In the first home game of the season and Luke Hyatt's first game as head coach, the Anson High School Bearcats proved that they're be a force to be reckoned with this year, pulling out a 21-14 victory over a tough opponent, the Forest Hills Yellow Jackets.

"The first game of the season, my first as head coach, it's definitely satisfying to get the win," Coach Hyatt said. "It was good to play Forest Hills; they're a good team and always a contender for the state 2A title."

The penalties began early in the game, with the first for holding with 5:21 left in the first quarter. Both Forest Hills and Anson racked up a number of penalties before the game was over, for holding, personal fouls, grabbing face masks and false starts. In all, Anson received 14 penalties for a total of 141 yards.

"That's something we have to work on," Coach Hyatt said. "We had way too many penalties."

Although they are a normal part of every game, the coach said 14 in one outing could be a cause for concern. "That's something we're going to stress and work on throughout the year. We've got to get better about that."

Both teams tried in vain to get on the board for much of the first half, with an incomplete touchdown pass by the Yellow Jackets with 8:16 to go in the second quarter. The Bearcats intercepted another pass minutes later before Stephone Anthony scored the first touchdown of the game, with 2:14 left to go in the half, making the score 6-0 after the kick for the extra point was no good.

After halftime, the Bearcats worked quickly and Anthony scored another touchdown with 9:38 on the clock in the third quarter. Coach Hyatt opted to go for two extra points, rather than one, but the play failed, leaving the score at 12-0.

After a good few minutes of back-and-forth rushing and stopping by both teams, Maurice Copeland got the Bearcats' third touchdown of the night, staving off a tackle by a Yellow Jackets defender. That left the score at 18-0, in favor of Anson.

The play for the extra point led to yet another penalty against the Bearcats, this time for unsportsmanlike conduct when the referee said a Bearcat was taunting a player on the opposing team.

As the Yellow Jackets tried to answer back with a touchdown of their own, the Bearcats relentlessly attempted to intercept the ball. At one point, at least three Anson players touched a rolling ball, trying to grab it before it rolled out of bounds.

The Bearcats' three touchdowns went unanswered for three quarters until finally, at the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Yellow Jackets scored, making it 18-6. The extra point was blocked by Anson defensive lineman Theodore Carr.

The Bearcats' last score of the game came with 4:18 left, a field goal attempt made good by kicker Beau Melton.

Anson's defense was unable to keep the Yellow Jackets from scoring one more touchdown, with just 1:49 left in the game. The Jackets also made good on a two-point conversion. But the Bearcats held on for the win, 21-14.

Overall, Coach Hyatt was proud of his team and the game they played Friday night. "The defense played real well," he said. "We had to make some changes in the first half to counter what Forest Hills was doing with their offense. But all the kids did a real good job."