INDIAN TRAIL — West Rowan’s evolution into a championship team is nearly complete.

The Falcons may not have been spectacular Friday night, but their functional 28-17 victory at Sun Valley secured at least a tie for the Class 3ASouth Piedmont Conference title and the right to host a first-round playoff game. A victory next week at Central Cabarrus will give West (7-0, 9-1 overall) its first league championship.

“Did we win like we wanted to? No,” coach Scott Young questioned and answered. “Did we play like we wanted to? No. Did we protect the football like we needed to? No. But did we win? Yes.”

And a win culled from the B-list is still a win, even if it fell short of West’s expectations.

“We didn’t play our best,” defensive end Kendall High explained. “This should have been a 50-point game if we played our best. Shoot, the defense should have scored three times.”

What the high-powered Falcons and their large contingent of fans anticipated was an easy blowout, another jewel to add to their treasure chest of a season. Instead, Sun Valley (2-5, 4-6) pushed them out of their comfort zone with a pair of second-half touchdowns.

“We’re going to regret that third quarter,” running back Ben Hampton said after rushing for 86 yards and three touchdowns. “We didn’t come out with enough life in us. We’re gonna make up for it in practice.”

West’s offense, conducted by quarterback Jared Barnette, was symphonic in the first half. The senior completed his first three passes — including a 26-yarder to wideout David Terry — as the Falcons grabbed a 7-3 first-quarter lead on Jonathan Diggs’ 2-yard plunge.

In the second period Barnette engineered two TD drives, both on runs by Hampton, as West mounted a 22-3 halftime lead.

“Barnette did a great job throwing the ball,” Young said after his QB completed 12 of 16 passes for 180 yards. “The offensive line gave him protection and receivers did a good job getting open and holding on to the ball.”

West racked up 278 yards total offense in the first half, when it ran 12 plays that gained at least 10 yards. It was a different story in the second half.

“We had some trouble,” said center Daniel Kluttz. “We turned the ball over and the offensive line didn’t do their jobs on some plays.”

Both Diggs, who rushed for 118 yards and his 10th touchdown, and Hampton, who played like a runaway horse, lost the ball on fumbles. And Sun Valley, which was limited to one first down and 36 yards total offense in the first half, used those turnovers to slice into the deficit.

“They’re a good team,” Young said. “Give them some of the credit for making this a close game.”

The Spartans drew within 22-10 with a time-consuming touchdown drive capped by quarterback Josh Bartlett’s 3-yard run late in the third quarter. The sirens went off in the fourth following a West fumble near midfield. Six plays and a face-mask penalty later, the hosts pulled within five points on a 2-yard quarterback keeper.

“We were very concerned,” said Young. “This team hasn’t been in that situation in a while, being a heavy favorite and all of a sudden there’s a chance we could lose. But for the first time, I saw a side of our team that I enjoyed watching. When the offense had its back to the wall, it responded with a long drive that resulted in points.”

With Barnett in the driver’s seat, West took over on its own 25-yard line with 7:09 remaining. He completed his final three passes, including a 13-yard sideliner to Eric Creason for first down on the Sun Valley 16. One snap later, Hampton bolted in for a game-clinching TD with 3:08 to play.

“It was hard because they were tackling the ball, not me,” said Hampton. “Their defense wasn’t bad. We may have taken them too lightly. We feel good about what we got, but not how we accomplished it.” 

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NOTES: High, a 6-foot-5, 245-pound Buick in shoulder pads, had two unassisted sacks and shared another with Brant Marlin. ... Terry caught five passes for 80 yards — all in the first half. ... Sun Valley kicker Chris Brewer nailed a 41-yard field goal to open the scoring, but later misfired on 57- and 59-yard attempts.