Hooks rushed for 250 yards and two touchdowns to help the Thunderhawks beat the Hamilton Big Blue 31-27 in a Greater Miami Conference slugfest.
“We came out here, we fought hard,” Hooks said. “We had a lot of mistakes. We bounced back. Our brotherhood is so strong. Any adversity, we’re just gonna come back and fight harder.”
Hooks recently became Lakota East’s all-time leading rusher last week against Mason.
“Yeah, I’m glad he’s on my team. I’ve been saying it — I’ve been screaming it — I think he’s Mr. Ohio,” Kitna said of Hooks. “If he would catch some interceptions, he’d have it hands-down.”
The Thunderhawks (3-1, 2-1 GMC) have won 13 of the last 14 against the Big Blue (1-3, 1-2 GMC).
“I’m just frustrated, man. We’re getting better, and so is everybody else,” Hamilton coach Arvie Crouch said. “So we’ve got to find a way as a team, coaching staff, to get us caught up and get over the hump.
“We’ve got to find a way to win. It’s been a long time since we were 1-3 — since the first year I was here. So we’ve got to figure that out. Proud of my kids. I love my kids — they’re great.”
Andre Bailey scored on a short touchdown run to give the Big Blue a 7-0 lead with 7:29 showing on the first-quarter clock.
AJ Fitzstephens booted a 21-yard field goal to pull Lakota East to within 7-3 with 5:29 remaining in the first.
Sophomore quarterback Nile Knutson connected with Carter Jones on a 4-yard touchdown pass to give the Thunderhawks a 10-7 lead with 6:47 remaining before the half.
Then Bailey scampered for his second score of the night — from 60 yards out — to put the Big Blue back on top 14-10. Bailey finished with 242 yards on 22 carries.
Hooks found the end zone on a 2-yard score with 28 seconds left to send Lakota East into the locker room ahead 17-14.
“It’s the GMC. It’s going to be like that,” Kitna said. “And you’ve got teams that are super well-coached, and you’ve got football players — kids that are football players. So, you know, at the end of the day, we’ve got a dozen kids that are super experienced, and then we’ve got everybody else that’s got no experience. So every time we take a snap, we’re just banking that experience.”
On the first play of the second half, Hooks took a 51-yard run to the house, and Lakota East went back on top 24-14.
“My whole line set it up,” Hooks said. “I told them, I said, ‘If you guys block for me, I’ll get in the end zone. I promise, I got you.’ I got the edge, I saw a touchdown, I took off.”
“Our offensive coordinator had a conversation with Ryder — ‘What run do you want?’ — ‘I want this run,’” Kitna said. “Called it. There it goes.
“Yeah, big time for us,” Kitna added. “We were kind of teetering a little bit. We talk about it all the time — win in the middle eight, you know? I think we were able to get points right before half or something like that, and then to be able to come out and do that, that’s a big deal.”
Mason Holbrook took a 57-yard interception return for a score to cut Hamilton’s deficit to 24-21 before heading to the final frame.
Knutson tossed a 23-yard touchdown pass to Jones that gave Lakota East a 31-21 lead with 11:28 remaining.
“Super proud of our sophomores,” Kitna said. “Like Nile — he’ll make a mistake here and there, but he’ll never make the same one. I keep telling our coaches, every quarterback’s made that mistake, but his thing is he doesn’t make it again. He’s so mentally tight.”
Jayden McClain hit Caleb Ahonen with a 34-yard touchdown pass to pull Hamilton to within four, but the Big Blue couldn’t rally in the final minutes.
“We had a chance — we had a chance to drive down and score, and we didn’t,” Crouch said. “Four minutes left — plenty of time to put up a score, and we didn’t do it. So, offensively, that’s something we’ve got to work on. But proud of the offense.”
Hamilton welcomes Mason next Friday, while Lakota East travels to Princeton.
“This is my favorite team I’ve ever coached,” Kitna said. “They’re just fun to be around. They let you coach them. They work so hard. It’s just a really fun time coaching this team — almost brings me to tears a lot of times, honestly.”
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