Senior running back Jackson Fitzgerald broke loose from about 75 yards on the Gladiators' first play from scrimmage and they never looked back as they rolled to an easy win over the home team Ospreys. In fact, the Big Red's domination was so complete that Fitzgerald and other starters were used very sparingly as subs came into the game as early as the first quarter.
As a result of that wholesale substitution pattern, most of the scoring came from second and third teamers, as eight different players scored TDs and a pair of kickers combined to go nine for ten on PAT's. The Gladiator defense also forced three turnovers, but the offense played turnover-free football and had very few penalties.
The Ospreys on the other hand were penalized heavily throughout the game, including at least half a dozen major penalties. Only one of those, late in the game, fell into the "cheap shot" category. The others were most likely the result of inexperience, anxiety, and just plain wanting to do better.
To give credit where it is due, the home team fans seemed to enjoy their three TD's, a big improvement over last year's 49-0 shutout in Greenville. Number 10 for the Ospreys (sorry I don't recall the name) gave them several nice kickoff returns and also scored through the air on the very last play of the game. He will clearly be their go-to player this season.
Speaking of the last play, the second half featured the running clock and only took something 27 minutes to play. That was a blessing because the first half dragged on for nearly 90 minutes due to the frequent scoring and excessive flag-throwing.
Following Fitzgerald's opening score, the Gladiators tacked on three more TDs in the first quarter and added another 28 points in the second quarter to take a commanding 56-14 halftime lead. Perhaps the biggest offensive surprise for RHS was reserve running back Colston Wheeler. This time last year, he was a JV star but on his first Friday night with the big boys, he reeled off a pair of longggg TD runs, one of them covering about 90 yards.
The only other Gladiator to score twice was Copper Arehart, who hauled in two of Kendal Edwards' three TD passes. (That's right.......you read correctly.......Riverheads threw three PASSING touchdowns in the same game!) Also scoring touchdowns were senior running back Skyler Shiflett who also saw very limited duty, Edwards himself on a sneak, Trevor Lima, who caught the first TD pass, and reserve running backs Rylan Payne and Mason Wood.
As for the PAT's, Bryan Lopez-Rojas was a perfect 8 for 8 and seemed much-improved after struggling at times last season. Sophomore Liam Burke added the final Riverheads PAT.
Next week the Gladiators will entertain Altavista in their home opener. That will be a grudge match of sorts as the Colonels pulled out a downright weird last-second victory last year on their field. Riverheads had taken a 19-0 halftime lead and still led by two scores at the five minute mark before AHS' miracle rally that eventually cost Riverheads a spot or two in the playoff standings. The Gladiators would like nothing better than to atone for that loss and have a 2-0 record heading into district play.
As a result of that wholesale substitution pattern, most of the scoring came from second and third teamers, as eight different players scored TDs and a pair of kickers combined to go nine for ten on PAT's. The Gladiator defense also forced three turnovers, but the offense played turnover-free football and had very few penalties.
The Ospreys on the other hand were penalized heavily throughout the game, including at least half a dozen major penalties. Only one of those, late in the game, fell into the "cheap shot" category. The others were most likely the result of inexperience, anxiety, and just plain wanting to do better.
To give credit where it is due, the home team fans seemed to enjoy their three TD's, a big improvement over last year's 49-0 shutout in Greenville. Number 10 for the Ospreys (sorry I don't recall the name) gave them several nice kickoff returns and also scored through the air on the very last play of the game. He will clearly be their go-to player this season.
Speaking of the last play, the second half featured the running clock and only took something 27 minutes to play. That was a blessing because the first half dragged on for nearly 90 minutes due to the frequent scoring and excessive flag-throwing.
Following Fitzgerald's opening score, the Gladiators tacked on three more TDs in the first quarter and added another 28 points in the second quarter to take a commanding 56-14 halftime lead. Perhaps the biggest offensive surprise for RHS was reserve running back Colston Wheeler. This time last year, he was a JV star but on his first Friday night with the big boys, he reeled off a pair of longggg TD runs, one of them covering about 90 yards.
The only other Gladiator to score twice was Copper Arehart, who hauled in two of Kendal Edwards' three TD passes. (That's right.......you read correctly.......Riverheads threw three PASSING touchdowns in the same game!) Also scoring touchdowns were senior running back Skyler Shiflett who also saw very limited duty, Edwards himself on a sneak, Trevor Lima, who caught the first TD pass, and reserve running backs Rylan Payne and Mason Wood.
As for the PAT's, Bryan Lopez-Rojas was a perfect 8 for 8 and seemed much-improved after struggling at times last season. Sophomore Liam Burke added the final Riverheads PAT.
Next week the Gladiators will entertain Altavista in their home opener. That will be a grudge match of sorts as the Colonels pulled out a downright weird last-second victory last year on their field. Riverheads had taken a 19-0 halftime lead and still led by two scores at the five minute mark before AHS' miracle rally that eventually cost Riverheads a spot or two in the playoff standings. The Gladiators would like nothing better than to atone for that loss and have a 2-0 record heading into district play.
