Homecoming week on the Highland Home School campus ended on a solemn note this past Friday night as the visitors from Coffee County, the Zion Chapel Rebels, handed the Highland Home Flying Squadron their ninth straight loss, 30 to 13.

As the former graduates filed into Clay-Jordan Stadium, they were looking for Coach Scott Booth and his Flyboys to snap out of their losing doldrums to capture their first win of the 2008 gridiron season. And things looked bright midway through the first quarter when Highland Home took an early 7-to-0 lead to the delight of the home-side crowd. The scoring came on a special team’s play as sophomore line backer Jarrod Edge recovered a bad snap on the Zion Chapel punt attempt for the Squadron touchdown. Edwin Sankey’s PAT kick was true to give the hometown Squadron an early lead.

With little less than two minutes remaining in the first half, the 3 and 5 Rebels got their first touchdown of the game to take an 8-to-7 half-time lead into the locker room as the Squadron faithful prepared for the crowning of Miss Latandra Shepherd as Miss Homecoming 2008.

Up by only one point, the Zion Chapel offensive unit took complete control of this Class 2A Region 3 tussle early in the second half as they put 22 consecutive points on the board in building an impressive 30-to-7 lead to start the fourth quarter.

A late fourth quarter touchdown by Squadron senior running back Chris Wasden on a 10-yard run closed out the game scoring summary as the final score stood at 30-to-13 in favor of the Coffee County visitors from Zion Chapel.

The question that has been asked many times during the Squadron 2008 campaign is this: Has the Flying Squadron ever gone winless in any given season? And the answer is yes.

It was back in 1991 when Coach Charles Sexton took over the Rebels in 1991 at Highland Home School. They went 0-and-10. As a matter of fact, the Squadron won only one game in 1992, a slim 6-to-0 victory over the Florala Wildcats.

With the loss to the Rebels, the Flying Squadron closed out their Region 3 Class 2A play with an 0 and 7 mark.

This week, the Flying Squadron will end their 2008 gridiron season as they travel to Luverne to take on the 7 and 2 Class 3A Tigers.