Hammond football did the unlikely Friday night, ending No. 2 River Hill's 30-game winning streak, 47-38, in Clarksville.
The Hawks, who have won the last two 3A state titles, last lost at Hammond on Sept. 23, 2011.
Hammond senior quarterback Tyler Martin threw five touchdown passes in the win: three to sophomore Deandre House and two to senior Lolando Hamilton.
"We were just trying to get our receivers the ball in space, using all of our weapons," Martin said. "We changed up the pass protection a little and my teammates really stepped up to help me out a lot and I'm really proud of them … I just had to close my eyes [after the game] and think about it. It's not really going to hit me until tomorrow."
River Hill fell to 6-1 with the loss, while Hammond improved to 5-2.
"This means a lot, being in the 2A South, we've got to win out to make the playoffs," said first-year coach Justin Carey, who was the defensive coordinator at Atholton last year.
At Atholton, Carey worked under Kyle Schmitt — now the head coach at Archbishop Spalding — who twice defeated River Hill. Carey said that he used his experience at Atholton and the guidance of Schmitt to create the winning game plan for Friday night's victory.
"We handled ourselves very well after the game," Carey said. "This is definitely a momentum builder."