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By Paul Lunsford
Contributing writer

The Harlan Green Dragons had to wait two extra weeks to extend a two-game winning streak.

Harlan scored two touchdowns in the second quarter and put the game away with a TD in the final minute for a 27-14 win over visiting Lynn Camp on Friday.

“We gave away a big lead, but just like we have the last three games we found a way to pull it out,” Harlan coach Eric Perry said. “Our kids have big hearts, and they played hard. A lot of kids stepped up and made big plays.”

Junior tailback Jayden Ward had a big game for the Dragons with 173 yards on 26 carries. Senior quarterback Ethan Clem added two rushing touchdowns.

Harlan (3-1 overall, 1-0 district) limited the Wildcats to just 64 yards on the ground.

“I thought the first half was about as good as we can play defensively. Our linebackers made numerous plays, and our defensive linemen played better,” said Perry.

Neither team could get anything going on the first eight minutes as the game was scoreless.

With eight minutes remaining in the first half, Clem scored on an 11-yard run. The kick failed.

Harlan used an 80 yards in 13 plays in a drive capped by a 3-yard run by Clem on the final play of the half. Ward’s two-point conversion run made it 14-0 at halftime.

The Dragons scored early in the third quarter as Ward broke free and raced 70 yards for the TD. Clem’s extra point made the score 21-0.

“We talked about going up 21-0 and having fun, but we just quit. I think we tried to coast, and that was upsetting to see,” added Perry.

Lynn Camp fought back as Tylan Smith capped an eight-play, 60-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run at the 4:13 mark of the third period.

A Harlan fumble gave Lynn Camp the ball. Brody Lane went in from the 12 for a touchdown with 3:01 to play in the quarter. Smith connected with Jayden Blevins for a two-point conversion that made it  21-14.

A nice return by Donovan Montanaro gave Harlan the ball in Lynn Camp territory. A 14-yard pass from Clem to Darius Akal on a second-and-17 play pushed the ball to the Wildcat 3. With 44 seconds remaining, Ward took the hand-off from Clem and went in for a three-yard touchdown run to seal the victory.

“Jayden really stepped up,” said Perry. “We have some resilient kids who just want the ‘W.’ I thought we got some revenge with this one, but we know we have to play better (against Pineville).”

The Green Dragons will play host to Pineville (1-1, 2-2) on Friday. Williamsburg blanked the Lions 40-0 last week. Lynn Camp (0-2, 0-5) welcomes the Yellow Jackets this week.