Coming into Friday night’s game, all that stood in the way of the Charles Henderson Trojans and a .500 record was Valley High School.

However, when it was all said and done, the Trojans stood in their own way.

Despite playing neck-in-neck with the Rams for most of the game, a costly turnover late in the fourth quarter and missed opportunities throughout the game helped sink the Trojans for a third time this season as CHHS lost 31-17 to the Valley.

In a game that CHHS (1-3, 0-2) head coach Hugh Fountain called “crucial” for his team’s chances of winning the region, the Trojans could not find a way to contain an explosive Valley (3-1, 2-0) running attack.

The Rams’ offense tallied up 276 yards thanks quarterback Ty Still and running back Timvontae Walker, who combined for 183 rushing yards and four touchdowns.

The Trojan offense continued its struggles this season, only gaining 128 total yards and seven first downs.

“What killed us tonight was the inability to make plays,” senior quarterback K.D. Edenfield said after the crushing defeat.

“I feel like we were really in this game, but we couldn’t take care of the football and it really hurt us in the end.

“We have to find a way to get back on track, make adjustments and do whatever we need to do to win,” he added.

Edenfield finished the night completing eight of his 20 passes for 72 yards and 13 yards rushing on five carries.

The senior quarterback also returned a 65-yard punt for a touchdown early in the first quarter that gave the Trojans the lead at the time.

Wide receiver Jawara White scored the other touchdown for CHHS and rushed for 29 yards on seven carries.

Coach Fountain said after the game this was a game the Trojans should have won.

“We had plenty of opportunities,” Fountain said. “But we had too many costly turnovers.”

“You can’t turn the ball over against a good team like [Valley].

“[Valley] did what it needed to do, and we didn’t, it’s as simple as that,” the coach added. “I give [Valley] a lot of credit for how they played tonight.”

Trojans running back Billy Neal had a costly fumble in the third quarter that turned out to be a momentum changer for the remainder of the game.

The Rams recovered the ball and after a six play, 37-yard drive, the game was tied up at 17.

The Rams took advantage of the momentum swing and scored on their next two possessions sealing the victory for the Rams.

Both touchdowns came from the legs of Walker runs, including a 43-yard dash to the end zone.

“It always comes down to executing better, and I know I say that a lot, but when you execute, you don’t turn the ball over like we did tonight,” Fountain said.

“Turnovers were a big part of the game tonight,” he added. “We just didn’t get the job done.”

The Trojans will look to finish a three game home stand off at Movie Gallery Veterans Stadium with a winning record next Friday night against Theodore.