Alleghany Cougars Claw Their Way to Thrilling Comeback Against Brookville Bees By Jennifer Bailey Staff Writer   Covington, VA (Sept. 5, 2025)— In tonight's debut home Varsity football game —also Youth Night— the Alleghany Cougars faced off against a new opponent: the Brookville Bees. This new rival comes fresh off the change of the Cougars' moving from the Three Rivers District to the Shenandoah District. It's likely fans didn't know what to expect from this new opponent whose school colors resembled those of the Washington Commanders, but the Cougars did not disappoint. Despite trailing the buzzing visitors throughout most the game, they clawed their way to the top in the end, defeating their home turf 27-26. It was a riveting game. Fans were undoubtedly biting their fingernails early on as the Cougars fell behind throughout the football game. The trend continued into the two-minute warning of the fourth quarter. However, the showdown was epic and one that will go unforgotten in local sports history. Despite Brookville scoring first, Alleghany answered back, leaving the score 7-7 in the first quarter with 2:56 on the clock. However, the Bees responded with a touchdown of their own, making the score 7-14 with 2:43 remaining. This score would carry the teams into the second quarter. The second quarter left both teams struggling to put points on the board. However, the Cougars made their way down the field, scoring a touchdown with 2:02 remaining, but failed to deliver on the extra point, making the score 14-13, Brookville. Again, the Bees answered back with a touchdown, but also failed to deliver on the extra point, making it 20-13, Brookville going into the half. With 9:15 on the clock in the third quarter, Brookville scored again, but again failed to deliver on the extra point, making the score 26-13, Brookville. However, the Cougars —who either put some magic in their water bottles or got an epic speech from Head Coach Will Fields on the sidelines— came back with a vengeance, ultimately shutting down the Bees in the fourth quarter. They brought the score up to 27-26 with just a 1:36 on the clock in the fourth quarter. Brookville then failed to put points on the board and the clock drew down to zero. By one point, the Cougars had sent the Bees buzzing back to their hive. However, as my friend Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel, the Fast and the Furious) once said, "It doesn't matter if you win by an inch or a mile. Winning is winning." The game-winning touchdown catch was made by Palmer Persinger with less than two minutes on the clock in the fourth quarter.

* * * * *