MT. JULIET – It’s said that April showers bring May flowers, but for Green Hill’s Hawks, an early September downpour assisted in holding Summit without a score in a 20-0 win on Friday night.

A pleasant Friday evening that had a hint of fall in the air at kickoff took a sudden turn early in the second quarter when strong rain showers arrived and lingered throughout the rest of the game.

“I really felt like we handled the elements about as well as we could,” said Green Hill head coach Josh Crouch. “It was a torrential downpour for the majority of the game.”

An uneventful first quarter where both sides entered opponent territory but had drives eventually stall transitioned to the second quarter during a lengthy Green Hill possession.

A 15 play drive that took over five minutes off the clock resulted in the Hawks (3-0) getting on the scoreboard first with Caden Chandler’s 26-yard field goal with 7:56 left to play in the first half.

After a Summit punt, Green Hill established another productive drive that would lead to the home team doubling their advantage just before halftime. A career long 36-yard field goal by Chandler gave the Hawks a 6-0 lead with 1:19 remaining in the first half.

Attempting to find an offensive spark, Summit quarterback Mason McElhaney had a deep pass intercepted by Jason Grant with less than a minute to play before halftime. Green Hill’s try at a last second score before the break ended the half on a Kannon Burroughs 25-yard pass to Aaron Mattingly that reached the Spartans’ 11-yard line.

The struggles continued for both offenses in the second half as the rain continued to impact the contest.

Green Hill’s three-and-out to start the half was followed by another McElhaney interception that was picked off by Will Milner. Two minutes later, the Hawks turned the ball over on downs before getting it right back by forcing a Spartans three-and-out.

Still leading 6-0, Green Hill’s run heavy attack led to the game’s first touchdown early in the fourth quarter.

A 10 play drive that lasted nearly six minutes ended in the end zone on a two-yard run by Burroughs. Chandler’s extra point put the Hawks up 13-0 with 10:39 to play.

A bouncing, wet football on the ensuing kickoff was misplayed by the Spartans’ return team, which allowed Will Butler to slide on the soggy artificial turf and scoop up the loose ball at the Summit 18-yard line.

Five straight Green Hill rushing attempts led to a one-yard score for Burroughs’ second visit to the end zone in the game. The PAT by Chandler would be the last point scored on the night in the home victory for the Hawks.

With the shutout, the Green Hill defense has held opponents scoreless two weeks in a row while not having surrendered a point in their last nine quarters dating back to the first week of the season.

“I’ve been really excited about the defensive side of the ball because they have been playing so well all the way back through the summer,” said Crouch.

“They are a really close, tight-knit bunch and you are seeing it on Friday nights.”

Summit finished the night with 114 yards of total offense. McElhaney completed five of his 18 pass attempts for 84 yards while also leading the team in rushing with 31 yards on the ground.
Receiver Luke Oliver caught four passes for 70 yards.

The Green Hill offense produced 312 yards as a team. Burroughs went 14-of-31 passing for 133 yards and rushed for 125 yards on 18 carries. Mattingly led the Hawks in receiving with five catches for 51 yards.

Green Hill is scheduled to play at Wilson Central on Friday, Sept. 13 while Summit (1-2) travels to Murfreesboro to take on Blackman High.