Pioneers Give Fans Memorable Night with Win Over Bulldogs

LEBANON, Va. – Drew Helbert has contributed many big plays to the Lebanon football team the past two seasons.

The latest effort might have been the most memorable.

With three minutes and 34 seconds remaining in the game, Helbert scored on an 20-yard run to lift the Pioneers to a 14-7 non-district win over Tazewell Friday at Tommy Bryant Field.

With the victory, Lebanon (7-3) avoided a trip to defending state runner-up Gate City next week in the opening round of the Region D, Division 2 playoffs. The Pioneers travel to J.J. Kelly instead.

Helbert was frustrated by the aggressive Bulldog defense most of the night. In fact, the 5-foot-10, 165-pound senior managed just 19 yards rushing on his first 11 carries. He finished with 44 yards.

The touchdown run came on a sweep. Following the blocks of senior Lukas Addison (6-2, 180), junior Lucas Smith (6-1, 220) and junior Kevin Widner (6-5, 230), Helbert sped to the sideline and then bounced off three Tazewell defenders en route to the score.

“I knew there wasn’t much time left, so I gave it all I had,” Helbert said. “I got hit a few times and just kept going.

“We couldn’t get off a lot of plays we normally do because Tazewell was zoning in on us, but we got it done when we had to against a good team.”

Six-foot-three senior quarterback Terrell Lee (73 yards rushing) and 6-3 junior Jerome Cobb (54 yards) carried the Lebanon offense, with Cobb giving the Pioneers a 6-0 margin on a 30-yard sprint up the middle late in the first quarter.

Tazewell (8-2) scored on a 33-yard pass from sophomore quarterback Cody Lockhart to 6-4 senior Matt Muncy with 36 seconds left in the first half. Muncy, bound for Wake Forest, froze his defender on a stop-and-go move.

Behind Addison and senior defensive lineman John Heckford (6-1, 295), Lebanon held to Muncy to 49 yard rushing on 15 carries.

The Pioneers have played a challenging schedule, dropping games to traditional powers Gate City, Clintwood and Giles. Lebanon coach John Adams was delighted how his team answered the challenge Friday.

“We know Muncy is a great player, so we tried to take away some of the things he likes to do,” Adams said. “That’s as good of a win as we’ve had in a long time. Gate City is a tough place to play, so we will let Powell Valley make that trip next week.”

Adams wasn’t surprised that Helbert came through with his heroic run.

“I could just see it in his eyes that he was going to score,” Adams said. “That was a great run. I’m looking forward to watching it on film Monday.”
Despite the loss, Tazewell retains the top seed in Region IV, Division 3 and will host a playoff game next Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m.

Last season, the young and injury-riddled Bulldogs posted just one win. In addition to a physical defense, the keys to Tazewell’s emergence include the play of Muncy, versatile senior T.J. Rasnick and freshman defensive lineman Shaquille McDonald.

Rasnick underwent surgery last year for a cancerous tumor found inside his right hip. He entered his senior year with 2,175 yards rushing, just 280 yards from the school career record of Quentin Reed. While Rasnick has scored 37 points this season, he has been limited to 84 yards rushing on 20 carries.

The hopes for Tazewell ended with one minute remaining when junior cornerback Bob Jones took a long pass away from Muncy in the end zone.

Tazewell coach Bobby Wyatt felt the Bulldogs were their own worst enemy.

“Too many mistakes on our part,” Wyatt said. “It seemed like every time we got something going, we either had a penalty or made a bad decision.

“We played another great defensive game, but we put our defense in a hole with those silly mistakes. It just wasn’t meant to be for us.”

Wyatt paid credit to Helbert and Cobb.

“I thought we had Lebanon stopped on both of their touchdowns,” Wyatt said. “I guess they had a little more to play for. Now, we have to regain our focus.”

The low-key Helbert, who features one of the most radical hairstyles in the area, was proud of his teammates.

“I’m pretty happy,” Helbert said. “We’ve had a few rough games, but we’ve pulled through together.”