Colonels pound Lee 

By Watson Cook 

Indianola hosted Lee Academy for homecoming on Friday night and had plenty to celebrate when the clock hit 0:00. Many were expecting a close ball game as IA came into the contest 6-0 and ranked #1 in AA while the Colts came in 5-1 and ranked #5 in AA. However, the Colonels were dominant from the opening kick and pounded the visitors from Clarksdale 35-7. Defensively, the Colonels were nearly flawless in the first half, not allowing Lee inside the IA 30. After forcing a three-and-out on the Colts' opening drive, the defense was put in a rough spot as Wheeler Timbs fumbled on the punt return and Lee recovered at the IA 32. However on the following play, Hunter Vance bailed out Timbs with an interception and returned it to the Lee 22. Four plays later, IA took the lead on Ashton Knight's 1-yard touchdown run. Tyler Hill added the PAT to put IA up 7-0 with 8:33 to play in the first quarter. After a Lee turnover on downs and an exchange of punts, the Colonels took over at their own 3 to open the second quarter. Timbs (pictured below, #22) capped an 11-play, 97-yard drive with a 23-yard touchdown run on 4th and 5 to extend the Colonel lead to 14-0 (Hill PAT) with 7:18 to play in the quarter. IA took that lead into halftime. 

The Colonels started the third quarter with possession at their own 33 and continued to pound Lee with a strong running game. Timbs added his second touchdown of the night with a 14-yard run at the 6:03 mark to cap an 11-play, 67-yard drive. Hill's PAT was blocked and left IA with a 20-0 lead. Lee got on the board after a Timbs fumble inside the IA 10 on the Colonels next drive. The Colts recovered at the 9 and Scott Berry punched it in 3 plays later from 2 yards out. Hays Stubbs added the PAT to cut the IA lead to 20-7 with 1:55 to play in the third quarter. IA answered on their following drive. Staring at 3rd and 5 from the Lee 45, Jonathan Holland hooked up with a wide open Vance who took it down to the Colt 4. Knight provided the points on the following play with his second touchdown run of the night. Holland added the 2-point run to put the Colonels up 28-7 with 10:49 to play in the game. The Colts had an opportunity with 2:00 left to put more points on the board but Michael Sykes scooped up a fumble at the IA 15 and returned it 85 yards for the score to put an exclamation point on the homecoming celebration. Hill added the PAT to make it 35-7. With the win, the Colonels improved to 7-0 (3-0) for the first time since 1975. Next up is a trip to West Point where IA will take on 4-3 Oak Hill on Friday, October 11. Kickoff is set for 7:00.