Breaking streaks has been the theme for the West Wilkes Blackhawks football team in 2026. That theme continued Friday night as #10 West Wilkes grabbed its first playoff victory since 2012 with a 41-12 3A first round victory over #23 Draughn.

West Wilkes came into this matchup as a heavy favorite and flexed its muscle early and often.

Andrew Herman got things started with a 3-yard touchdown run at the 5:33 mark of the first quarter to put the Blackhawks up 7-0. Cannan Carpenter would deal Draughn back-to-back touchdowns in the second quarter with a 23-yard run and a 20-yard pass to Landon Lambert that saw the West Wilkes lead bloom to 21-0.

With only 28 seconds until halftime, Herman scored from 9 yards out to give West Wilkes a 28-0 halftime advantage.

As the second half began, Herman wasted no time picking up where he left off in the first.

At the 11:17 mark of the third quarter, he broke off a 51-yard touchdown run to make it 34-0. After the Blackhawk defense forced a quick three and out, Lambert would get his second touchdown of the night on a 41-yard jet sweep to extend the lead to 41-0.

Draughn did not go without a strong punch, though. Quarterback Fore Putnam found Titus Dodd for a 31-yard TD with 5:45 in the third quarter to cut the West Wilkes lead to 41-6. Putnam would also hit a 90-yard TD pass midway through the fourth quarter.

But it was too little too late.

West Wilkes advances to the second round of the 3A state playoffs and will travel to #7 CHASE next Friday, Nov. 13. Meanwhile, Draughn’s season comes to a close, finishing with a 0-11 record.

Editor’s notes: In an interview with the Wilkes Journal-Patriot, West Coach Dwayne Berrier said: “I’m very proud of our guys. They came out and competed right away and did what needed to be done in order to move on. Nothing will be easy this time of year, so we have to stay focused, work hard, and come ready every chance we get from here on.”

Prior to Friday, the teams had not played since at least 2004. West and CHASE have also not met during that timeframe.

Draughn was one of four winless football teams that took the field Friday in the opening round of the postseason. The only victor was #10 Weldon STEM Career Academies, a 16-8 winner over #7 Rocky Mount in the 5A bracket.

VIKES ROUT PRIDE

North Wilkes won its first postseason game since 2013 on Friday, a 60-22 blasting of Pine Lake Prep in Hays.

The Vikings, seeded #16 in the 3A West, moved up to 5-6, while the #17 Pride saw their season end at 4-7 and their coach ejected late in the game.

North Coach David Wojtecki said his postgame message to the team was, “Our job is not done; we are 1-0 in the postseason. We need to go 1-0 again next week. Rank does not mean anything in the postseason. If you can be the best team Friday you get to move on and advance.”

Viking quarterback Trey Hutchison rushed for a 10-yard touchdown and connected with Noah Vance for a 53-yard score in the first quarter, leading his club to a 13-3 lead after a period of play.

North led 25-10 at halftime, getting a 1-yard TD keeper by Hutchison and a 14-yard scoring connection from Hutchison to Bradley Wiles.

Casey Wiles took the second-half kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown. Also in the third, there was an 14-yard scoring pass from Hutchison to Bradley Wiles, a 10-yard scoring scamper by Giovanni Salinas and a 90-yard kickoff return for score by Casey Wiles.

North tacked on a 28-yard scoring pass from Eli Shepherd in the fourth under a rolling clock.

The Vikings will travel to New London on Friday to take on undefeated and #1 North Stanly (10-0) in the second round of the 3A playoffs. The team have not played since at least 2004.

CENTRAL SLAPS BANDYS

Wilkes Central posted a 22-3 win over Bandys in the 4A first round, Friday night in Moravian Falls.

The #12 Eagles improved to 8-3, while the season ended for #21 Bandys at 3-8. It was the squads’ first matchup since at least 2004.

“I’m excited for the kids to get a playoff win,” said Chuck Cannon, the Eagle coach. “Our coaches put a great plan together and our players executed it well.”

Central led 7-3 after a low-scoring first half, but extended its margin with another score in the third quarter and a final rushing touchdown in the final period, capped by a two-point conversion run by Victor Rodriguez.

The Eagles rushed for 281 yards, led by the 83 of sophomore Maleek Hayes, who had one of his club’s three rushing scores. Also finding paydirt were sophomore Tristan Neely (41 yards) and junior Mason Harris (48 yards). Ridge Pyles added 58 yards on the ground.

Rodriguez and Noah Reid each picked off a pass for Central, while Colton Ridgell made 2-of-2 extra-point kicks.

“Our defense really played well against a high powered offense, and our offense took care of the ball,” added Cannon. “We were able to avoid flinching when things got a little sporty.”

The Eagles will travel to Mount Pleasant on Friday to take on the #5 Tigers (7-3). The teams have not butted helmets since at least 2004.

EAST GETS BYE

East Wilkes, seeded #8 in the 2A West, received a first-round playoff bye and will host #9 Christ the King (7-3) in Ronda on Friday, seeking the third round of the playoffs for the third straight year. Those teams have not faced one another since at least 2004.


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