The Confederates of Lee-Davis High School traveled to Prince George Friday night in a showdown of 5A South contenders. coming off of a 35-0 thrashing of J.R. Tucker in week one and the Royals came off a nail-biting win against Clover Hill 28-24. The tough front seven of LD would be the first real test for senior running back Malaki Gurley who had 230 yards on the ground to go with three touchdowns last week. Senior running back Nathan Evans of LD with a slow week last week (22 carries for 87 yards) looked to rebound against the Royals.
Prince George jumped out to an early 7-0 lead on their first drive courtesy of a 23 yard heave from Edward Walker to receiver Keith Brown. After that, the Confederate run game was unstoppable with rushing touchdowns by Nathan Evans and Hayden Walsh before the end of the first. Three more LD rushing touchdowns, two coming from Evans, blew the game wide open before the half, giving Lee-Davis a comfortable 34-7 lead at the break.
A slow offensive second half on both sides but the Confederate defense stayed strong forcing one pick-six and just ten points to the Royals offense. Sophomore Quarterback Zach Lass was able to connect with Senior Tight End Connor Scott for a seven yard touchdown in the third quarter which was the icing on the cake. Lee-Davis came out with a thrashing 47-17 victory over Prince George to improve to 2-0 on the young season.
Evans had a big night, rushing for 153 yards and three touchdowns on 17 carries. Also helping out in the run game were seniors Hayden Walsh (12 carries, 54 yards, 1 TD) and Jarel Braxton (6 carries, 74 yards, 1 TD). Zach Lass threw for a solid 128 yards along with a Touchdown to Connor Scott. Huge defensive help from Andrew Anthony and Jamir Johnson as both came up with an interception in the second half.
Royals’ powerhouse running back Malaki Gurley was shut down most of the night as he was held to just 59 yards on 17 carries. Also, Edward Walker was just 10-28 passing with 137 yards along with a touchdown to Keith Brown.
Lee-Davis Coach Ryan Turnage was not happy with how the second half went offensively. They put up just 13 second half points, seven of them coming off of an Andrew Anthony pick-six. Last week, they put up just 14 second half points against J.R. Tucker.
“We have to figure it out. We played great in the first half but came out slow on offense in the second. We need to be able to play the whole game,” said Coach Turnage after the game.
The Confederates are stacked with a triple threat in the backfield with three seniors. Led by Nathan Evans, Hayden Walsh and Jarel Braxton both get carries to give Evans the needed rest. The three rushers combined for 171 yards and five touchdowns on the ground. Coach Turnage is satisfied with his rushing attack in the first two games so far.
“It’s great to give Nate a rest. It takes the pressure off of him. We just have to keep coaching them up and getting better every week,” said Coach Turnage.
Evans’ rushing attack takes a lot of pressure off the sophomore quarterback in Zach Lass. Lass now has had two games under his belt to get used to the playbook and playing on the varsity level. He is relieved to have such a breakout running back behind him.
“We can rely on him to pick up yardage so I don’t have to make the big throws on every drive,” said Lass.
Lee-Davis is back at home to host Glen Allen next Friday. They look to shut down the passing attack from Alex Faniel in hopes to improve to 3-0 this season.
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