Despite Brooke Point’s 14-7 lead at the half over Eastern View, the Cyclones were far from out of it, needing a momentum swing in their favor to begin the third quarter.
That first jolt came from junior quarterback AP Hull, tying the score off a 16-yard touchdown run within the first two minutes of the third.
Then, the switch: a deflected pass from Black-Hawks quarterback Gabriel Dombek into the hands of Eastern View defender Deondre Brock that set up a second-straight Cyclones touchdown.
And then, the cherry on top: a perfect ball thrown from Hull to Virginia Tech commit Brett Clatterbaugh for a 48-yard touchdown to make it a two-score game and flip Friday’s game on its head.
“We’ve been in this position before,” Cyclones head coach Brian Lowery said. “Last year, this game was a one-score game at halftime. I said, ‘We’re in a good position. There’s no hanging heads. We’re coming back and winning this.’ ”
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In the third quarter, Eastern View (2-1) outscored Brooke Point (3-1) 21-0, taking a 28-14 lead into the final quarter.
That defensive stop, plus the work of this program’s two best players, made all the difference in an eventual 34-27 win, taking Eastern View back over the .500 mark.
It was a balanced offensive attack in the win as the Cyclones rushed and passed for 200 yards or more. No one was more integral in that than Hull, finishing with more than 300 yards of offense and four total touchdowns; two passing and two rushing.
“I had a great game,” Hull said. “My team had a great game. … We just had to step it up and put 34 on them.”
Between Clatterbaugh and Hull, the two accounted for nearly 85 percent of Eastern View’s total offense in the win.
As Hull excelled in the pocket and on the ground, his counterpart in the receiving game led all receivers with nearly 140 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
The future Hokie also added one in the rushing game for good measure, helping to cap off a signature early-season win for Eastern View.
“It was a good momentum change for us,” Clatterbaugh said. “Coming off a tough loss two weeks ago, going into the bye week, we didn’t have a chance to showcase our comeback. To come out with a big 6A win like this is solid.”
Eagles move to 4-0
In one of the more marquee matchups in our region this week, undefeated Colonial Forge went up against a strong Patriot team that was also unbeaten coming in.
A back-and-forth shootout commenced, led by an incredible day on the ground from Villanova commit Jackson McCarter, who rushed for 275 yards and two touchdowns.
However, it was the Eagles who took control in the second half, scoring three-straight touchdowns in the third and fourth quarters to take a two-score lead in the fourth en route to a 35-27 win.
Colonial Forge didn’t quite excel in the running game like Patriot, but it limited the Pioneers to less than 100 passing yards as Eagles quarterback Brock Brimhall threw for 167 yards and three touchdowns.
Warriors handle switch
It was announced earlier this week that senior quarterback standout Nahshon Wilson would be transferring to Mount Zion Prep in Maryland to continue the remainder of his final high school season.
That left Saint Michael in an interesting situation heading into Friday’s game against Trinity Episcopal, but quickly, the hole under center was filled by Austin Mawyer, a junior who shined in a 44-28 win.
Mawyer had nearly 400 yards of total offense, including more than 300 passing yards and two touchdowns. Saint Michael also used a great defensive performance led by Josh Jackson to move to 4-1 on the season.
Jackson had two forced fumbles and four sacks for the Warriors, a great sign for the future as they haven’t missed a beat in the early going this season.
