By By STEVE FRANKLIN, Sports Writer
CHOCOWINITY — It was one play, but Geoffrey Wesson’s third quarter interception is a microcosm of how Southside’s season has panned out so far.
With the Seahawks trailing Perquimans 19-0 midway through the third, Wesson dropped back from his middle linebacker position and picked off Pirates quarterback John Hunter near midfield.
As he raced towards the right sideline, there was nothing but open field in front of him.
However, just when it looked like Wesson was about to get Southside right back into the game, disaster struck. Wesson was caught from behind by Perquimans wide receiver Rodney Privott, who jarred the ball loose. After a mad scrammble, the ball wound up in the hands of a Pirates offensive lineman, giving Perquimans a new set of downs.
Even good plays wind up bad for Southside these days.
That was the case again Saturday night as Perquimans routed Southside, 39-0, to spoil the Seahawks’ homecoming celebration.
The Pirates got on the scoreboard in the first quarter as running back Nate Downing busted loose for a 58-yard touchdown. Perquimans added to its lead in the second with a pair of two-yard touchdown runs, the first coming from Rakeem Hunter and the last coming from Steven McGilberry to give the visiting Pirates a 19-point halftime lead.
In the third quarter, it was Michael Frierson’s turn to torch the Seahawks’ defense, as he took a handoff and raced 50 yards for a score.
The Pirates padded their lead early in the fourth as Frierson intercepted a pass by Seahawks quarterback Kevin Sparks and raced 72 yards for a score, before McGilberry capped the scoring with his second short touchdown run of the contest.
One thing the Seahawks can build on is their final drive. After amassing just 49 yards of total offense in the first 47 minutes of the game, Southside drove down to the Perquimans five-yard line as backup quarterback Terrill Moore hooked up with Kendrick Reddick on a 47-yard pass play.
But the Pirates’ defense held on four straight plays and preserved the shutout.
The Pirates (5-3, 3-1 in Albemarle Conference) finished with 317 yards rushing, led by Downing’s 128 yards on the ground. Southside was limited to just 22 yards on the ground.
The Seahawks (0-8, 0-4 in Atlantic Conference action) will look to get their first win since 2006 when they travel to Roanoke on Friday.