Thomas Dale 42, Matoaca 20
By Louis Harrison
On a bright Friday night, the Thomas Dale Knights traveled to play one of their biggest rivals, the Matoaca Warriors. The Warriors came in looking to get revenge as they lost to the Knights last year and to Massaponax in a blowout last Friday.
The Knights were led by their rush attack, as sophomore sensation Chris Tyree paced the team with 139 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns. Alongside Tyree were Dale’s two bruising backs in Collin Holmes, who also had 2 touchdowns and Elijah Burns (72 yards.)
Not only did the offense prevail, but so would their defense. Linebacker Adam Hall led the defense, picking up 13 tackles, a sack, and an interception for a touchdown. Gynai James made 7 tackles and 2 pass break-ups. Senior Dusan Stjepanovic continued to impress finishing with 8 total tackles, including a sack and 4 tackles for loss.
“It was a typical rivalry type game,” said coach Kevin Tucker “Both teams came out very hype and pumped up. It took us about a quarter to settle down and get into a rhythm. Defense played good, just got to make sure we tackle better. Offensively, we are getting better each week. We need to cut out the turnovers.”
After a slow start, Thomas Dale would overcome their problems and defeat Matoaca with a final score of 42-20.
In a losing effort, Matoaca was led by senior quarterback Dante Sanders, who went 9-for-17 with 117 yards and a touchdown. Wide receiver Jarod Mosby caught 3 passes for 45 yards. Manny Hickman led the team in tackles with 9 and made a fumble recovery, while Austin Hicks put up 4 tackles and recovered a fumble of his own.
With this win, Thomas Dale moves to 3-1, and they will go back on the road to face the undefeated Dinwiddie Generals in what should be a very competitive game. As for Matoaca, they fall to 1-3 and they will travel to Hopewell, whose team is 3-1.
Meadowbrook 39, Colonial Heights 14
By Louis Harrison
On a beautiful Friday night, a hungry Meadowbrook Monarchs team hosted the undefeated Colonial Heights Colonials for a non-conference battle.
The Monarchs’ offense was led by quarterback Greg Fong-Wilson, who finished the night with 169 all-purpose yards and a touchdown. Running back K.J. McNeil added 123 yards and 3 touchdowns. Connor Adams was the other scorer on offense, with a receiving touchdown.
The Monarchs’ defense easily stop a high-powered Colonials offense. Although they trailed early on and giving up and touchdown and two-point conversion, Meadowbrook would turn on the jets quickly. Senior linebacker Brett Hall finished with 11 tackles and 2 interceptions, one for a touchdown. Junior Paul Davis made a huge splash with 10 tackles.
With Meadowbrook playing hot on offense and defense, the Monarchs picked up their first win of the season beating Colonial Heights 39-14.
“We did what we needed to do but still need to get better on offense every week,” said coach Adam Tiller “[I am]proud of the effort but mistakes have to be cleaned up. Colonial Heights is much improved and [definitely this]was a good win. [We are] looking forward to the home stretch; this team is capable of special things.”
Although the Colonials lost, junior quarterback Hunter Spence totaled 80 yards and a touchdown but 2 interceptions. Running back Rayquan Rogers would finish with 29 yards and a touchdown, while Maurice Sykes Jr. would be the other scorer for the Colonials.
Meadowbrook is now1-3 for the season and they will host Prince George (2-2). Colonial Heights goes to 3-1 going into a home game against Petersburg (2-2).
L.C. Bird 47, Huguenot 24
By John Walker
Week 5 of the high school football season was a good one. A Dominion Conference match-up between the L. C. Bird Skyhawks and Huguenot Falcons was a prime game in the area as far as season records go. Both teams came into this game at 3-1, with bragging rights withing the division on the line.
L.C. Bird started the game with a fast-paced offense that scored at will. After making key defensive stops on many drives, the Skyhawks’ offense drove the ball up and down the field to take a big 21-0 lead early in the second quarter. The Skyhawks were firing on all cylinders as a team on offense, and Skyhawks head coach Tony Nicely took notice.
“We tried to do what we always do. We like to hold the ball,” said Nicely. “We like to be able to run between the tackles, so I thought we did a pretty good job of that. You get in games like this and you get a bunch of penalties, it kind of throws everybody off of what they’re trying to do. Huguenot is much improved from what they were in the past. They are doing a great job over there.”
On defense, L.C. Bird was a force to be reckoned with all night. They forced vital turnovers that turned the tide of the game in their favor. Third down was where the Skyhawks thrived, as they made sure nothing got by them. Huguenot made a living off fourth down much of the night as a stout Skyhawks defense allowed nothing to pass by.
“The turnovers helped us get some momentum going,” said quarterback Marcus Banks. “This whole game had momentum behind every play for us. Whoever owns the momentum is going to win the game. Our defense was able to get some stops, and it was a big boost for us on offense.”
In the fourth quarter, Nicely took out starting quarterback Marcus Banks and had him help as an offensive coordinator for the rest of the game.
