BEVERLY — After a great week of practice, Fort Frye head coach Eric Huck had an inkling his team was primed for a great performance Friday night when it hosted Williamstown in a much-anticipated showdown between two small school powerhouses.

The Cadets lived up to their coach’s expectations and then some as they played their very best game of the season and rolled to a 49-7 win over the previously unbeaten Yellowjackets.

“We had probably our best week of practice that we have had all season and our guys were really excited about this game,” said Huck of the big win. “We cleaned up all the mistakes and penalties we have been making and it all came together for us tonight against a very good football team.”

The Cadets quickly set the tone to open the game as they put together a nine-play, 73-yard drive capped by a six-yard run by senior Brian Adkins to take a 7-0 lead.

After forcing the ‘Jackets into a three-and-out on their opening possession, the Cadets increased their lead to 14-0 when sophomore Owen Brown scored on a four-yard run to cap a 65-yard, 10-play drive.

Williamstown came up with what looked like a momentum changing play on the final play of the opening quarter when quarterback Brayden Modesitt connected with Caleb Whitaker on a 58-yard touchdown pass to cut the lead in half.

That ‘Jacket momentum would be short lived as the Cadets answered with a drive that took just four plays keyed by a 36-yard pass from Ian Ellis to Brown and capped by a 5-yard touchdown run by junior Collin Welsh for a 21-7 lead.

“I thought to be able to respond after a big play that didn’t go our way was big,” said Huck.

An interception by sophomore Eli Johnson gave the ball right back to the Cadets and they put together yet another long drive ending with a 12-yard pass from Ellis to Jaymison Baker to increase their lead to three touchdowns.

The Fort wasn’t done quite yet in the first half as they took over possession once again at their own 43-yard line with 44 seconds to play in the half and quickly moved the ball back into the red zone where Ellis found senior Nic Hart in the end-zone for a commanding 35-7 halftime lead.

Things would get no better in the third quarter for Williamstown as Modesitt’s pass on the second play of the second half was picked off by Baker and three plays later Ellis connected with senior tight end Braden Medley on a 22-yard touchdown pass to increase their lead to 41-7 and put the running clock into motion.

Ellis made the most of just five completions in the game as three of them went for touchdowns to three different Cadet receivers.

“We are a run-heavy team and we love running the ball down people’s throats but it’s great to have a good passing game as well,” said Ellis, who finished the night 5-of-10 passing for 118 yards. “It’s great to get a win over such a great team like Williamstown and this was a great stepping stone for our team.”

Fort Frye senior Jonathon Garvin got in on the act when he recovered a fumble to give the ball back to his team and then scored the final points of the game on a bruising 33-yard touchdown run in which he broke several Williamstown tackles before breaking free and reaching the end zone.

The potent Fort Frye offense piled up 19 first downs, 378 total yards and scored a touchdown on every possession of the game except their final one when they took a knee to end the game.

Brown led the stat sheet for the Cadets with 70 yards rushing on nine carries while catching two passes for 58 yards while Welsh (9 rushes for 48 yards) and Adkins (8-39) had solid games as well.

Sophomore Rickie Allen led the Williamstown offense with eight carries for 51 yards while junior Trevor Oates finished the game with 36 yards on 10 totes.

The game obviously didn’t go the way first year WHS head coach Chris Beck would have liked but he refused to let his team leave with their heads down with a long season and a lot of wins ahead for them.

“Hats off to Fort Frye…that’s a really, really good football team and they just won the line of scrimmage,” said Beck, whose team slipped to 2-1 with a home game on the agenda next Friday against Buffalo. “The only answer I know when you face any kind of adversity is hard work so we have got to wake up tomorrow morning and learn from this and work hard and good things will happen.”

The Cadets, who improved to 4-0 with the win, will look to continue yet another perfect regular season next week when they face an unfamiliar opponent on the road at Wellston.