WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS — Playoff fever was alive in White Sulphur Springs Saturday afternoon. The undefeated Hornets hosted Shields Valley in the 6-Man football state semifinals. With the season on the line, it was win or go home, and the Hornets were not going to lose on their home turf, ultimately pulling away for a 64-13 win.
The Hornets found success early against the Rebels. On their opening drive, quarterback Sam Davis aired out a pass to Devon Novark for a 34-yard touchdown, one of five touchdown passes on the day. That set the tone for the rest of the half, where the Hornets would go on to score on each of their five drives to take a 40-6 lead.
“Fortunately for us, we have a lot of kids out here," said head coach Travis Novark. "We’re kind of two-deep everywhere. There’s just no selfishness on the team. They play for one another. They could care less who tackles, who scores. It’s just really a tight unit.”
Unselfish is a great word to describe the Hornets' offense. White Sulphur Springs found the end zone seven times Saturday, which was spread between five different players. The only two players with multiple touchdowns on the day were Andrew Davis and Alex Novark.
“What’s special about every one of us is we’re all brothers out here," said running back Andrew Davis. "None of us are selfish. Nobody is.”
The word 'brothers' was used a lot to describe the close-knit team, which is ironic because there are three sets of blood-related brothers on the Hornets this year. Two of them are twins, Sam and Andrew Davis, who work extremely well on offense together.
“They’re part of a tight-knit group," added Coach Novark. "They’re always on the same page. They’ve been playing competitive, and seriously competitive, since they were in the third grade. They’re used to where each other is going to be. It literally is like playing with your brothers out here.”
Running back Andrew Davis had three touchdowns Saturday. Two of them were rushing, but one of them did come from his twin brother Sam, which was an 8-yard touchdown pass. Their joint effort helped lead the Hornets to a 54-13 victory, advancing to the state championship next week.
"We know what’s going on," said quarterback Sam Davis. "We know what’s going to happen next. We can read each other’s minds sometimes I swear.”
“For Alex (Novark), Sam and I, we’ve dreamed of going to the state chipper since third grade, and here we are," added Andrew Davis.
The Hornets will make the 400-plus mile journey to Medicine Lake next week to take on Redhawks in the state championship. This will be the first appearance for either program in the 6-Man title game.
"We’re going to really enjoy this weekend," said coach Novark. "We’ll watch whoever we’re going to play and we’ll game plan accordingly. We’ll keep doing what we’re doing. I know we’ll probably get to play a little looser next weekend because there’s not so much pressure of getting there now. We’re really looking forward to it, and what a huge positive for this community, I’m just happy to be a part of it. If these kids come out and play fast and physical, and have the confidence that they’ve had all season, then we’ve got a great shot at it.”
