Fairview's Tyvn Ellis looks for room to run.

FAIRVIEW — West Point called on Hunter Persall’s number several times Friday night.

And, like a good neighbor … oops … teammate, Persall was there.

The junior running back collected 317 yards and three touchdowns on 31 carries to propel the Warriors to a 27-14 victory over Fairview in a Class 5A, Region 6 clash at Dafford Smith Stadium.

Persall notched scoring scampers of 14, 55 and 60 yards and accounted for 78 percent of his team’s total offense in the road win, which improved the Maroon and White’s record to 4-2 overall and 3-1 in the region.

Despite his exorbitant stat line, Persall wasn’t interested in taking any credit following the game.

“It was our game plan, our offensive line and our receivers,” he said. “Our receivers are seriously like linemen out there. They block so well. On top of that, God is so good and so are my coaches.”

West Point set the tone early, cashing in a nine-play drive with Persall’s first score of the outing to grab a 7-0 lead in the first quarter.

The Aggies didn’t accomplish much offensively in the first half, but Dayne Black and Garrett Dunn changed all that with one stellar play — Black squeezed a pass into a tight window before Dunn outpaced the Maroon and White D en route to a 78-yard touchdown reception on the final snap of the second frame — to gain a one-point advantage heading into the locker room.

Unfortunately for the home team, the momentum didn’t stick.

Persall reeled off a fantastic 60-yard run — he broke a bevy of tackles and eluded numerous defenders down the left sideline and into the end zone — on the opening play of the third quarter to put the Warriors back on top 14-7 after a successful 2-point conversion by quarterback Rylan Jones.

“Hunter had a different gear on that run right there,” West Point coach Don Farley said. “It was big for us to really take that momentum back after what happened to end the first half. We weren’t really clean tonight, but we relied heavily on our guys up front. The receivers blocked, the offensive line blocked, and Hunter ran the ball extremely hard. You don’t set out to give a guy 31 carries, but that’s just how the flow of the game went for us tonight.”

The Purple and Gold didn’t go quietly, though, tying the tooth-and-nail game once again on a 32-yard touchdown toss from Black to Scoot Bennett on a key fourth-and-19 connection.

But just four plays later, Jones found the end zone on a 24-yard keeper to put the Warriors back in front for good. Persall then delivered the final blow late in the fourth stanza shortly after Matthew McDonald recovered a fumble inside Maroon and White territory.

“My goal every night is to be the best Hunter Persall I can be,” Persall said. “I give my all, and I lay it out here for my guys. I know I get the stats, but it’s really all of us who do the hard work out here.”

Jones capped off his evening with 84 total yards and a touchdown, while Skylar Bowers had a 40-yard reception.

Black, meanwhile, competed 10 of 21 through the air for 251 yards and two scores to pace the Aggies offensively. Grant Howard (15 carries for 56 yards), Dunn (two catches for 87 yards) and Bennett (three catches for 59 yards) also contributed for coach George Redding’s squad, which fell to 2-3 overall and 0-3 in region play.

Ethan Holland, Jordan Earwood, Mason Black and Howard also caught at least one pass.

“They did a good job,” Redding said following the loss. “Persall is a good back, and they’re big up front. I’m proud of how my guys fought. They really laid it out there. We had some great opportunties and some great momentum going, but we had some unfortunate events that kept it from being more. But we can only control what we do and how we respond to it. We’ll go back to work and keep getting better.”

Fairview travels to Curry next week, while West Point hosts defending region champion Mortimer Jordan.

For now, though, Farley just wants to rest.

“We’ve got some players who are beat up,” he said. “It was a physical game. It always is between West Point and Fairview. Coach Redding and his staff do a great job over there.”

Added Persall: “We’ve been well-prepared to handle adversity. Coach Farley challenges us with that every Friday. We’ve got a huge game next week, and we’ll do our best to meet that head-on when it comes.”

The game also marked the inaugural Brandin Iron Bowl between the two schools. West Point corralled the trophy after the victory and is slated to receive a steak dinner at its location.