Tristen Lithmexay’s 25-yard touchdown run with less than five minutes remaining lifted Nolensville to a 21-14, season-opening win over Lebanon on Thursday in the MyTV30 Game of the Week.
Lithmexay’s late score aided the Knights in holding off the hard-charging Blue Devils, who scored 14 unanswered points in the second half after trailing 14-0.
Nolensville picked up a fumble recovery on Lebanon’s last possession, avenging its 27-22 loss last August that spoiled the debut of now second-year coach Scott Stidham.
“Last year when we lost, it left a bad taste in our mouth,” Lithmexay said. “You know, from that day on, I just had this day marked on my calendar. It was special. It was special to come out here and get this ‘W.’”
Nolensville (1-0) jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first half after scoring two touchdowns on its first four possessions. Senior quarterback and Bowling Green baseball commitment Ryan Newell led the Knights on each of their scoring drives, including a seven-play series on their opening possession.
Newell connected with wide receiver Turner Boswell on a 29-yard score – Boswell deflected it to himself around Arkansas State commitment Gavin Gregory while lying in the end zone – and Lithmexay extended the Nolensville lead to two scores a quarter later with a 24-yard run through the middle of the Lebanon defense.
“Our offensive line has really gotten better and continued to work,” Stidham said. “Tristen Lithmexay was an 1,100-yard rusher last year as a junior, and he’s a really good back. So you get him going, and he ran hard. He had a lot of negative plays that he made some good runs to get back to the line of scrimmage early.”
Nolensville’s defense, led by three-time state wrestling medalist Jake Sentell, pitched a first-half shutout against Lebanon’s offense which was without reigning Region 4-6A Offensive Player of the Year Gyan Ezeta.
Ezeta was in uniform during pregame warmups Thursday but was sidelined after re-aggravating a left-hamstring injury last Monday. The former 1,300-yard back, who rushed for 185 yards and three scores against Nolensville last season, initially suffered the injury while catching a touchdown pass during a summer 7-on-7 at Green Hill.
He mended the injury throughout summer practice before setting himself back while running a sweep drill during practice.
“We put him on a 10-day protocol,” Lebanon coach Chuck Gentry said. “It was exactly 10 days today, and you know, hamstrings are fickle things. If it was a shoulder or a wrist, sometimes you can lock it in and play. But with a hamstring, and a running back, you are just afraid to put him out there and ask him to go full speed.
“I’m going to put this analogy on it, but you can’t drive a car with a bad wheel. It’s eventually going to wreck or blow up. The adults in the room – me and his daddy, Jacob – had a lot of discussions and we decided let’s not (play).”
Lebanon’s offense caught a spark in the second half after senior Deonte Wilson was inserted at running back for Ezeta and injured backup Matthew Clark. Wilson carried the ball 16 times for 82 yards after spelling Clark midway through the second quarter.
He registered the Blue Devils first touchdown with 3:54 remaining in the third quarter after Station Camp transfer Nate Dye connected with Gregory on a deep fade inside the 10-yard line.
Wilson later put Lebanon (0-1) on the doorstep of a game-tying score, ending the third quarter with a 20-yard run inside the Nolensville 5-yard line. Dye paid it off with a 7-yard scramble to net his first career touchdown for the Blue Devils.
“Deonte is one of the leaders of our football team, period,” Gentry said. “He’s a good football player. Does a lot for us on defense, and with Gyan we don’t have to have him as much. The plan was to play (Deonte) tonight anyway. It just happened to be quicker than we wanted to.”
Nolensville retook the lead late in the fourth quarter after both teams traded punts. Gentry at least considered going for a potential fourth-and-two inside his own territory before trotting out punter Eli Jimenez.
Newell led the Knights on a quick series that culminated with Lithmexay slicing his way through the Lebanon secondary after taking a shotgun handoff.
“At the beginning of the play I was just trying to read the linebackers,” Lithmexay said. “If he presses, then I got to bounce it, but he didn’t press and I just took it up the middle. The safety from the other side was coming, and I saw it from the corner of my eye. I just tried to make a move and get to the end zone.”
“That’s a great program first, and then a good football team,” Stidham said. “You know, Coach (Gentry) does such a great job. So to come here to this place, it’s not an easy place to win at all. We played well in the first half, and in the third quarter I did a terrible job coaching and let them back in it. Our kids showed a lot of grit and toughness to come back and win the way we did.”
Nolensville 21, Lebanon 14
N – 7, 7, 0, 7 – 21
L – 0, 0, 7, 7 – 14
Scoring Summary
First quarter
N – Turner Boswell 29 pass from Ryan Newell (7:03). Matthew Serpas kick.
Second quarter
N – Tristen Lithmexay 24 run (0:52). Serpas kick.
Third quarter
L – Deonte Wilson 1 run (3:54). Eli Jimenez kick.
Fourth quarter
L – Nate Dye 7 run (11:14). Jimenez kick.
N – Lithmexay 25 run (4:54). Serpas kick.
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