Four points shy of a school record, the Bell County Bobcats put up a state-leading 80 points in their road victory over the South Laurel Cardinals on Friday night, 80-40. The 40 points allowed by Bell County during the game were almost double their season total up to that point (22).

“We came out ready to play,” said Bell County coach Dudley Hilton. “(South Laurel) was pretty fired up about it as well. You could tell it was a big deal. It was their first home game of the season, and they were ready to come out and play too. We allowed them to maintain some momentum early in the game because we kind of stubbed our toes a little bit. But, I thought we did a good job of correcting our mistakes and taking care of business. Our offense was fantastic tonight, and we played a very clean game. I’m proud of the effort and execution.”

Quarterback London Stephney was 6-for-9 on the night and totaled 185 passing yards and two passing touchdowns. He also added 76 yards on five attempts and a rushing touchdown. Bobcat running back Brandon Baker had a career night on the ground as he rushed for 241 yards and four touchdowns on 10 attempts.

Will Dean scored touchdowns on both of his only carries of the night, totaling 24 yards on two attempts with two touchdowns. Dawson Woolum and Hunter Bailey added a rushing touchdown apiece for Bell — Woolum totaling 38 yards on six carries and Bailey hitting pay dirt on his only carry for a 22-yard touchdown.

Jason Jones was the recipient of every caught pass for the Bobcats, totaling six catches for 185 yards and two receiving touchdowns.

On the defensive side of the ball, Bell County was again led in tackles by Dawson Widener, who totaled nine tackles, including one for loss. Bailey added eight tackles and a fumble recovery to aid the Bobcat defense. Tyson Thomas added eight as well, followed by Chase Huff and Kage Baker with seven tackles each.

With the victory, the Bobcats improved to 3-0 on the season and will have a week off to rest up before traveling to Whitley County on Sept. 20.