Freeman, York Rally Late To Hold Off Union County

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>YORK |</strong> Back and forth they went as York and Union County were winless on the year coming into the night, and were seeking their first win of the 2025 season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This was one was a thriller.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>York held off the Yellow Jackets with a fourth down stop on the 5-yard line with 16 seconds left in the contest for a 27-20 win on Friday night.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“They just kept fighting and scratching and clawing. (Union County) is a much better football team than what their record shows. I knew that going in and I was worried that our kids didn't know that. A win's a win. They are hard to come by but coach (Quinnon Isom) has done a great job, getting them prepared over there. I thought our team responded at halftime. I challenged them to come out and play better ball, especially on offense because we didn't play well in the first half and then the second half, we had the fumble but other than that, we played pretty good offensively. Our defense struggled a little bit tonight, but like you said, they came through when it mattered,” York head coach Dean Boyd said.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1824561' first='Sondrell' last='Worthy'] </strong>made the first big play of the night on a third down on the Yellow Jackets' opening possession that brought the ball to midfield. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1821155' first='LJ' last='Bates'] </strong>showed good burst on a 10-yard gain inside York territory. It seemed like they were primed and ready to get on the board first, until <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1819738' first='Saadiq' last='Worthy'] </strong>broke up a pass on third down. The Yellow Jackets opted to go for it, but it didn't work as they turned it over on downs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>York returned the favor on their first drive, highlighted by a freshman <strong>Tamir Thrower </strong>who caught a screen pass for a 9-yard gain from <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1592333' first='Tayshon' last='Freeman'] </strong>(pictured above). The drive was abruptly ended by an interception from <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1615120' first='Keyshawn' last='Kershaw']</strong>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It took one play for Union County to take advantage. <strong>AJ Shaw </strong>burst out of a cannon for a 94-yard touchdown on the grab from <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1732648' first='Qa' last='Brannon'] </strong>to give the Yellow Jackets the lead at 8-0, as the two-point try was good from <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1818497' first='Shiro' last='Crosby'] </strong>with 5:38 to play in the first quarter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>York went for it on 4th down on the next series and got it with a fake punt from sophomore wide receiver <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1816753' first='Caiden' last='Tino']</strong>, which set them up in Union territory, but the Jackets' defense slammed the door on 4th and 4 with 1:27 to play in the opening quarter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Shaw had another big catch on third down over the middle for the Yellow Jackets on third down, which set up a 10-yard <strong>Dreshawn Mills </strong>touchdown run. The two-point try was no good as the visitors took a 14-0 lead with 7:21 to play before the half.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Freeman and the Cougars found their rhythm on the next drive, with some easy passes on play action to <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1822266' first='Caleb' last='Sanders'] </strong>to get them inside Union territory. We know the Cougars' quarterback can make plays with his feet, and he did just that on a scramble, before capping the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run to cut into Union County's lead at 14-7 heading into the half.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“He ran the ball extremely hard. We've got to be able to run him. We've got to be able to do things like that with him. He deserves this. Our team deserves this. They've worked awfully hard,” Boyd said.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Cougars started out fast in the second half with a big catch from <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1819637' first='Tacarean' last='Douglas']</strong>, leading to a 6-yard touchdown run from Freeman to tie the game at 21 all with 10:47 to play in the third quarter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“(It) was really just the whole team being behind me. The (offensive) line stepped up behind me, it wasn't looking good. We came out and did what we were supposed to do. As the senior quarterback, it's my job as a senior quarterback and doing what the team needs me to do,” Freeman told Prep Redzone SC after the game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Brannon connected with Shaw on a 4th and 3, capped by a 3-yard touchdown run from Mills as the Jackets retook the lead at 20-14 to end a lengthy drive for the Jackets, with 5:56 to play in the third quarter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>York opted to roll the dice on the ensuing series at 4th and 13 as Freeman found <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1819743' first='Brian' last='Davis'] </strong>wide open to give the Cougars their first lead of the ball game at 21-20. Both teams traded turnovers on the next two sequences – the ensuing kickoff by Union County and then a fumble on a run play from the Cougars.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Freeman scored his third touchdown of the night with 3:36 to play in the game, setting up the thrilling finish.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>York Team Notes</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1822258' first='Noah' last='Morrison'] </strong>| DL – Morrison was an impact player on defense from the opening snap, as he made a tackle on a screen. He brought pressure on the quarterback throughout the evening and was involved.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Karter Farris </strong>| WR – Farris got a first down in the second quarter and showed off his quickness in space.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1816758' first='Kyreek' last='Love'] </strong>| LB – Love made a nice shoestring tackle to limit the gains on run in the second half.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Union County Team Notes</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1592645' first='Jaylon' last='Davis'] </strong>and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1823754' first='Jemarius' last='Smith'] </strong>| DL – Both of these defensive linemen recorded tackles for a loss in the second half against the run game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>On deck</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>York travels to face Clover in the annual rivalry matchup, while Union County hosts Blacksburg.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->