountaineers’ first unit on downs for the only time and forced a punt.
Taking over at the North 30 following a punt, it took KM just three carries by Kendrick – the final one for three yards – to go up 28-0.
A Micah Ward fumble recovery at the North 26 set up a 20-yard pass to Brown, followed by a three-yard burst up the middle by AJ Richardson for another TD. The extra point made it 35-0 with 9:35 still left in the half.
North had to punt from its own eight and KM took possession at the ‘Cats 41. KM went to a wildcat offense and two runs by Kendrick resulted in a first down at the 23, from which point Zay Smith took it to the house for a 42-0 lead with 4:52 still left in the half.
“Zay got nicked up a little bit but I think he’ll be ready to go this week,” Lloyd noted.
Simpson, Richardson and Antonio Armstrong sacked the NG quarterback to force a punt which Lenair returned 45 yards for a TD at the 3:08 mark to send the Mountaineers into halftime with a 49-0 lead.
North Gaston had just as tough a job moving the ball on the KM backups as it did while the starters were on the field. Facing fourth and two on their own 20 after their longest run of the night - 11 yards by JJ Gordon - the Cats went for the first down but a pass fell incomplete. KM’s Micah Ward covered the distance in two carries and Max Thompson kicked the point-after to end the game.
 

A pass interception by Jayden Watkins to stop North Gaston’s game-opening possession at the KM 38 yard line got the Mountaineers going to a 48-16 victory over the Wildcats in Thursday’s junior varsity football game at Gamble Stadium.
The win kept the Mountaineers undefeated with a 4-0 record. They’ll be at home again Wednesday at 7 p.m. against the Forestview Jaguars.
After the INT, it took the Mountaineers just nine plays to score on a one-yard sneak by quarterback Vance Johnson. Josiah Hill had three carries for 36 yards, Tyler McIntyre two for 20 and Dom Davis two for 10 to set up Johnson’s sneak.
Kings Mountain went on to lead 28-0 at the half and 48-8 after three quarters. The final quarter was played with a running clock.
Josiah Hill scored from 15 yards out and Tyler McIntyre ran for a two-point conversion to put the Mountaineers up 14-0.
The Wildcats punted on the second play of the second period. McIntyre got off a 52-yard run to the North six and Hill took it in the end zone on the next play. The PAT made it 21-0.
After forcing another punt, the Mountaineers drove 56 yards to score on a three-yard run by McIntyre. With 0:51 left in the half. Johnson’s PAT made it 28-0 at the break. A 17-yard run by Hill and an offside penalty on North Gaston gave KM a first and goal at the 10, and an offsides penalty on the Wildcats set up McIntyre’s TD.
The Mountaineers recovered an onside kick at their own 48 to start the second half. Hill immediately swept right end for a 22-yard gain, followed by a North personal foul penalty which set the Mountaineers up at the North 27. Two plays later Hill circled right end for a 24 yard TD and Johnson’s PAT made it 35-0.
North Gaston finally got on the board on a nine-yard TD reception by Kameron Dial and a two-point conversion pass. Kings Mountain answered with a Vance Johnson kickoff return to the 45, followed by a Jayden Watkins 55-yard TD run for a 41-8 KM lead.
On North’s first play following the ensuing kickoff, KM recovered a fumble at the North 10 and Kamari Coleman took it in the end zone on the first play from scrimmage to make it 48-8.
With the clock running, North took advantage of a pass interference call on KM, followed by a pass reception of 17 yards by Carter Mason which was followed by a 15-yard late hit penalty on the Mountaineers. KM was flagged for interference again, resulting in a first down at the eight and North’s Isaiah Ewing caught a pass for the TD and another for the two-point conversion to account for the final score.

The son of a former Kings Mountain football player returned the opening kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown to give visiting homecoming foe Hunter Huss an early lead of 7-0 but the Mountaineers rebounded for a 44-14 victory in their first Big South 3A Conference game Friday at John Gamble Stadium.
The Huskies, who came to town with less than 30 players and would lose a few more from injuries during the contest, stayed right with the home team for the first half after sophomore Jayden Gash, whose father Daryl played for the Mountaineers in the early nineties, made that early stunner.
The Huskies’ defense held the Mountaineers to three and out on their first possession but the KM defense began turning the tide moments later when it blocked a Huss punt which Robert Kendrick recovered at the Huskies’ 38. Teddy Jeffries had three straight carries behind good blocking by the O-line to set up a three-yard touchdown run by big AJ Richardson and Jaden Ellis split the uprights for the tying extra point. Kings Mountain didn’t trail again but Huss was still in the game until late in the third quarter when the Mountaineers broke away from a 22-14 halftime lead to put its fourth straight win in the bag and drop the Huskies to 1-3.
“Everybody was slow getting going,” noted KM offensive coordinator/line coach Kevin Cruise. “We didn’t play our best but we got a lot better in the second half.”
The Mountaineers took the lead for good after the second Huss possession. After Ellis’s kickoff was returned to the Huskies’43 the Huskies were penalized 25 yards for holding and a late hit on the same play. Facing third and six from the Huss 18, KM’s Jason Melton sacked Huss QB Javorion Brown to force a punt which gave KM the ball at the Huss 45. A 28-yard Lamont Littlejohn to Jake Lloyd pass gave the Mountaineers a first down at the Huss 17 and Caleb Holland covered the distance on just two carries to put the Mountaineers up 13-7.
The Mountaineers covered 65 yards in less than two minutes to take a 19-7 lead on consecutive catch and run pass plays from Littlejohn to Xzorion Lenair for 37 yards and 25 yards and the TD to Teddy Jeffries.   The Huskies dialed long distance again, though, as Headley got loose for a 75-yard TD to make it 19-14.
Kings Mountain moved the ball steadily down field behind the running of Holland and Jeffries and a big sweep of left end by Zay Smith to the Huss nine. Ellis came on to kick a 28-yard field goal to put the Mountaineers up 22-14 at intermission.
The defense came up big with a blocked punt at the 6:58 mark of the third quarter that set up the Mountaineers at the Huss 13. Holland had runs of six and 12 yards sandwiched around a five-yard illegal procedure call and Ellis again was true on the PAT for a 29-14 lead.
With Huss attempting to go for it on a fourth and 10 from their own 45 to get back in the game, KM’s Curtis Simpson and Eli Lipscomb sacked Headley. Littlejohn’s scrambling pass of 12 yards to Jake Lloyd and Zay Smith’s first down run of 10 yards for a first down at the Huss 12 set up a Jeffries’ two-yard TD run and a two-point conversion pass from Bryson Brown to Simpson for a 37-14 lead with 10:18 left.
With Huss facing third and 23 from its own 15, Simpson and Eli Lipscomb combined for a sack and the Huskies had to punt. Xzorion Lenair returned it from the 50 to the Huss 11. Smith got off a 10-yard run for a first and goal at the one. Huss was able to come up with two tackles for minus four yards before Robert Kendrick scored from five yards out and Ellis kicked the PAT to round out the scoring.
“It was good to get off to a 1-0 start in the conference,” said Mountaineer head coach Greg Lloyd. “Huss came to play. They were improved and we were impressed. They played really hard and they have good team speed.”

Kings Mountain Middle School’s football team opened conference play Wednesday at John Gamble Stadium with a 42-0 win over West Lincoln. The win gave the Patriots a 1-1 overall mark heading into a game yesterday at North Lincoln.
Christian Jarrett returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown and Dakota Smith added a two-point conversion to get the rout underway.
Nazir Davis had three TD receptions as well as a two-point conversion run.
Devin Hopper had a pair of TD caches and Xavier Hutchens added another receiving score.
Camren Houser also had a rushing touchdown.
Defensive standouts included Malachi Powell with a forced fumble that was recovered by Graylon Koontz; and Brandon Ayers and Jarrett Linder each had a sack.

Kings Mountain High junior outside hitter Meile Songaila was named North Carolina’s Outstanding Volleyball Player of the Week for the week of August 22-28 by MaxPreps.
MaxPreps is an American website that specializes in coverage of American high school sports. This siite is owned by Paramount Global and is a division of CBS Sports. Founded on August 1, 2002, the company has covered up to 29 sports including boys, girls and co-ed sports. MaxPreps is currently headquartered in El Dorado Hills, California.
Songaila’s statistics for the week were 79 kills, 5.27 kills per game, 55 digs. 3.67 digs per game, 68 receptions, 4.53 receptions per game, five assists, three aces and five blocks.
Kings Mountain High volleyball is undefeated in the Big South Conference.

Kings Mountain High’s women’s volleyball team posted two impressive victories in Big South Conference play last week, defeating Hunter Huss 25-7, 25-6, 25-3 Tuesday and North Gaston 25-10, 25-7, 25-8 Thursday.
Meile Songaila and Myracle Davis were strong along the nets Tuesday with 10 and eight kills, respectively. Songaila also had a block and nine service points.
Camden Pasour dished out 17 assists to go along with two kills and seven service points.
Paige Bagwell was strong overall with 15 assists, seven kills and 20 service points.
Caroline Barber had 10 serve receptions and eight service points.
Against North Gaston, Songaila provided four serve receptions, 14 kills, one block, three digs and 12 service points.
Pasour had 21 assists, 19 service points and three kills.
Bagwell had 11 assists, five kills, a block and six service points.
Davis had 16 kills and two blocks.
Barber had 11 serve receptions and seven digs.
The Lady Mountaineers were scheduled to go to Gastonia Forestview yesterday and will host South Point Thursday before hitting the road again to play at Stuart Cramer on September 20 at 4:30 and Crest in Shelby on September 22. They continue on the road for games at Ashbrook on September 27, Hunter Huss on September 29 and Cox Mill on October 3 before hosting North Gaston on October 4 at 5:30.

Kings Mountain’s Mountaineers open Big South 3A Conference action against the much-improved Hunter Huss Huskies Friday night at 7:30 at John Gamble Stadium. It’s also KM’s homecoming game.
The Huskies, who didn’t win a game last year when they started sophomores at almost every position, are looking for a good season in the BSC this time around.
True, they come in with a 1-2 record but their two losses were to two very good football teams, 32-27 to Central Cabarrus and 45-0 to a Hickory Ridge team that could be one of the best in the state.
In between those two contests, the Huskies defeated perennial mountain power Hibriten 49-42.
Kings Mountain comes in with a 3-0 mark with impressive wins over county rivals Shelby and Burns sandwiched around a victory over mountain power Asheville. But that’s all in the past and Coach Greg Lloyd’s staff and players will be focused on going through what should be a very competitive conference race.
“Hunter Huss is a much improved team,” Lloyd noted. “They are more mature than they were last year and it’s really paying off for them. They have good speed and their quarterback is very good and they have four or five guys that are really fast. We can’t look past them. We definitely have to play better against them.”
Several Huskies have put up some impressive numbers as they have a balanced running and passing attack. Quarterback Javarion Brown is hitting 50 percent of his pass attempts with a 99-yard per game average and five touchdowns. He has several good receivers such as Gene Neely and fast runners like Neely, Jayden Gash and Talik Chambers.
Their defense is also much improved, led by free safety Zamarius Gladden and defensive end James Taylor each with an average of 10 tackles per game. Quashaun Mack is averaging two sacks per game.
Of course, the Mountaineers have put up some great stats as well. Quarterback Lamont Littlejohn has hit on 31 of 49 passes so for 439 yards and six TDs and has spread the passes around to the likes of Jake Lloyd, Caleb Holland, Bryson Brown, Teddy Jeffries, Ja’Qualyn Sanders and Robert Kendrick. They also handle a lot of the rushing load along with big AJ Richardson who is the go-to guy in short yardage situations, especially inside the opponents’ 10-yard line.
Many of the above-mentioned standouts are also defensive leaders, including Lloyd who is averaging 8.5 tackles per game and Curtis Simpson and Richardson with seven and four sacks, respectively.
The Mountaineers will go into this week’s game – and hopefully the rest of the season – in top shape.
“During the off week we worked basically on ourselves,” Coach Lloyd said. “We worked a lot on the kicking game and I feel like it’s going to be better. Overall, we want to see some improvement and just keep doing what we’ve been doing and get better at it every week. We want to keep the ball in front of us.”

Kings Mountain High’s women’s volleyball team opened Big South 3A Conference play Friday at Donald L. Parker Gymnasium with a sweep of the Ashbrook Green Wave.
The varsity won 25-4, 25-9, 25-5 after the JVs won 2-0 with identical 25-8 scores.
Camden Pasour had a big night for the varsity ladies with 27 assists and 14 service points.
Meile Songaila registered 15 kills and also had a block and four serve receptions. Myracle Davis added 12 kills, Paige Bagwell eight kills and three assists and Caroline Barber 14 service points, eight serve receptions and four digs.
In the JV game, Abigail Hedgepath had 16 assists, Brooke Hamrick five kills and seven service points and Ava Tipton eight serve receptions and seven service points.
In a non-conference match with a good Hickory team on Tuesday, the varsity won 25-20, 25-19, 20-25, 26-24 and the JVs won 25-7, 25-14.
All of the Lady Mountaineers had a good all-around game. Songaila had 16 kills, 16 digs, 19 service points and two blocks. Davis added 22 kills and five blocks. Pasour had 15 service points, 25 assists, three kills, 10 digs and one block and Bagwell provided 13 assists, 11 kills, two service points and five digs.
The JV ladies won 25-7, 25-14. Ava Tipton had six serve receptions, five digs and three service points. Abigail Hedgepath added two digs, six kills, 11 assists and three service points; and Brooke Hamrick had five kills, one block, two digs and nine service points.
Kings Mountain was scheduled to host Hunter Huss yesterday. The Lady Mountaineers will travel to North Gaston Thursday and Forestview September 13 before returning to their home court on September 15 against South Point.

Former Kings Mountain High School football star Kobe Paysour stood out in several Mountaineer victories during his prep days and Saturday was a big factor in another Mountaineer team – the Appalachian State Mountaineers – losing one of the highest scoring games in North Carolina collegiate football history.
The redshirt freshman wide receiver helped his North Carolina Tar Heels edge Appalachian State 63-61 in Boone.
Playing in the place of UNC All-American wide receiver Josh Downs, who was injured in Carolina’s game the week before, Paysour caught all eight passes that quarterback Drake Maye sent his way for 92 yards and a touchdown. His longest catch was for 21 yards.
The Tar Heels fell behind 21-7 early but made a huge comeback and the lead changed hands numerous times the rest of the way.
Paysour started his freshmen through junior seasons at KMHS and set school records with 71 receptions for 1,596 yards and 26 touchdowns. Before his senior season, Cleveland County Schools were closed because of COVID and he played his senior season at Gaffney High School and led the Indians in receptions and yardage. He returned to KMHS after Gaffney’s season ended and had the grades and credits to enter Carolina in the spring semester. He spent last football season as a redshirt.
He was a High School All-American his sophomore year at KMHS when he caught 60 passes for 1,138 yards and 16 touchdowns. For his prep career he caught 195 passes for 3,912 yards and 51 touchdowns, including 37 passes for 534 yards and five TDs in seven games at Gaffney. He was All-Conference all four years of his high school career and was an All-American his sophomore year at KMHS.

Kings Mountain’s Mountaineers completed their non-conference play Friday at Gamble Stadium with an impressive 27-0 victory over the previously unbeaten Burns Bulldogs. The Mountaineers have an open date this week and will begin Big South Conference play at home on Friday, September 16 against the Hunter Huss Huskies.
The Bulldogs, who had two big victories over their other 3A non-conference opponents Forestview 42-0 and Crest 35-12 coming in, kept the game close in the first half and trailed just 7-0 at the break.
But with good blocking by linemen like Alex Jackson, Michael Lubas, Isaiah Eskridge, Dalton Smith, and Treston Spikes the Mountaineers put two more touchdowns on the board in the third period and scored again in the fourth stanza to put the game away.
“We played really well,” noted KM head coach Greg Lloyd. “We won both lines of scrimmage. We controlled the clock and kept their defense on the field. It was a good night. That was our second shutout in a row and we’re really proud of that.”
Kings Mountain had a balanced offensive attack with 138 yards in the air and 204 on the ground. Burns had a good night in the middle of the field but the KM defense came up big in scoring situations. The Bulldogs finished with 116 yards rushing but the Mountaineers held their talented passing quarterback Ben Mauney to a season low 78 yards.
“We wanted to get after him early and make sure he didn’t have time to throw because his receivers are really dangerous,” Lloyd said. “They have good running backs. I thought AJ Richardson and Curtis Simpson, our defensive ends, put a lot of pressure on them.”
Kings Mountain’s defense set the tone for the game shortly after the opening kickoff when a Burns punt was partially blocked and the Mountaineers took over at the Burns 22. On KM’s fourth offensive play, quarterback Lamont Littlejohn hit Thomas Fair with a 12-yard pass for a touchdown and Jaden Ellis kicked the point-after with 5:45 on the clock.
The Mountaineers would threaten again on their next possession, driving from their own five following a Burns punt to the Burns 24 but the Bulldogs’ Lamont Wilson intercepted a pass. And, they drove from their own seven to the Burns 26 late in the half but a field goal attempt missed with five seconds on the clock.
Kings Mountain had back-to-back scoring drives that ate up most of the third quarter to take a 21-0 lead. Taking over on their own 44 after Caleb Holland’s kickoff return, the Mountaineers covered the 56 remaining yards in eight plays to take a 14-0 led on Holland’s 13-yard run off tackle and Ellis’s PAT with 7:48 on the clock.
After the ensuing kickoff, Burns put the ball in play at its own 22 and, on first down, Mauney fumbled while being sacked by Simpson. Richardson scooped the ball at the nine and took it in the end zone, giving KM two TDs in just 21 seconds.
KM’s final TD drive began at the 11:23 mark of the fourth quarter  when  the
KM defense forced a three and out. Taking over on their own 33, the Mountaineers covered the distance in just eight plays with the big one being a 42-yard reception by Jake Lloyd for a first down at the Burns five to set up a three-yard TD run by Richardson.
Burns took over at its own 22 and found itself in another deep hole as KM’s Rodney Unnash sacked Mauney for a seven yard loss. They had to punt with 5:32 left and wouldn’t touch the ball again until just 32 seconds remained on the clock.
“I think we won all three phases of the game,” Lloyd said. “I thought our special teams were really good and did a good job. It was a good night and our second shutout in a row and we’re really proud of that. We came out in good shape. We didn’t get anybody hurt and we should be healthy when we start conference play.”
With an open date this week, Lloyd said the Mountaineers will work on “fundamentals and our passing game. We’re off to a good start but we can get much better. We’ll probably work some with new guys and try to improve overall.”
 

The lightning that sent teams and fans out of John Gamble Stadium for 45 minutes Friday night was nothing like the yellow flags flying all over the place in the first quarter of the Mountaineers’ non-conference game with Asheville.
But, things finally settled down and the Mountaineers rolled to their second straight win 24-0.
“We were behind the chains starting out,” Coach Greg Lloyd noted. “We were out of rhythm but the more we got into the game it was cleaner. We were shooting ourselves in the foot with some penalties and turnovers.”
The Mountaineers got going early in the second quarter after a Jaden Ellis kickoff into the end zone made Asheville’s offense start on its own 20. Backed up on their 10-yard line following a Curtis Simpson sack, the Cougars had to punt and it traveled just 19 yards and KM took over on Asheville’s 33 yard line. A roughing the passer flag on the Cougars gave KM a first down at the 22 and an 11-yard pass from Lamont Littlejohn to Bryson Brown and three rushes by Teddy Jeffries put the Mountaineers into the end zone. Jaden Ellis’ PAT made it 7-0 with 7:24 left in the half.
With 44 seconds left on the first half clock, Simpson blocked a punt and KM took over on the Asheville 17. Three KM passes fell incomplete, but Ellis came on to boot a 34-yard field goal to send the Mountaineers into halftime with a 10-0 lead.
The flags didn’t fly as much in the second half and the Mountaineer offense did a good job of running the clock. The defense continued to shine as it would hold the Cougars to 51 yards total offense – 24 on the ground and 27 in the air on just four of 14 completions. Kings Mountain finished with 199 yards total offense. Sanders caught four passes for 53 yards, Brown and Zay Smith two each for 17 yards each, and Jeffries one for four. Jeffries and Caleb Holland led the rushing with 36 and 35 yards, respectively.
“Everybody played hard,” Coach Lloyd noted. “We were able to keep the ball away from them. After a tough one at Shelby it was a good win for us. We are happy to be where we are.”
After the Asheville punter dropped the snap on a punt attempt midway of the third period, the Mountaineers marched 49 yards in 11 plays to go up 17-0 on a five-yard touchdown run by Holland and Ellis’s PAT. Facing fourth and one at the Asheville 40, big AJ Richardson plowed two yards for a first down at the 38 and two runs by Kendrick made it first and ten on the 25. A face mask penalty on Asheville resulted in a first down at the 15 and three straight runs by Holland put the Mountaineers in the end zone with 29 seconds left in the quarter
Once again the KM defense came up big as Micah Ward’s tackle for a two-yard loss forced a 21-yard punt by the Cougars. Taking over at the Asheville 49, the Mountaineers continued to work the clock. Smith made a remarkable sideline catch for a first down at the Asheville 36 and Holland carried three times for 11 yards to set up a 25-yard TD pass from Littlejohn to Sanders who made an over the shoulder catch in the end zone for the final TD with 6:56 remaining. The defense held the Cougars to another three and out and the KM took over with just 5:15 remaining. Led by the running of Feemster and Ward and a 10-yard reception by Sanders, the Mountaineers ran the clock down to 51 seconds before Asheville intercepted a pass. But it was too little, too late.
The Mountaineers were without one of their top players, senior Jake Lloyd who developed a mild case of COVID after turning in a strong all-around effort in the Mountaineers’ opening win at Shelby the week before, but his replacements played very well.
“Jake looks fine and I think he may be able to play Friday,” Coach Lloyd said. “We’ll just have to wait and see.”

A scoop and score by the Mountaineer defense on the first series of the game sparked a 35-6 victory over rival Shelby in the opening JV game Thursday night at Gamble Stadium.
The Mountaineers won the opening coin flip and opted to go on defense. Facing fourth and 12 at the KM 48, Shelby’s Santana London fumbled and Kings Mountain’s Zavion Wilson scooped up the ball and rambled 55 yards for a touchdown.  Vance Johnson kicked the point-after and the rout was underway.
The defense came up big again on Shelby’s next possession as freshman Izaiah Jones sacked the Shelby QB for a 14-yard loss at the Lions’ 25. After a five-yard delay of game penalty on the Lions, they attempted a fourth and 24 punt from the 20 but a bad snap went into the end zone and KM’s Kameron Adams recovered it for a safety and a 9-0 lead. Shelby’s free kick from the 20 was returned by KM’s Kameron Adams for a 60-yard TD and a 14-0 lead.
The defense showed its stuff again on Shelby’s next possession as Dom Davis blocked a Lions’ punt and returned it 15 yards to the Lions’ one yard line. Quarterback TJ Armstrong scored on a sneak and Vance Johnson’s PAT made it 21-0.
The KM defense came up big again as back-to-back sacks by Davis and Semaj Odems forced a Shelby punt. KM took over on its own 34 and Kameron Adams picked up 10 yards on the final play of the first period to spark an 8-play, 66 yard touchdown drive. After a seven yard run by Adams, Shelby was penalized 15 yards for a horse collar penalty and the Mountaineers had a first and 10 at the Lions’ 35. Facing fourth and 15 from the 25, Armstrong found Lanair behind the Shelby D in the end zone and hit him for the TD. Johnson’s PAT made it 28-0 with 6:22 on the first half clock.
Shelby was able to get its only TD of the night when Calvin Ramseur took the ensuing kickoff 90 yards to the end zone.
Led by good blocking and the running of Hill and Adams, the Mountaineers drove 60 yards to score on a 31-yard pass from Armstrong to Xzorion Lenair with 1:12 left in the half. Johnson’s PAT split the uprights and KM went into the break with a 35-6 lead.
Feeling comfortable that it would hold, the KM coaching staff used the second half to work most of – if not all – their players into the game. Shelby was able to get to the Mountaineer 31 late in the third period but a 9-yard sack by KM’s Zavion Wilson and Dom Davis stopped the Lions dead at the KM 40. After that, the Lions stayed deep in their own territory the rest of the night.
The JVs will be road warriors for a while now. They go to Asheville this Thursday, then to Burns on September 1. They will have a bye on September 8 and go to Hunter Huss on September 15. After that they will be back in Gamble Stadium for back-to-back home games against North Gaston and Forestview.

Kings Mountain’s Mountaineers opened their 100th season of football Friday night with a victory that will be remembered for a long time. They went across Buffalo Creek and defeated their longest and toughest rival Shelby 28-26.
“It was a big win for us,” said KM head coach Greg Lloyd. “It was very exciting. We played well against one of the top teams in the state and didn’t have any turnovers. We cramped some in the second half and that hurt us, but on Shelby’s last drive our defense got enough stops.”
The Lions, who had trailed 21-6 at the half, rebounded in the third quarter and got within 21-13. KM quarterback Lamont Littlejohn, who threw for all four MountaineersTDs, hit Jake Lloyd with a short toss and he followed great blocking from the left side of the Mountaineer line to score on a 14-yard play. Jaden Ellis booted his fourth straight extra point to put the Mountaineers up 28-13, and it would prove to be big because Shelby’s offense wasn’t through. They got two quick TD’s to make it interesting at the end.
Following a punt return to the KM 36, it took just four Daylin Lee passes to pull the Lions within 28-20 with 6:12 remaining. The Shelby defense stood big, forcing a KM three and out, and Shelby took over after a KM punt was downed on the Lions’ 32. Back-to-back penalties on the Mountaineers moved the ball to the 42 and Lee went to the air and pulled the Lions to within 28-26 but the KM defense stopped their two-point conversion attempt with 2:35 left.
KM took possession at its own 20 and the Mountaineers got their second wind. A first down run by Teddy Jeffries went for 22 yards to the 42 and then the offensive line and big Mountaineer senior AJ Richardson took charge. Two totes by Richardson gave the Mountaineers a first down at the Lions’ 46. The Lions took their final time out with 1:35 left and Richardson carried twice more to the 37. KM intentionally took a five-yard delay of game penalty with 11 seconds left, and Littlejohn took a knee to end the game.
“After their last score we were really expecting an onside kick,” Lloyd noted. “We were laying for it. But Jeffries got us out of the hole and AJ played very well. Both our blocking and running was very good even though they were a little tired.”
Littlejohn had one of – if not his best – games in his second year as KM’s starting QB, hitting 14 of 20 passes for 221 yards. He did not throw an interception. He hit Ja’Qualyn Sanders with a short pass and Sanders broke two tackles and rambled 42 yards for the game’s first TD in the opening period. Jaden Ellis booted the point after for a 7-0 lead.
Shelby battled back and scored but missed the point-after, and on the second play of the second period Littlejohn hit Bryson Brown for a 53-yard catch and run to make it 14-6.
With 3:14 left in the first half, the Mountaineers began a 60-yard scoring march which included Littlejohn passes of six yards to Sanders and 22 to Lloyd for a first down at the Shelby 15. He hit Robert Kendrick for an eight-yard TD pass with 7.5 seconds on the clock and Ellis added the PAT for the 21-6 halftime lead.
Even though some Mountaineers cramped up some, Lloyd gave Shelby credit for the big second half comeback.
“It was good play on their part,” he said. “They have 22 starters back (11 on offense and 11 on defense) and a lot of our players were going both ways. They have a very good team and we had to dig deep.
“I thought we played really well in the first half. They usually score 40 to 50 points on most teams but we chewed up some clock and played really well.
“I thought our blocking and running was really good in the last three minutes.”