Rocky Mount's 2nd quarter good enough to beat Fike
October 26, 2009 Rocky Mount High School
- Rocky Mount senior QB Collins Cuthrell
By Scott Jones
Wilson Times
WILSON - If it had been a prize fight, Fike would have won on the cards.
However, when Rocky Mount High visited the Golden Demons for a Class 3-A Big East Conference clash Friday night, the sport was varsity football, and the Gryphons escaped with a 21-14 win.
As Golden Demons head coach Kim Brown pointed out, Fike held the upper hand for the first, third, and fourth quarters. Rocky Mount, though, posted all 21 of its points in the second quarter to improve to 4-4 overall and 2-1 in the Big East.
Fike, more victimized by itself than the Gryphons, fell to 0-3 in the league and 2-7 overall.
"About the only negative I can bring out is the score," a dejected Brown summarized. "The kids fought hard. They gave a good effort. We had some mistakes, but the only negative overall is the score."
Through one quarter the Demons seemed well on their way to dominating their long-time rival. Fike forced a three-and-out to open the game, the proceeded to drive 57 yards in seven plays to take a 7-0 lead on senior Deante Hill's 1-yard plunge and junior Rob Brown's PAT kick. In all, Fike limited the Gryphons to just nine plays in the opening quarter.
Then came the second.
Fike's fortunes changed when the Demons blocked their punt when the ball hit one of the up-back blockers. Rocky Mount's Nahjerrelle Graves recovered the ball in the end zone, and the first of Spencer Bishop's three PATs knotted the score.
An 18-yard punt on Fike's next possession gave the Gryphons the ball on Fike's half of the field, and three plays later quarterback Collins Cuthrell (7-for-10, 130 yards) hit tight end Spencer Bell for a 46-yard score.
Another Fike punt from deep in its territory set Rocky Mount up at midfield, and the visitors struck for the final time when Cuthrell pushed over from a yard out with 20 seconds remaining before the half.
Fike tallied its final score when Hill plunged in from the 3-yard line with 3:51 remaining in the third quarter. The Demons appeared poised to tie, driving 46 yards in 12 plays for a first and 10 at Rocky Mount's 11-yard line late in the fourth quarter, but two penalties and two incompletions turned the ball over at that spot.
"After we blocked our own punt, and they hit that long pass, we dropped our heads a bit, but the kids came back," Brown said. "They fought hard all night."
For the game, Fike outgained Rocky Mount 217 to 175 yards, mainly on the strength of junior Lawrence Hardy's 110 rushing yards. Sacks by Fike defenders Tyler Newman and Marquis Cherry spearheaded the spate of tackles-for-a-loss posted by the Demons. |
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