The Hagerstown football team defeated the Union County Patriots on Friday, Sept. 11, in a Tri-Eastern Conference clash.
The game was Homecoming for Hagerstown and was played before a large crowd with an emotional start. Before the game, as the captains headed to midfield for the pregame coin toss, Blakely Robinson, a young student who is courageously battling cancer, rolled out with them in her wheelchair to deliver the game ball.
Fist bumps from the players and a statement from one of the game officials to Blakely’s parents that she was stronger than any football player on the field put things in perspective.
The Tigers wasted no time establishing superiority. On the first play from scrimmage, Graham Vinson connected with Jaxon Hale for a 69-yard touchdown pass. Calvin Delgas added the PAT kick to give the Tigers a 7-0 lead 14 seconds into the game.
The Tiger defense completely shut down the Patriot offense and junior running back Mason Hunt took over the game. Hunt rushed for 132 yards — on only five carries — and scored three touchdowns. Delgas added the PAT kick each time, giving the Tigers a 28-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter saw four more Tigers score. Nick Tinkle scored on an 84-yard pass play from Vinson, Cooper Porter scored on a 9-yard run, Hale scored on a 20-yard run and Keegan Rue scored on an 8-yard run. Delgas added four PAT kicks to give the Tigers a 56-0 halftime lead and trigger a running clock in the second half.
The Tiger regulars sat out the second half with both teams scoring in the third quarter.
Brody Benson scored a rushing touchdown for the Tigers from five yards out and Delgas added his ninth PAT of the night to push the Tiger lead to 63-0. Aiden Vauthier scored from seven yards out on a quarterback keeper and Xander Bostick added the PAT kick that made the final score 63-7.
Tiger head coach Scott Snodgrass talked about what his team is trying to accomplish. “We could have scored a lot more points and given our regulars a chance to increase their stats,” Snodgrass said. “But that is not who we are. We respect our opponents. We are trying to improve our game. We made some mistakes in our first two games and still won so we are trying to correct those mistakes and I think we are. Our kids are doing their job on every play and then moving to the next play. Mason (Hunt) is a good example. He has been really working hard at learning to properly execute and I think you saw tonight that his work is paying off.”
Hagerstown (4-0, 3-0 TEC) 28 28 7 0 63
Union County (1-3, 1-2 TEC) 0 0 7 0 7
Hagerstown stat leaders: Passing: Vinson 4-5 161-yards, 2 TDs, Receiving: Tinkle: 1-84 yards, 1TD, Hale: 1-69 yards, 1 TD, Rushing: Hunt: 6-139 yards, 3 TDs, Tackles: Tinkle 8, Rue 6, Interceptions: Ben Hokey, Gabe Reisert.
A version of this article appeared in the September 16 2026 print edition of the Western Wayne News.
