The underclassmen took center stage tonight in Greenville to warm up the fans and unless someone scored in the final 11 seconds as I was walking to my car, the final was 30-20 in favor of the homestanding Gladiators. The game featured some big offensive plays including a kickoff return by the Cougars but two of the biggest plays were by the Gladiator defense.
Stuarts Draft had some timing and penalty issues that took the spotlight away from a potentially great offense. I believe the player who scored on the kickoff return was named Parker and the passing combination of Lunsford to Christian had a couple of nice connections. But they had some costly turnovers and shot themselves in the foot a few times.
As for Riverheads the offense could be summed up in two words.........Brody Phillips. The talented 8th grader scored the first 24 points for RHS on three TDs followed by successful two-point PATs, and one of his scores was about a 70 yard scoop and score on defense that gave the Big Red a 24-7 lead in the second quarter. On offense he carried the ball at least 80% of the time for Riverheads due to a running mate being out on injury.
But by far the best play of the night, one that essentially sealed the win for Riverheads, came midway through the third quarter. The Gladiators were leading 24-13, and SD had taken the second half kickoff down inside the 10 yard line. A score would bring them to within a one touchdown margin with a quarter and a half to go.
So they ran a play toward the right sideline and RHS' Austin Roberts simply took the ball away from the ball carrier as he was tackling him. I did not get to see it that clearly but he appeared to simply wrestle the ball away from him, which turned away the scoring threat. From there Riverheads went up 30-13 in the fourth and the Cougars scored very late to make it more respectable.
The Gladiators are now 3-0 on the season with earlier wins over Waynesboro and Parry McCluer. They now have a long break due to the varsity team's trip to Tazewell followed by a bye week. So the JVs next game will be October 6th when they will host Buffalo Gap.
Stuarts Draft had some timing and penalty issues that took the spotlight away from a potentially great offense. I believe the player who scored on the kickoff return was named Parker and the passing combination of Lunsford to Christian had a couple of nice connections. But they had some costly turnovers and shot themselves in the foot a few times.
As for Riverheads the offense could be summed up in two words.........Brody Phillips. The talented 8th grader scored the first 24 points for RHS on three TDs followed by successful two-point PATs, and one of his scores was about a 70 yard scoop and score on defense that gave the Big Red a 24-7 lead in the second quarter. On offense he carried the ball at least 80% of the time for Riverheads due to a running mate being out on injury.
But by far the best play of the night, one that essentially sealed the win for Riverheads, came midway through the third quarter. The Gladiators were leading 24-13, and SD had taken the second half kickoff down inside the 10 yard line. A score would bring them to within a one touchdown margin with a quarter and a half to go.
So they ran a play toward the right sideline and RHS' Austin Roberts simply took the ball away from the ball carrier as he was tackling him. I did not get to see it that clearly but he appeared to simply wrestle the ball away from him, which turned away the scoring threat. From there Riverheads went up 30-13 in the fourth and the Cougars scored very late to make it more respectable.
The Gladiators are now 3-0 on the season with earlier wins over Waynesboro and Parry McCluer. They now have a long break due to the varsity team's trip to Tazewell followed by a bye week. So the JVs next game will be October 6th when they will host Buffalo Gap.
