Lumpkin County maintains pace at front of Region 7-AAA <b>(VIDEO)</b>

DAHLONEGA -- Lumpkin County coach Ty Maxwell says his team is closing in on something special.<br /> <br /> "I think our kids are starting to get used to winning and starting to expect it," Maxwell said. <br /> <br /> By the way the Indians played on Friday, it looks very much like Maxwell's charges are on to something. <br /> <br /> Lumpkin County fended off Franklin County for a 27-21 victory in Dahlonega, gaining some breathing room in the second half after a back-and-forth first half, as the Indians stayed in front of the Region 7-AAA race.<br /> <br /> "We knew we were playing a good football team tonight, and our kids knew they'd have to play four quarters to win, and they came out and played iron man football," Maxwell said. "Hopefully after two big region wins in a row, the kids will expect to win and come out faster."<br /> <br /> The Indians (3-3, 2-0 Region 7-AAA) now face a huge showdown <br /> next week at Fannin County -- and they will enter the contest knowing that their offense is still in high gear after rushing for 307 yards against the Lions.<br /> <br /> Quarterback Zach Matthews led the way with 125 yards on the ground and three touchdowns.<br /> <br /> "He's just a big, physical kid, a young kid, and he's starting to get it a little bit," Maxwell said of Matthews. "We're real excited about the future with Zach."<br /> <br /> Gunnar Wood also rushed for 86 yards and a score on 18 carries, while Bradley Womack added 55 yards on 12 carries.<br /> <br /> Franklin County, meanwhile, put up 269 yards of offense -- 164 of that on the ground.<br /> <br /> "Our defense made stops when they needed to make stops. They made the stops when it counted," Maxwell said. <br /> <br /> Franklin County will look to bounce back against Dawson County next week.