West Craven 20, Washington 14

The Pam Pack’s fourth quarter rally came up just short on Friday night in Vanceboro.

In the first half, Washington possessed the football in Eagle territory three times, but couldn’t come away with points. That cost the Pam Pack later on.

The Eagles took advantage of an interception inside Washington territory. West Craven scored four plays later to go up 6-0.

On the ensuing drive, Washington got into Eagle territory but turned it over on downs. West Craven gashed the defense for a couple of big runs and a touchdown to increase the lead to 13-0 at half.

Coming out of the break, the Eagles put together a nice drive, but got called for a couple holds that set them back. On third and 35, the Pam Pack were flagged for pass interference. The Eagles scored on the next play to increase the lead to 20-0.

The Pam Pack came roaring back in the fourth quarter. A tipped pass landed in the hands of Juan Rosario for their first score of the game.

Washington’s defense forced a fumble on the next Eagles drive and it was recovered by Walt Gerard. The Pam Pack drove it down the field and scored on a Mykel Warren 6-yard run. Godley punched in the conversion and cut the score to 20-14.

On the kickoff, the Pam Pack recovered an onside kick. Washington chewed up six minutes of clock, converted a couple fourth downs and got it as far as the 1-yard line. On fourth down and goal, Godley ran a QB sneak. After the referees cleared the pile, they ruled him short of the goal line.

“Everybody in the stadium saw our kid in the end zone on that play, and it’s a shame we didn’t get the touchdown call,” head coach Jon Blank said after the game. “But, our young men are going to have to decide they’re going to come out and start a game strong. We’ve played a lot of games where we’ve started slow and picked things up late, but we have to start strong and finish strong. Unfortunately, we slept walked through those first three quarters (tonight) and we can’t do that.”

West Craven ran out the clock to earn at least a share of the 2A Eastern Carolina Conference title.

“We’re finishing strong, but we’re not starting strong,” senior quarterback Antwone Godley said. “We just have to have a short memory for this one; put it behind us and let it make us stronger.”

 

Southside 22, Riverside 20

The Seahawks (4-6, 2-3 Coastal Plains 1A) picked up a huge win tonight on Homecoming. They trailed 12-8 at halftime, but head coach Jeff Carrow said they made the proper adjustments in the second half.

On a fourth down and 7 in the third quarter, Jamari Nelson got to the edge on a jet sweep and took it the distance for the go-ahead score.

Late in the fourth quarter, the Seahawks tried to milk the rest of the clock away, but Davion Carter scored with a minute left in the game to increase the Southside lead to 22-12.

With 25 seconds remaining, the Knights scored on a long touchdown pass. However, the Seahawks recovered the onside kick and sealed the victory.

Southside will host Northside for the Anchor Bowl next Friday night in Chocowinity.

“You can throw the records out the window when we play each other,” Carrow said. “We know each other very well, they have a solid defensive line. They have a good mix of run and pass, it’ll be a fun one.”

The win was a big one for the Seahawks. Now, they are back in the mix for a spot in the NCHSAA playoffs.

 

Tarboro 48, Northside 0

It was a tough night for the Panthers, as the Vikings get their 40th-straight victory on Friday night in Pinetown.

The Panthers (6-4, 3-2 Coastal Plains 1A) will have to shake this one off quickly before traveling to Southside for the Anchor Bowl on Friday night in Chocowinity.