Grafton used a heavy dose of ground-and-pound to defeat Bruton 17-0 on the road Friday evening.
Emotions were running high before kickoff as the Panthers held a moment of silence in memory of recently-deceased Bruton Assistant Football Coach Kevin Brooks.
Grafton football players wore green wristbands to show support for the Bruton athletic department in the aftermath of Brooks’ death.
“It meant a lot. From everybody who has called and sent letters, it means a lot,” said Bruton Coach Reggie Jones about the show of support Bruton has received.
From the opening kickoff, however, Grafton seemed poised to spoil any thoughts Bruton had of getting a win in front of its home crowd.
The Clippers gave themselves a huge lift with 7:30 left in the first quarter as star kicker Reed King stepped up and drilled a 48-yard field goal that had room to spare to put the Clippers on top 3-0.
In addition to the field goal, King was perfect on extra points and put Bruton in bad field position thanks to touchbacks on kickoffs.
“When you have a 4A All-State kicker from last year and he gets to come back and do it again, it’s like having gold,” Grafton Coach Matt McLeod said. “The kid is tremendous and he’s a huge asset for us.”
King’s field goal was the only offense to speak about in the first quarter, as every other drive in the quarter resulted in a three-and-out.
Grafton had a golden opportunity to build on its lead with two minutes left in the first half as the Clippers moved into the red zone with the ball on the Bruton 1-yard line.
Facing 4th-and-goal from the 1-yard line, Grafton opted to try for the touchdown but had a run up the middle stuffed by the Bruton defense.
Unfortunately for the Panthers, the stop only delayed Grafton from finding the end zone. With 32 seconds left in the half, Bruton quarterback Greg Dockery was intercepted by DJ Dobbins.
The interception set up a 45-yard pass from Grafton quarterback Demetrius Moore to Dobbins that set up a 3-yard touchdown run from Trevaun Walker as the clock read zeroes.
Both defenses held strong in the third quarter with neither team able to break through, but Bruton found itself on the verge of points early in the fourth quarter.
With the Panthers also facing a 4th-and-goal situation from the Grafton 1-yard line, the Grafton defense came up big and stuffed a run up the middle to maintain the shutout.
The game was put out of reach with 1:05 left in the fourth quarter as Walker broke free for a 28-yard touchdown run, his second of the night. An extra point by King put Grafton up 17-0, which would hold as the final score.
“I thought our defense stepped up tonight,” McLeod said. “We prepared pretty well. Offensively … everything wasn’t perfect, but we know it’s not going to be.”
The Clippers (2-1) will look to string together a second consecutive win when they host Tabb Sept. 25. Meanwhile, Bruton (1-2) will look to rebound at home against New Kent Sept. 25.
Grafton: 3 7 0 7 — 17
Bruton: 0 0 0 0 — 0
First Quarter
G: R. King FG 48, 3-0
Second Quarter
G: T. Walker 3 run (King kick), 10-0
Fourth Quarter
G: T. Walker 28 run (King kick), 17-0
Grafton; Bruton
First Downs: 9; 9
Rushes-Yards: 33-144; 40-96
Passing Yards: 66; 32
Comp-att-int: 4-8-1; 6-16-2
Fumbles-lost: 1-0; 0-0
Grafton: Trevaun Walker (16 car, 79 yards, 2 TDs), Reed King (2-2 XP, 1-1 FG), Demetrius Moore (4-8, 66 yards, INT, 10 car, 37 yards)
Bruton: Daniel Jones (13 car, 22 yards), Ian Gruver (8 car, 24 yards)
Lafayette Pulls Away Late Against Smithfield
For the first 36 minutes of Lafayette’s game against Smithfield on Friday, it appeared the Rams were at danger of losing their first Bay Rivers District game in years.
Lafayette’s fourth-quarter offense kept the Rams in the win column, defeating Smithfield 57-21.
Smithfield put Lafayette in an unfamiliar situation in the first quarter, as the Packers took the lead on the Rams twice, once at 7-0 and again at 14-8.
Each time, however, Lafayette responded with a touchdown of its own. The first came on a 7-yard touchdown run from Joeseph Kragenbrink that vaulted the Rams to an 8-7 lead. Later in the quarter, Kraegenbrink scored again, this time on a 25-yard run that tied the game at 14-14.
Lafayette’s Hezekiah Grimsley proved to be a game-changer on defense and special teams. Grimsley returned an interception 32 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter and took a kickoff 87 yards for a touchdown to open the second half.
The Rams entered the fourth quarter with a 29-21 lead and found all sorts of running room as Kraegenbrink scored his third rushing touchdown of the game to put Lafayette up 35-21.
Kyle Johnson got into the action next, busting a 76-yard touchdown run that put Lafayette up 43-21.
A 9-yard touchdown pass from Cheyton Pine to Trey Neville — both Division I football recruits — gave Lafayette a 49-21 lead, and a 2-yard fumble return for a touchdown by Jack Erwin sealed the deal as the Rams held a commanding 57-21 lead.
With their toughest test of the season behind them, the Rams (3-0) will look to stay perfect on the season when they visit Jamestown on Sept. 25.
Individual stats were not reported for this game.
Smithfield: 14 0 7 0 — 21
Lafayette: 14 8 7 28 — 57
First Quarter
S: Drew 1 run (Tucker kick) 7-0
L: J. Kraegenbrink 7 run (Johnson run), 8-7
S: Holden 14 pass from Turner (Turner kick), 14-8
L: J. Kraegenbrink 25 run (run failed), 14-14
Second Quarter
L: Grimsley 32 interception return (J. Kraegenbrink run), 22-14
Third Quarter
L: Grimsley 87 kickoff return (Horne kick), 29-14
S: Pierce 9 pass from Turner (Turner kick), 29-21
Fourth Quarter
L: J. Kraegenbrink 8 run (kick missed), 35-21
L: Johnson 76 run (Burden run), 43-21
L: Neville 9 pass from Pine (run failed), 49-21
L: Erwin 2 fumble return (C. Kraegenbrink run), 57-21
Rushing Attack Carries Tabb Against New Kent
Rushing touchdowns from Rodney Haggins and Latrelle Smith paced Tabb to a 14-6 road win against New Kent on Friday.
New Kent jumped out to an early lead with 7:42 left in the first quarter after Davion Barnes sprung free for a 20-yard rushing touchdown. The extra point by Julian Thacker was missed, however, giving the Trojans a 6-0 lead.
Tabb responded with a touchdown of its own with 2:07 left to play in the first quarter. The Tigers strung together a 13-play, 40-yard drive that was capped off with Haggins bursting through the line for a 2-yard touchdown run. A made extra point by Stanley Henderson gave the Tigers a 7-6 lead.
After a scoreless second quarter, Tabb once again found the end zone on a running play, this time by Smith.
With Tabb sitting on the New Kent 26-yard line and facing 3rd and 20, Smith broke off a 26-yard touchdown scamper that was followed by another Henderson extra point.
New Kent responded with a long drive to open the fourth quarter. Facing 3rd and goal from the Tabb 12-yard line, the Trojans threw the ball on back-to-back plays, both falling incomplete and turning the ball over on downs.
The Tabb defense made sure the Trojans did not reach the red zone again, holding on for the 14-6 victory.
Tabb (2-1) has won two consecutive games and will look to extend that streak when they travel to play Grafton Sept. 25.
Tabb: 7 0 7 0 — 14
New Kent: 6 0 0 0 — 6
First Quarter
N: Barnes 20 run (kick missed), 6-0
T: Haggins 2 run (Henderson kick), 7-6
Third Quarter
T: Smith 26 run (Henderson kick), 14-6
Tabb; New Kent
First Downs: 16; 15
Rushes-Yards: 46-235; 33-127
Passing Yards: 56; 93
Comp-att-int: 5-9-0; 12-24-0
Fumbles-lost: 1-0; 0-0
Tabb: Rodney Haggins (19 car, 87 yards, TD), Latrelle Smith (5 car, 45 yards, TD), Carter Wood (11 car, 70 yards)
New Kent: Davion Barnes (24 car, 117 yards, TD), Mike Burt (12-24, 93 yards)
York’s football team took down Warhill at home 31-13 to give the Falcons back-to-back wins.
The Falcons got on the board with 4:59 left in the first quarter thanks to a touchdown grab by Luke Gilbert that put York up 6-0.
A fumble recovery on Warhill’s next possession by York’s Cole Lytle gave the Falcons possession deep in Warhill territory. The Falcons capitalized on the field position, with Adam Lytle hauling in a touchdown pass to give York a 12-0 lead.
York would only build on its lead, scoring back-to-back touchdowns to go up 24-0 heading into the half. By halftime, York’s quarterback Ramsey Hayyat had thrown three touchdowns.
The Falcons used its defense to shut down scoring Warhill’s scoring opportunities and held on for a 31-13 victory.
“We executed well at times, but overall I was pleased with performances on both sides of the ball tonight,” York Coach Doug Pereira said.
York (2-1) will prepare to host Poquoson on Sept. 24, while Warhill (0-3) will look for its first win of the season when the Lions host Smithfield on Sept. 25.
Individual stats were not reported for this game.
Warhill: 0 0 6 7 — 13
York: 12 12 0 7 — 31
Atlantic Shores Blows Past Hampton Roads Academy
The Hampton Roads Academy football team could not contain the Atlantic Shores Christian offense during a 41-0 road loss Friday night.
Atlantic Shores started the game on fire, racking up three touchdowns in the first quarter, including two from Brandon Hall.
Trailing 20-0 after one quarter, the Navigators again gave up three touchdowns in the second quarter.
While Atlantic Shores quarterback Ryan Chamberlain threw his second touchdown pass of the game, Hall rushed for his third touchdown.
Neither team scored in the second half and the game came to a close with the Navigators on the wrong end of a shutout.
The Navigators (2-1) will look to rebound from the loss during a home game against Fuqua on Sept. 25.
Individual stats were not reported for this game.
Atlantic Shores: 20 21 0 0 — 41
HRA: 0 0 0 0 — 0
First Quarter
A: Hall 18 pass from Chamberlain (run failed), 6-0
A: Hall 1 run (kick missed), 12-0
A: Hall 3 run (Fries pass from Stainback), 20-0
Second Quarter
A: Cannady 14 pass from Chamberlain (Stainback kick), 27-0
A: Watts 33 fumble return (Stainback kick), 34-0
A: Hall 1 run (Pitsielis kick), 41-0
HRA; Atlantic Shores
First Downs: 2; 15
Rushes-yards: 19-49; 50-234
Passing yards: 5; 73
Comp-att-int: 1-12-1; 7-12-0
Fumbles-lost: 2-1; 3-1
Jamestown was unable to slow down a potent Poquoson offense, losing a 56-0 road contest Friday night.
“There were a lot of mistakes on our part,” said Jamestown Coach Donnell Brown. “Turnovers cost us, especially playing a disciplined, well-coached team like Poquoson.”
The Eagles committed four turnovers in the game, which set the Islanders up in prime field position.
While the Eagles struggled to find consistent play against the superior Poquoson team, Brown said he was proud of his team’s effort.
“I think we competed for four quarters,” he said. “They didn’t quit; they didn’t give up. They kept competing.
The Eagles (0-3) will look for their first win of the season when they host Lafayette on Sept. 25.
Individual stats were not reported for this game.
Poquoson 56, Jamestown 0
