Eight games into the season and the Lithia Springs Lions are now 1-7 as they defeated the Woodland Wildcats on Oct. 19, 27-14, giving the Lions their first win of the season.

With the end of the season drawing closer, Lithia Springs went into the Woodland game winless but not discouraged as head coach Scott Dean said, “You can’t be a coach and expect to finish a season 0-10.”

“We line up each week expecting to win every game regardless of the circumstances,” Dean said.

Unfortunately for the Lions, there have been many injuries to the starting offensive line, with seven players on the team breaking bones, Dean said. He has even been forced to start his sophomore quarterback, Tikal Petty, after the team’s senior quarterback was injured three weeks ago.

“We’ve got a lot of young kids out there now. We’ve been losing starters all year long. We’ve been forced to play those players that aren’t necessarily ready yet,” Dean said.

Even though the team has suffered many injuries, there are still some positives on the team on the defensive side.

“Statistically we have the top defense in the county as we’ve given up the least amount of points on defense,” Dean said.

As for the victory against Woodland, there were three big plays Dean said won the game for his team.

“Jabius Cooper, junior linebacker, had a big strip which led to a fumble recovery for the team. There was a late interception by junior free safety Shannon Hart. That was a big play which sealed the win for us as Woodland tried to come back. And there was a safety as we tackled their quarterback in the end zone. It was a full defensive effort to put pressure on the punter,” explained Dean.

These three plays may have been big moments during the game, but there was one standout player that night: Avante Boyd. Boyd had four touchdowns and 211 rushing yards for his team that night.

The difference in this game compared to those earlier in the season, was the “output” on the offensive side of the ball. With 280 total rushing yards, the offense was able to produce more. Along with the offensive effort, Dean said his team’s defense shut out the Woodland offense the entire second half, preventing them from making a recovery.

Lithia Springs will host the undefeated East Paulding Raiders on Friday, Nov. 2.