No. 3 Pike downs Shelby
Published 12:22 am Saturday, October 4, 2008
Senior wide receiver Douglas Hawkins caught two touchdown passes, while senior running back Jerel Foster ran for two others as Pike Liberal Arts took advantage of early Raider mistakes to post a 33-6 victory at Shelby Academy.
The Patriots, ranked No. 3 in AISA Class 3A, put together a nine-play, 70-yard drive on their opening possession, capped on a eight-yard scamper by Foster for a 7-0 lead.
Later in the quarter, back-to-back turnovers turned into Pike scoring opportunities. Senior Phillip Quincy recovered a fumble and returned the ball 30 yards for a touchdown. An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty by the Patriots forced a two-point conversion attempt that failed.
An interception on the Raiders’ next possession set the ball at the 20. On the first play, Hawkins caught his first touchdown for a 20-0 lead.
Penalties and turnovers stopped both teams in the first half. The Raiders were penalized 65 yards, including 25 on the Patriots’ opening drive. Pike had two long touchdown runs negated due to penalties, while a long scoring drive for the Raiders ended in a fumble inside the Patriots’ 10-yard line.
“They (Pike) are a good ball team with more speed than we’ve seen all year,” Raider head coach Shannon Jones said. “We definitely played for pride at the end.”
In the second quarter, Hawkins collected his second touchdown via a 24 yard scoring toss from junior quarterback Trey Walters.
Foster closed out the scoring for Pike on their first possession of the third quarter, on a 72-yard dash. Foster ran for 153 yards on 14 carries.
Shelby Academy avoided the shutout, putting together a six-play, 51 yard drive in the final two minutes of the game. Junior running back Chad King went the final 23 yards for the score as time expired. He finished with 47 yards rushing on 12 carries, while senior running back Brandon Horton collected 45 yards on 12 carries.
Shelby Academy (3-3) will host Evangel for homecoming next Friday.