Two ranked teams in the Richmond area squared off on Friday night as the #5 Hanover Hawks from Class 4A traveled to meet the #6 Hopewell Blue Devils from Class 3A. One of the 2-0 programs was going to take their first loss of the season.
In a bit of a back and forth battle with a sluggish start but anxiety-ridden finish, it was Hanover who came out on top with a 24-19 victory sealed with some fourth quarter heroics.
SCORING SUMMARY
TEAM TIME SCORING PLAY GAME SCORE
HOPE 8:45 (1) Irvin 38-yard field goal 3-0
HAN 10:07 (2) Bazala 7 yards, two-point Bazala run 8-3
HOPE 0:51 (2) Cooper 11 yards, PAT Irvin 10-8
HAN 8:00 (3) Bazala 26 yards, two-point Bazala run 16-10
HAN 11:00 (4) Bazala 35 yards, two-point Bazala run 24-10
HOPE 3:21 (4) Safety, Harrison tackle in end zone 24-12
HOPE 1:41 (4) Rockwell to Walker 11 yards, PAT Irvin 24-19
KEYS TO VICTORY
DEFENSIVE STOPS
Up 24-10 in the fourth quarter with just over five minutes left to play, the comfortable Hanover lead was facing some trouble after Hopewell quarterback Cameren Hill (pictured) ripped off a 13-yard run followed by a 37-yard dash by running back Anthony Crawford to move the ball to the Hanover one-yard line. A score would put the Blue Devils within a play of tying the contest.
The Hanover defense proved up to the task though getting a tackle for loss on first down, containing a short pass on second, stopping a quarterback sneak on third then shutting down the drive with a fourth-down stoppage of the Hopewell fullback with 5:01 left to play in the contest.
Though four plays later, the Hawks would give up a voluntary safety and eventually the Blue Devils would score again to make an interesting closing margin, the defensive stand was the point when Hanover all but sealed the game away, despite some tense moments in the final five minutes.
In addition to that fourth quarter stand, the Hanover defense limited Hopewell to a field goal on a drive starting on the Hawks 30-yard line and got two turnovers in their own end including a fumble recovery then an interception in the end zone by Tyler Flora.
TAKE ADVANTAGE OF FIELD POSITION
Due to a Hopewell interception and their own set of penalties and miscues, Hanover failed to score the first two times that they had the ball. However, following a defensive stand deep in Blue Devils territory, the Hawks took possession of the ball on the Hopewell 30-yard line for their third possession and they promptly took the lead in the ball game behind a 7-yard scoring run from quarterback Marcus Bazala (pictured) early in the second quarter.
More miscues, penalties and two missed field goals sent the Hawks into the locker room trailing 10-8 as Hopewell found the end zone with less than a minute to play in the half.
Fortunes turned in the third quarter when Hanover again took over possession on the Hopewell side of the field and they capped a 47-yard scoring drive with a 26-yard run from Bazala to regain control of the ball game at 16-10 just four minutes into the second half.
Following Flora's pick in the end zone, Hanover pieced together their most impressive drive of the night going 80 yards and taking a two-score lead as Bazala again hit paydirt with a 35-yard run through the middle of the Hopewell defense off an inside zone read run with eleven minutes left in the contest.
In addition to Hanover scoring two of their three touchdowns after starting drives in Hopewell territory, all three of the Blue Devils scoring drives started in the Hawks end of the field and the safety they scored came with Hanover backed up against their own end zone.
FIGHT THROUGH SLUGGISH START
In the first half, nobody got more work in than the officiating crew as both teams made a number of mistakes that halted, and often reversed, several big plays. The fireworks final of flags (17 in the half) kept everyone out of rhythm in the first half and it was clearly contributing to the sluggish nature of both team's offensive performance.
Of the six Hanover possessions in quarters one and two, the Hawks threw two interceptions, missed a pair of field goals, punted once and scored once to trail 10-8 at the half.
They were markedly better in the second half scoring on each of their first two drives to take control of the contest before ending the game with a punt, allowing a safety and taking a knee to end the game.
Coach Derek Stout (pictured) mentioned the grittiness of his team during our post-game conversation and it was apparent throughout the contest as they not only battled a shaky start, they face a tough defensive line that gave them fits early and they played their first full game without standout quarterback Clayton Cheatham who was sidelined by an injury last Friday.
**Hear post-game with Hanover head coach Derek Stout**
PLAYERS OF THE GAME
1. Marcus Bazala, Hanover
2. Tyler Flora, Hanover
3. Cameren Hill, Hopewell
MARCUS BAZALA
The Hawks running back stepped into the starting role at quarterback for the injured Cheatham and, aside from taking the snaps directly, he didn't do much different than he would have from his old spot. The senior carrying the ball 37 times for 246 yards scoring not only all three of his team's touchdowns, but also converting each of their trio of two-point conversations accounting for all of the points on the night.
TYLER FLORA
The senior defensive back stepped in front of a Hopewell pass near the end of the third quarter, a score that would have tied the game, at worst, or given the lead back to the Blue Devils with an extra point conversion as the Hawks were leading 16-10, at the time. On the ensuing drive, Hanover scored to take the two-score lead which ultimately served to be the winning score.
CAMEREN HILL
The Blue Devils used a pair of quarterbacks on the night as Hill was shaken up a few times on the night, but he still managed to throw for 157 yards and one touchdown and getting his team out o trouble several times with scintillating runs and escapes from the pocket including a 'B' button spin move. Additionally, he picked off a pass from the defensive side leading to a Hopewell score and the lead at the break. He also handled the team's punting duties.
Football Editor Rod Johnson first joined the staff at www.VirginiaPreps.com in 2003 reporting on prospects, programs and news from around the state since moving to the Commonwealth. To keep up with all the high school football action in the state, follow him on Twitter or find him on Facebook. He is also the regular host of the VirginiaPreps.com Podcast. To find a full archived list of podcast recordings, click on our Podcast Library. Additionally, Rod can be contacted via e-mail at vaprepsrod@cox.net.
