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Photos by: Ken Armstrong
WHITEVILLE- East Bladen’s Eagles rallied in the second half and rode two long touchdown drives to a 14-6 victory over Whiteville in the Three Rivers Conference opener for both schools.
The Eagles spent most of the first half deep in Whiteville territory but had nothing to show for it as turnovers and other mistakes kept the Eagles scoreless.
Whiteville’s Phillip Powell intercepted an Eagle pass at the Wolfpack 15 yardline to end the first East Bladen possession.
After Bernard Robinson, Jr. recovered an errant Whiteville pitch-out at the Whiteville 29 yardline, the Eagles were stopped on downs at the 20 yardline.
After a short Wolfpack punt, senior Sincere Smith hauled in a 29 yard pass from senior quarterback Quinton Bedsole that put the Eagles on the Whiteville 9 yardline. The Eagles reached the Wolfpack one, but a third down fumble was recovered by Whiteville’s Calvin Smith to end the threat.
Junior James Higgins popped free for a 21-yard run on the next East Bladen possession. Three plays later at the Whiteville 9 yardline a busted play resulted in a 17-yard loss and turned the ball over on downs.
Two plays later senior Adonis Avery intercepted a Whiteville pass at the Wolfpack 45 yardline. A 10-yard run by senior Trevares Carter and carries of 7 and 9 yards by fullback Xavia McDowell moved the Eagles to the Whiteville 19 yardline.
Two plays later Whiteville’s Keshawn Bellamy scooped up an Eagle fumble and raced 75 yards for a Wolfpack touchdown. A run for the 2-point conversion failed and Whiteville led 6-0 with 3:08 left in the half.
The Eagles responded with a 75-yard drive that featured a 17-yard run by junior Shy Pone and a 21-yard burst by senior Xavier Wooten. Bedsole found Sincere Smith streaking down the left sideline, and Smith caught the ball at the Wolfpack 3 yardline but was shoved out-of-bounds at the one as the half ended.
“We couldn’t play any worse than that first half,” said Eagle Coach Robby Priest. “I knew we would be sluggish, but those turnovers killed us. I told them to put the first half in the rear-view mirror and stay focused on one play at a time.”
After Pone returned the second-half kick-off 27 yards, the Eagles covered 63 yards in 8 plays. Wooten picked up a first down with a 9-yard carry, before McDowell plowed through the defense for 12 yards.
Carter darted 15-yards on the counter, before McDowell rammed through tacklers near the goalline on a 9-yard touchdown run. Junior Pierce Melvin nailed the extra point kick to edge the Eagles in front 7-6 with 8:18 left in the third quarter.
Whiteville’s starting quarterback Kiante Webb was injured on the second play of the second quarter and was replaced by sophmore Ty Moss. Moss popped free for a 31-yard gain to the Eagle 30 yardline. However the Eagle defense stopped Whiteville on downs at the 26.
The Eagles then ground out a clock-eating 74-yard; 15-play touchdown drive. Higgins reeled off runs of 8, 16 and 6 yards before scoring on a 2-yard run. Melvin drilled the extra point kick for a 14-6 lead with 10:20 remaining in the game.
Moss scooted 17 yards on the keeper then connected with sophmore end Lincoln Ransom on a slant and Ransom raced 30 yards to the Eagle 7 yardline. After a fumbled snap lost 7 yards, Robinson intercepted a fourth down pass at the East 7 yardline to end the threat.
Wooten ripped off runs of 6 and 9 yards, and Higgins banged inside on runs of 10 and 9 yards as the Eagles moved 51 yards before losing a fumble that Powell recovered at the Wolfpack 28 yardline with 2:16 on the clock.
Bellamy snared a 16-yard fourth-down pass from Moss, but Sincere Smith outjumped a Whiteville receiver to pull down an interception at the Eagle 34 yardline and seal the victory.
The Eagle defense came up with 3 turnovers and limited the Wolfpack offense to only 120 total yards. Whiteville’s leading rusher, Jamario Norton, was held to only 5 yards on 9 carries.
“Our defense is our cornerstone,” said Coach Priest. “That quarterback (Moss) hurt us, but we’ve got Skippy (Sincere Smith) back – a weapon we didn’t have last year. Adonis played outstanding. He’s got more confidence this year and considers himself a lock-down corner.”
Moss ran for 55 yards on 10 carries and completed 2 passes for 46 yards to account for the bulk of the Whiteville offense.
Higgins sparked the Eagle offense with 97 yards rushing on 17 carries. Wooten ran for 77 yards on 22 attempts, and McDowell gained 55 yards on 11 rushes. Sincere Smith caught 2 passes from Bedsole for 60 yards.
The Eagles held a 277-66 advantage in rushing yards and a 337-120 edge in total yards. East Bladen ran 66 plays in the game while Whiteville only had 37 offensive snaps. East Bladen had a 31-17 minute advantage in time of possession.
East Bladen improves to 3-0 overall and will host unbeaten South Columbus Friday night
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