“It was a huge game,” Horney said. “It was a really good win. It gets our hopes up. We think we can finish the season undefeated. That’s what we were talking about before the game. Everybody — not just the players, not just the team — the whole town knew it was a big game. I love the support, love the atmosphere. It was all awesome, amazing stuff.”
Senior Chase Walker added two touchdowns for Greeneview, which improved to 2-0 for the second time in three years.
“Every time these teams get together it just seems to be a fun one,” said Rams coach Ryan Haines. “We came out on top. Both teams fought really hard out in the elements, the Thursday Night Lights and all the atmosphere that was here. I’m just really proud of our kids for their mentality in finishing the game.”
Senior Alex Amburgy threw two TD passes and rushed for another as the Spartans fell to 0-2 for the first time since 2017. Senior Garrett Lundy caught two TD passes and ran for another as Waynesville lost to a former Kenton Trace Conference rival for the second straight week. The Spartans lost to Clinton Massie 31-21 in Week 1.
“It was another tough battle tonight against a really good football team,” said Spartans coach Ben Johnson. “That’s two weeks in a row we’ve played really good football teams and came up just a little bit short both times. I really love the effort our kids gave. They continued to fight right down to the end, but ultimately we just gave up too many big plays to be able to overcome tonight.”
On the first drive, Horney intercepted a pass and returned it to the 27-yard line. Four plays later, he scored on a 1-yard run to give the Rams an early 7-0 lead.
Early in the second quarter, Waynesville drove to the Rams 1-yard line, but Greeneview held on fourth-and-goal from the 5-yard line. Two plays later, Horney broke free for a 96-yard touchdown run to give the Rams a 13-0 lead. The senior credited his offensive line for doing the bulk of the work.
“It’s my O-line,” Horney said. “They’re out there and they hardly get any breaks. They work their butts off. It’s hot and they’re doing their job. I’ve got to give credit to them.”
After forcing the Spartans to punt, Horney hit senior Joey Giannobile on a 45-yard pass, setting up first-and-goal from the 3-yard line. A few plays later, Horney scored on a 5-yard scramble to give the Rams a 19-0 lead.
Waynesville wouldn’t go down without a fight. Spartans senior Garrett Lundy returned the ensuing kickoff 73 yards, setting up a 2-yard TD run by Amburgy to make it 19-8 at the half.
After forcing Greeneview to punt, Lundy scored on a 35-yard run to make it 19-14.
On the next possession, Walker scored on a 60-yard run to extend Greeneview’s lead to 26-14.
Amburgy hit Lundy on a 10-yard TD pass to make it 26-21 with 2:10 remaining.
Every time the Spartans would get close, the Rams had an answer. Walker scored on a 26-yard run with 8:52 remaining and Cooper Payton added the two-point conversion to give Greeneview a 34-21 lead.
The Spartans would respond quickly. Amburgy found Lundy again on an 18-yard run to pull within six points at 34-28 with 7:52 remaining.
The Rams wouldn’t let them get any closer. Horney scored on a 45-yard run with 2:59 remaining to make it 40-28.
“He finds daylight, keeps those legs moving,” Haines said. “The thing we’ve always noticed with Alex is his high level of poise. He’s not a kid who tends to get rattled. He’s not trying to do too much out there.”
Waynesville wasn’t able to get the big stop it needed down the stretch, Johnson said.
“We had a couple opportunities there to get that one big stop,” he said. “Give credit to them. Sometimes you’ve got to give credit to them. They out executed us tonight.”
The Spartans drove deep into Ram territory in the final two minutes, but Greeneview senior Jamarious Vinson intercepted a pass in the end zone to seal the victory.
Waynesville (0-2) hosts Goshen next week. The Warriors fell to Monroe 35-0 last week.
The Rams (2-0) travel to West Liberty-Salem next week, which beat Greeneview 41-19 last year. The Tigers play Ben Logan on Friday night.
“(WLS) took it to us here on our turf,” Haines said. “(Tigers coach Dan McGill) does a great job. They’re efficient, they’re well-coached and disciplined. We’ll have to get ready for that.”
About the Author