The Stuart W. Cramer Storm are taking a road trip to take on the East Gaston Warriors at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Stuart W. Cramer has three straight wins, East Gaston has three straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
On Friday, Stuart W. Cramer blew past Cherryville, posting a 42-7 victory. Considering the Storm have won six matchups by more than 20 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Clee Phillips was his usual excellent self, rushing for 44 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while also throwing for 165 yards and one TD while completing 71.4% of his passes. Speaking of playmakers, who could forget Cody Alexander, who went all the way with a kickoff return for a touchdown.
Stuart W. Cramer's run defense was locked in: Cherryville could only muster 2.5 yards per carry. The team can thank Chris Wurster for the heroic effort on defense: he. Stuart W. Cramer's ground attack was stronger, having averaged 5.4.
Special teams also deserves some recognition, posting 18 points in total. The biggest highlight from special teams (and perhaps the team as a whole) came courtesy of Jayden Nolley, who ran a punt back for a touchdown. Another bright spot was a kickoff return touchdown from Alexander.
Meanwhile, East Gaston was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap on Friday as they fell 27-21 to West Lincoln.
Stuart W. Cramer will need to focus on slowing down Camden Stillwell, one of several East Gaston players who made an impact when they last played. He threw for 98 yards and a pair of TDs, and also rushed for 66 yards. Another player making a difference was Mari Chambers, who rushed for 116 yards and one score on only 14 carries.
East Gaston's loss dropped their record down to 2-7. As for Stuart W. Cramer, their record is now 7-2.
Stuart W. Cramer couldn't quite finish off East Gaston in their previous matchup back in September of 2024 and fell 27-25. Can the Storm avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
