ST. GEORGE — Last week, Xavier Kane amassed more than 500 yards of total offense to lead the Blue Ridge football team to a home victory over Hargrave Military Academy.
The Barons’ offense was unable to duplicate that production Saturday during a 50-14 loss to defending VISAA Division I state champion Flint Hill.
Jordan Houston rushed for a game-high 158 yards and three touchdowns and quarterback Miles Thomson ran for one and threw for two more to lead the Huskies.
“Hats off to Flint Hill, they are an outstanding football team,” Blue Ridge coach Jimmy Wills said. “We knew coming in that they were going to be very good. Our guys came out and competed. We took a couple key injuries in the first half, that really hurt us, but things just didn’t go our way today.”
Flint Hill scored on five of its first six possessions in the first half to build a commanding 41-0 halftime lead.
Thompson opened the scoring with a 30-yard touchdown run on third down for a 7-0 lead with 6:35 left in the first quarter. Following a turnover on downs, the Huskies struck again on the next play from scrimmage. Houston, a Maryland commit, took the handoff and rumbled 56 yards for a touchdown. A muffed snap nullified the extra point chance as Flint Hill took a 13-0 lead with 2:59 left in the quarter.
After stalling on its first two drives, Blue Ridge put together a strong drive that moved the ball near midfield. Kane tried to convert a fourth and 1 on a quarterback sneak, but safety Trey Rucker delivered a big hit to force a turnover on downs. Kane was shaken up on the play and didn’t return.
Three plays later, Houston rumbled 35 yards for his second touchdown of the quarter for a 20-0 lead with 41 seconds left in the first.
The Huskies added three more touchdowns in the second quarter to put the game out of reach. Thompson, a University of Pennsylvania commit, scored from two yards out following a fumble recovery from Jaiden Babcock. He then found Rucker, a Maryland commit, on a 32-yard pitch and catch for a 34-0 lead.
Thompson capped the half with a 15-yard strike to Christian Taylor for a 41-0 advantage.
Defensively, the Huskies limited the Barons to just 55 yards of total offense in the first half and knocked out Kane and backup quarterback Icesys Lewis.
“Early on, I thought we did some good things,” Wills said. “We got some stops on defense. We moved the ball on offense, but we just couldn’t finish drives, and that hurt us early. We’ve just got to really buckle down and be ready to play a good game next week.”
The third quarter was more of the same for Flint Hill as backup running back James Shumway scored from a yard out on the first possession of the half. The Huskies’ defense got on the scoreboard later in the quarter as Brian Scherer sacked the quarterback in the end zone for a safety and a 50-0 lead.
The Barons finally got on the scoreboard in the fourth quarter thanks to a pair of touchdown passes from third-string quarterback Logan Marshall.
The senior hit Macai Nelson on a 25-yard touchdown pass with 4:45 left to play to break up the shutout. Marshall connected with William Lee on a slant pattern for a five-yard touchdown to cap the scoring.
Marshall was 8-of-12 passing for 116 yards and two touchdowns. Nelson had five catches for 72 yards and a score.
The Barons return to action next Saturday when they face Bishop O’Connell for a key conference road game. Wills hopes to have Kane back available for that game.
“I think Xavier is going to be okay. Obviously, we’ve got to wait and get him re-evaluated,” Wills said. “It looks like it’s more of a neck issue or a muscle issue, rather than a head issue, which is really good. So, we’re hoping it’s going to be a good thing.”
The Barons’ offense was unable to duplicate that production Saturday during a 50-14 loss to defending VISAA Division I state champion Flint Hill.
Jordan Houston rushed for a game-high 158 yards and three touchdowns and quarterback Miles Thomson ran for one and threw for two more to lead the Huskies.
“Hats off to Flint Hill, they are an outstanding football team,” Blue Ridge coach Jimmy Wills said. “We knew coming in that they were going to be very good. Our guys came out and competed. We took a couple key injuries in the first half, that really hurt us, but things just didn’t go our way today.”
Flint Hill scored on five of its first six possessions in the first half to build a commanding 41-0 halftime lead.
Thompson opened the scoring with a 30-yard touchdown run on third down for a 7-0 lead with 6:35 left in the first quarter. Following a turnover on downs, the Huskies struck again on the next play from scrimmage. Houston, a Maryland commit, took the handoff and rumbled 56 yards for a touchdown. A muffed snap nullified the extra point chance as Flint Hill took a 13-0 lead with 2:59 left in the quarter.
After stalling on its first two drives, Blue Ridge put together a strong drive that moved the ball near midfield. Kane tried to convert a fourth and 1 on a quarterback sneak, but safety Trey Rucker delivered a big hit to force a turnover on downs. Kane was shaken up on the play and didn’t return.
Three plays later, Houston rumbled 35 yards for his second touchdown of the quarter for a 20-0 lead with 41 seconds left in the first.
The Huskies added three more touchdowns in the second quarter to put the game out of reach. Thompson, a University of Pennsylvania commit, scored from two yards out following a fumble recovery from Jaiden Babcock. He then found Rucker, a Maryland commit, on a 32-yard pitch and catch for a 34-0 lead.
Thompson capped the half with a 15-yard strike to Christian Taylor for a 41-0 advantage.
Defensively, the Huskies limited the Barons to just 55 yards of total offense in the first half and knocked out Kane and backup quarterback Icesys Lewis.
“Early on, I thought we did some good things,” Wills said. “We got some stops on defense. We moved the ball on offense, but we just couldn’t finish drives, and that hurt us early. We’ve just got to really buckle down and be ready to play a good game next week.”
The third quarter was more of the same for Flint Hill as backup running back James Shumway scored from a yard out on the first possession of the half. The Huskies’ defense got on the scoreboard later in the quarter as Brian Scherer sacked the quarterback in the end zone for a safety and a 50-0 lead.
The Barons finally got on the scoreboard in the fourth quarter thanks to a pair of touchdown passes from third-string quarterback Logan Marshall.
The senior hit Macai Nelson on a 25-yard touchdown pass with 4:45 left to play to break up the shutout. Marshall connected with William Lee on a slant pattern for a five-yard touchdown to cap the scoring.
Marshall was 8-of-12 passing for 116 yards and two touchdowns. Nelson had five catches for 72 yards and a score.
The Barons return to action next Saturday when they face Bishop O’Connell for a key conference road game. Wills hopes to have Kane back available for that game.
“I think Xavier is going to be okay. Obviously, we’ve got to wait and get him re-evaluated,” Wills said. “It looks like it’s more of a neck issue or a muscle issue, rather than a head issue, which is really good. So, we’re hoping it’s going to be a good thing.”
