The Dora Bulldogs made the trip on Friday night to take on the Haleyville Lions in a key region matchup. The Bulldogs defense was bolstered by the return of linebacker Neil Foster.
The Lions would take the opportunity to points on the board first with a field goal. However, Foster and the Dora defense would shut the Lions offense down until the fourth quarter. The Dora offense would use a dominating running game and timely passing to build a 21-3 lead after three quarters. Shawn Pryor and Jamarcus Goodmon both found the endzone for the Bulldogs offense.
Haleyville attempted to make a fourth quarter comeback with scoring a touchdown on a long passing play and getting a safety after the Bulldogs offense started a drive inside their own 1 yard line. However, the Lions would come up short as the Bulldogs defense held on to lead Dora to a 21-12 victory.
The return of Dora linebacker Neil Foster proved pivotal as he had 20 tackles and 3 sacks in the game. His effort led to him being named the Daily Mountain Eagle player of the week. Shawn Pryor and Jamarcus Goodmon led the Bulldogs offense combining for just under 200 yards rushing.
The improvement of the Bulldogs from game one to game four cannot be stated enough. The defensive front seven is beginning to gel together after a rough start to the year. The defensive secondary continues to be opportunistic as the defense had 2 interceptions on the night and have 5 interceptions in the last two weeks. The offensive line is also showing growth which is allowing the Bulldogs offense to continue to stay in good opportunities to succeed.
The win improves the Bulldogs record to 2-2 on the season and 2-0 in class 4A, region 5 play. Dora is currently in a three way tie for first place in region 5 with the Northside Rams and Corner Yellow Jackets. Speaking of the Yellow Jackets, Dora makes the short trip down the highway next Friday night to take on Corner in the annual County Line Clash that is also now a region game. Dora won last year’s County Line Clash 42-14 and holds a 32-12-2 lead in the series according to the Alabama High School Football Historical Society. The Yellow Jackets come into the game with a 3-0 record overall and a 2-0 record in class 4A, region 5 play. Corner defeated Cordova last week in overtime 27-26 to remain undefeated.