By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor
ATHENS – The Shelby County Wildcats used a 21-point third quarter to turn on the jets and dominate the East Limestone Indians 43-7 on Nov. 1 at East Limestone High School.
With the win, Shelby County finished the regular season 8-2–flipping last season’s 2-8 record on its head–and will come back from the long road trip to north Alabama with a head full of momentum heading into a home playoff matchup with Citronelle on Nov. 8.
“It means a lot,” Shelby County coach Zeb Ellison said of the win. “We had last week off, came out a little rusty. The intensity wasn’t quite where it needed to be, but we picked it up in the second half and the most important stat is the one at the end of the game, as long as you’re in the win column. I’m proud of the guys going at it.”
Anthony Palmieri had another massive night for the offense, rushing for 316 yards and three touchdowns off 36 carries, and his impact started early on in the contest.
East Limestone gave the ball to the Wildcats early on after a missed field goal, and Palmieri punished the hosts with a 30-yard rushing touchdown to open up the scoring. Presley Duke added a 2-point conversion to make the lead 8-0 midway through the first quarter.