Shorter rushed for 354 yards in the game. The tandem of Antwon Appleton and A.J. Cooley combined for 245 yards. Appleton had a game-high 129 yards and two touchdowns on just eight carries. Cooley finished with 116 yards on 11 carries and a touchdown.

LaGrange quarterback Drew Carter threw for 254 yards and three touchdowns, but also threw four interceptions in the game. Colt Shope had 93 yards receiving on eight catches for the Panthers.

Shorter opened the scoring in the first quarter. The Hawks drove 80 yards in nine plays to take a 7-0 lead. Quarterback Ben Williams finished the drive with a 31-yard touchdown pass to Abdull Haynes.

LaGrange answered with a quick five play 74-yard drive to get on the scoreboard. Carter threw five straight completions, the last for 8 yards to Stephen Tuck for the touchdown to make it 7-6.

The Hawks needed only one play after the kickoff to increase their lead. Appleton raced 58 yards for the touchdown to make it 14-6.

Shorter used the big play for its next two scores. Appleton went 39 yards in the second quarter to make it 21-6 at halftime. In the third quarter, Cooley broke a 79-yard touchdown run to raise the score to 28-6.

The Panthers came back with two scores of their own to cut Shorter's lead to nine. Carter tossed a short 1-yard pass to Nick Langley to finish an 80-yard drive. On the fourth play of the fourth quarter, Carter hooked up with Tuck on a 8-yard pass to make it 28-19.

But on the ensuing kickoff, Shorter's Jordan Hazard returned the kickoff for 90 yards for a 35-19 lead. Linebacker Logan Lollis returned Carter's fourth interception 45 yards for the 42-19 final score.

Richard Okpani led the LaGrange defense with six tackles and recovered two fumbles. Lollis led all tacklers with 12 total tackles.

The Panthers host Maryville next Saturday. Kickoff is 1 p.m.