THE SPORTS DESK
Prep Football: Eagles’ defense stands up to Glen Allen test (WITH VIDEO)
BY JUSTIN RICE
GLEN ALLEN—Fredericksburg Christian’s football team arrived at Glen Allen High School yesterday unproven and untested.
The Eagles left with a signature win, having grown “from boys into young men,” according to FCS coach Tim Coleman.
An inspired second-half defensive effort lifted Fredericksburg Christian to a 9–7 win against Group AAA Glen Allen on Friday in the Eagles’ first regular-season game against a Virginia High School League public school.
Fredericksburg Christian didn’t allow a first down in the second half, limiting the Jaguars to just 32 offensive yards after the break to make a two-point halftime lead hold up.
“That’s not something I could have bet on,” Coleman said. “[Glen Allen] has got good athletes.
“There’s so many of our kids trying to play both ways. My hat goes off to them, just doing what they did.”
The defense made the Eagles’ halftime lead stand up, and it was the defense that put Fredericksburg Christian in front to begin with.
After the two teams swapped scoreless possessions in the first quarter, the Eagles made a seven-minute, 14-play drive from their own 46 to a fourth down at the Jaguars’ 3.
There, Glen Allen stiffened and stopped quarterback Bret Barham short of the goal line. The Eagles didn’t get points out of the drive, but they did have the Jaguars pinned deep.
Three plays later, a snap from the 10 sailed over the head of the Glen Allen quarterback and into the end zone.
“I just saw the ball loose and dived on it. The next thing I knew, I was in the end zone,” said FCS senior Ben White, who scored his first career touchdown to put the Eagles up 6–0 after a missed extra point.
The lead grew with one minute, 45 seconds left in the half.
The Eagles drove as deep as the Glen Allen 5, but a penalty sabotaged the effort and FCS settled for a 27-yard field goal by Gerald Sala.
Glen Allen answered with a long kick return—the ball carrier actually reached the end zone, but a penalty gave the Jaguars the ball at the FCS 45, instead. One play later, Glen Allen’s Darrian Moody went off left tackle and rushed 45 yards to the end zone, closing the Eagles’ lead to 9–7 at the break.
That was the last defensive breakdown the Eagles would suffer.
Glen Allen had six second-half possessions—four ended by punts after three offensive snaps, one snuffed out by Aaron Alexander’s interception late in the fourth quarter, and the last a one-play heave as the game’s final seconds ticked off.
FCS senior linebacker Cody Goode couldn’t say how many tackles he made, but his No. 9 jersey was constantly around the ball. Of the Jaguars’ 17 second-half snaps, only two resulted in a gain of more than five yards.
“It was a team effort,” Goode said. “I couldn’t have done that without them. They filled, they took on the blockers. I just filled and scraped.
“We’re a scrappy bunch. We fly to the ball. We’re small, but we’re active.”
The FCS offense was only slightly more effective in the second half. The Eagles managed four first downs and turned the ball over twice.
But when they got the ball back with 4:30 to play, Goode was in the middle of a clock-sucking, game-clinching win.
The Eagles collected two first downs—one on a 5-yard pick up by Goode and another on a 22-yard run by Alexander—and didn’t give the ball back until three seconds remained with the Jaguars pinned deep in their own territory.
“I told them all week—here’s the question: ‘When we leave that field, are the people and the public going to say, “That’s what I thought” or are they going to say, “That Fredericksburg Christian’s not too bad”?’” Coleman said. “Well, I think they’re going to have to say we’re not too bad.”
-
Fred. Christian 0 9 0 0 — 9
Glen Allen 0 7 0 0 — 7
Second Quarter
FCS-B. White fumble recovered in end zone (kick failed)
FCS-G. Sala 27-yard field goal
GA-D. Moody 45-yard run (M. Hillquist kick)
TEAMSTATISTICS
FCS GA
First downs10 5
Rushing yardage39-130 27-102
Passing yardage117 43
Passes6-9-1 4-13-2
Punts-Avg.3-35.3 5-39.2
Fumbles-lost4-3 1-1
Penalties-yards10-60 8-67
INDIVIDUALSTATISTICS
Rushing: Glen Allen—Darrian Moody 8-65, TD; Jacob Silva 7-40; Reid McCoy 9-3; Matthew Kennedy 1-1; Team 2-(-7). Fredericksburg Christian—Hunter Griffis 13-43; Aaron Alexander 9-42; Cody Goode 13-37; Landon Sharp 3-7; Bret Barham 1-1.
Passing: Glen Allen—Reid McCoy 4-13-2 43. Fredericksburg Christian—Bret Barham 6-9-1 117.
Receiving: Glen Allen—Tre’shawn Blackston 2-36; Darrian Moody 1-8; Ben Greene 1-5. Fredericksburg Christian—Jamie Mason 1-52; Landon Sharp 1-32; Aaron Alexander 3-29; Cody Goode 1-4.
Justin Rice: 540/368-5045
jrice@freelancestar.com
