Too many obstacles in Westview’s way

By ALLISON JONES
Special to The Messenger
Westview had to overcome a lot of obstacles going into Friday’s matchup at Camden. 
Head coach Don Coady was noticeably absent from the sidelines, staying home due to a mild case of pneumonia. The threat of severe weather that had postponed several other local games also loomed.
But a powerful Camden offense led by senior quarterback Tanner Hudson (227 passing yards, accounting for four touchdowns) proved to be too much, handing the Chargers their second loss of the season, 33-13.
Although the kickoff time was pushed up 10 minutes to try to avoid Mother Nature, a lightning strike postponed the game right before the first snap of the fourth quarter.
Referees initially called for a 30-minute delay at 9:18 p.m., but less than 15 minutes later, the game was called.
Camden took an early lead on its opening possession with a 70-yard drive capped off with a 28-yard run by Cody Hassell.
The Chargers looked sharp in their first possessions of each half.
After moving the ball to the Lion 22-yard line, the Chargers elected to go for it on 4th-and-10. Junior quarterback Matt Castleman surveyed the field but, unable to find a receiver, he elected to tuck the ball and run for a 13-yard gain.
Three plays later, the Chargers found paydirt with a 4-yard run by Quan Williams, but Cal Bradshaw’s PAT hit the left upright and fell no good, leaving the Chargers trailing 7-6.
But Hudson and the surging Lion offense continued to put points on the board. On the following possession, Hudson connected with a wide-open Alex Kee for a 54-yard gain. Two plays later, Hudson faked a hand-off to Hassell and then took off for a 15-yard touchdown.
It looked like the Chargers were going to catch a break after a holding call brought back a 60-yard touchdown pass from Hudson to Tra Webster. But three plays later on 3rd-and-24, Hudson and Webster connected again, this time with no flags on the field for a 74-yard touchdown.
The Lions struck again right before the half with another pass from Hudson, this one to Alex Wells giving the Lions a 27-6 lead at the half.
On the first possession of the second half, the running game — namely seniors Quan Williams and R.J. Scott — led the Chargers to the Camden 26 yard line.
That’s where Castleman connected with Ty Brown for a Charger touchdown.
“Once we started running the ball pretty good our offense was a lot smoother,” said assistant coach Trey Cantrell, who filled in for Coady during the game. “We have an explosive offense; we just have to execute better.”
But any hopes of a comeback were crushed on the ensuing kickoff. Hudson caught the ball at the 22-yard line and never looked back, going 78 yards for the final touchdown of the shortened game.
Westview’s quarterback tandem of Castleman and Ryne Vinson went a combined 6-for-11 for 107 yards in the loss, while Williams led the rushing attack with 14 carries for 43 yards, followed by Scott with nine carries for 30 yards.
Cantrell was disappointed with the cancellation of the game, not just because they couldn’t finish, but also because he felt his players were giving a strong effort.
“You want (your players) to know that you want to fight to the finish with them,” he said. “That’s the main thing I let them know is that we wanted to finish the game and we know that they want to finish the game, but the officials wouldn’t let that happen.”    
Camden will play host to Ripley next week. Kick-off for that game is set for 7:30. Published in The WCP 9.11.12

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