Jim Walker
jim.walker@irontontribune.com

CHESAPEAKE — Just enough proved to be good enough for the Chesapeake Panthers.
Although the Panthers as expected weren’t in mid-season form for Friday’s opener against the Oak Hill Oaks, they were just good enough to win 28-21.
The Panthers used a goal line stand and a big defensive play to overcome three turnovers and hold on for the win.
“Offensively we weren’t great execution-wise, but we still did enough to put points on the board. Turnovers hurt us. We turned it over at the worst times at the worst spots on the field,” said Clark.
“We definitely showed some first week jitters at times.”
Austin Browning’s debut at quarterback turned out to be an excellent imitation of his predecessor Casey McComas. Browning ran nine times for 198 yards, scored twice and threw a touchdown pass.
The Panthers had 298 total yards with all but eight coming on the ground. Tyler Eddy added 46 yards on three carries, Cecil Fletcher 30 on 11 tries and Kamren Harless 27 yards on three rushes.
Oak Hill ran the ball 53 times for 280 yards as Zach Fisher carried 31 times for 188 yards and two touchdowns.
Chesapeake jumped in front 14-0 as Browning had touchdown runs of one and 45 yards. Dalton Nida kicked the conversions.
The Oaks got within 14-7 on a 1-yard run by quarterback Caleb Johnson and Ramsey Sites’ conversion kick with 8:59 left in the half.
The Panthers then fumble the ball away on the first play of their next possession and the Oaks scored on a 7-yard run by Fisher with eight minutes on the clock.
The Panthers came out in the second half and drove deep into Oak Hill territory only to have the drive end on an interception.
But Chesapeake got the ball back and drove for a score as Browning hit Zach Wright on an 8-yard scoring pass with 5:42 left in the third quarter and it was 21-14.
Oak Hill tied the game on a 3-yard run by Fisher with 9:21 to go but the Panthers came right back as Browning broke loose on a 66-yard scoring run with 8:23 left and it was 28-21.
The Panthers had two key defensive stops in the second half to help preserve the win.
Oak Hill got to the 1-yard line but the drive ended on fourth down when the Panthers’ Josh Rose and Tyler Eddy stopped Fisher short of the line of scrimmage.
Late in the game the Oaks tried a long pass but Jake Stevens came up with the interception at the 4-yard line.
“That was a big play by Stevens and so was the goal line stand. We made enough big plays that saved us,” said Clark. “Oak Hill did a nice job up front. They made some adjustments that helped them.”
The Panthers host Alexander next Friday.
Oak Hill    0    14    0    7    =    21
Chesapeake    14    0    7    7    =    28
First Quarter
Ch — Austin Browning 1 run (Dalton Nida kick) 6:49
Ch — Austin Browning 45 run (Dalton Nida kick) 1:40
Second Quarter
OH — Caleb Johnson 1 run (Ramsey Sites kick) 8:59
OH — Zach Fisher 7 run (Ramsey Sites kick) 8:00
Third Quarter
Ch — Zach Wright 8 pass from Austin Browning (Dalton Nida kick) 5:42
Fourth Quarter
OH —Zach Fisher 3 run (Ramsey Sites kick) 9:21
Ch — Austin Browning 66 run (Dalton Nida kick) 8:23
——
OH    Ch
First downs    15    10
Rushes-yards    53-280    31-298
Passing yards    30    8
Total yards    310    306
Cmp-Att-Int    2-8-1    1-3-1
Fumbles-lost    0-0    2-2
Penalties-yards    5-60    3-15
Punts-average    4-16.8    1-35.0
——
Individual Leaders
RUSHING —Oak Hill: Zach Fisher 31-188, Caleb Johnson 9-18, Clutters 11-56, Walker Smith 3-minus 3, Dakota Duhl 1-5, Brock Harden 1-16; Chesapeake: Austin Browning 9-198, team 3-minus 3, Cecil Fletcher 11-30, Tyler Eddy 3-46, Kamren Harless 5-27.
PASSING — Oak Hill: Caleb Johnson 2-8-1 30; Chesapeake: Austin Browning 1-3-1 8.
RECEIVING — Oak Hill: Daniel Stewart 2-30; Chesapeake: Zach Wright 1-8.