By BAKER ELLIS / Sports Editor

TUSCALOOSA – It took a little longer than most would have predicted, but the Oak Mountain football Eagles finally got a tally in the win column on Sept. 18 with a 15-7 victory at Tuscaloosa County.

The Eagles did all of their scoring in the first half, and relied on strong play from their defense to seal the first win of the year. With four minutes left in the first quarter, Oak Mountain took the ball starting on its own six yard line and promptly marched downfield for a 10-play, 96-yard scoring drive that took just over three minutes off the clock and was capped off by a Warren Shader four-yard touchdown dive to put the Eagles on the board first. A successful two-point conversion via a Payton Youngblood pass to Zach Pierce gave Oak Mountain an 8-0 lead and all the momentum early.

In the second quarter, Oak Mountain got the ball via a Tuscaloosa County punt and started on its own 42. After an offsides penalty pushed the Eagles back five yards, Daniel Salchert promptly ran three times, the second of which was a 53-yard scamper, and found the end zone to put Oak Mountain up 15-0.

Fred Evans of Tuscaloosa County added the games final touchdown late in the second quarter with less than a minute and a half left in the game to bring the score back to 15-7, but that was how the game ended after a scoreless second half. A late pick by Mitchell Jones sealed the win for Oak Mountain, as Cris Bell’s squad took the first step towards righting the ship of the 2015 season.

Oak Mountain moves to 1-3 on the season.