BY BRIAN HAMILTON
KNOXVILLE – Carter’s defense was thrashed by Karns’ star running back DeSean Bishop on Friday night, as the junior torched the Hornet defense for 352 yards and five touchdowns in a 48-25 win.
Karns got on the board first when Bishop went into the end zone from two yards out, giving the Beavers a 7-0 lead with 8:46 left in the first quarter.
Bishop would later run for a 35-yard touchdown with 4:53 remaining in the first quarter, giving Karns a 13-0 lead after the conversion failed.
Carter answered in the ensuing drive, as Hornets’ quarterback Chandler Wilson punched it in from one yard out to make the score 13-7 with 3:46 left in the first. This would be the score after one quarter of play.
Bishop scored his third touchdown of the night with 9:37 left in the second quarter on a 7-yard run. Karns would convert the two-point attempt, giving the Beavers a 21-7 advantage.
Cassen Huffaker tossed a 12-yard touchdown with 6:22 remaining in the second quarter to put Karns in front 28-7, as the Beavers appeared to be running away with the contest.
Walker Lockhart would intercept Carter’s Wilson on the ensuing Hornet drive and Huffaker rewarded him with a 20-yard touchdown pass to put Karns in front 34-7 with just 2:39 left in the first half.
Carter was able to manufacture some points before the intermission when Wilson tossed a 2-yard touchdown pass to Max Bailey, cutting the Beavers’ lead to 34-13 at halftime.
The Hornets took the second half kickoff and marched down the field for a touchdown, making the score 34-19 with just over 11 minutes left in the third quarter on a 23-yard touchdown pass from Wilson to Brody Blankenship.
Bishop ran for a 70-yard touchdown late in the third quarter, increasing the Karns lead to 41-19 with 1:53 left in the third quarter — his fourth touchdown of the night.
Max Bailey ran for a 2-yard score early in the fourth quarter to pull Carter within 41-25, as the two-point conversion was unsuccessful. Bishop would tack on one more touchdown — his fifth of the evening — to help Karns pull away with a 48-25 win.
Carter (4-2, 1-0 Class 4A Region 2) will travel to Anderson County (2-4, 2-0) on Thursday night for a regional contest that will be broadcast by Thursday Night Rivals. Karns (4-2) will host Lenoir City (1-4) on Friday night.