Blog LIVE Game Blog - Heritage-NN (3-2) at Kecoughtan (3-2)

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Greetings from Darling Stadium - it's time for kick-off with Heritage-NN (3-2) vs. Kecoughtan (3-2).

Follow Updates here and via Twitter @ hatfieldsports

Kecoughtan has won the toss and elected to receive.

Both teams here are looking to improve their playoff outlook; Kecoughtan in Region 5A and Heritage in Region 4A.

 

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An excellent drive to start for Alonzo Coley's Warriors. With Razohn Jackson unable to play today, they've gone with Jonathan Melvin - usually a running back and one who's drawing FCS looks at linebacker - at the QB spot. Melvin completed a 3rd & 4 with an 8-yard pass to Brandon Rowland to keep the drive going. Melvin also had a 25-yard run to set up the 10-yard TD run.

Kecoughtan got great push up front on the o-line, headed up by center Michael Massolena.

Heritage makes a fair catch on the short kickoff at their own 41 with 9:50 left in the second period.

 

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A big response from the Heritage offense as they too are able to convert a third down via the passing game with QB Darius Price finding Shelton Hicks for 13 yards on 3rd & 4 from their own 47. On the very next play, Faison put a foot in the ground and used the jets to get outside and go the distance.

Both teams are deciding to use short pooch kickoffs, so we may get a lot of points on the board too as a result of the decent starting field position.

 

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Kecoughtan has a nice drive working with Omari Calloway catching a 17-yard pass from Jonathan Melvin on 3rd & 5 from the Heritage 40. If Calloway hadn't lost his footing, he might've waltzed into the end zone. They also hit Darrell Cone for a swing pass and briefly venture into the Heritage red zone.

But a penalty and sack eventually back the Warriors up to where they go for it on 4th & 12 from the Heritage 25. The pass falls incomplete.

 

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Heritage takes over at its own 25 with 3:54 to go in the opening period and they get another third down conversion with Darius Price on the QB keeper on 3rd & 2 for 5 yards. Coach George 'Chubs' Massenburg is using the short passing game with the Kecoughtan secondary playing off the receivers in coverage and Price is taking advantage of what the defense is giving him.

Price completes passes of 22 yards to Shelton Hicks and 12 yards to Jeremiah Washington as the Canes cross into Kecoughtan territory with time in the first period ticking down.

 

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A fantastic job by that Kecoughtan defensive line to stand tall with Heritage knocking on the door. Both Perry and George Mitchell were great in stuffing the run up the middle at the end of that series.

 

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Kecoughtan has a great job going here and their offensive line is giving solid push for Melvin and company to operate. A screen pass loses 4 and now the Warriors are looking at 2nd & 14 from the Hertiage 30 with 2:38 to go before the break out of the time-out.

 

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With Melvin moving the chains well for Kecoughtan on this drive that begin at their own 1 following a spectacular goal-line stand, I'm a bit perplexed why the Warriors switched QB's - from Melvin to Antonio Davis, then back to Melvin - in the midst of this drive.

Alonzo Coley will now burn a time-out to talk over what they want to do before a critical 4th & 9 from the Heritage 25-yard line with 1:49 remaining in the second quarter. The Warriors are clinging to a 7-6 lead.

 

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Worse news for Kecoughtan is that its center - Michael Massolena - was down after the play. We'll see if he returns or not...

 

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On the very next play after the 4th down stop - Heritage fumbles the exchange from center to QB, recovered by Kecoughtan defender George Mitchell at the Canes 31-yard line. That was the game's first turnover.

 

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Kecoughtan's Lee Beamon is shaken up (looks to be some kind of knee or ankle injury) after a 6-yard run. Beamon has 8 rushes for 34 today, including the lone touchdown so far for the Warriors.

A brief stoppage in play here with 1:25 to go in the second quarter and Kecoughtan looking at 2nd & 4 from the Heritage 25-yard line.

 

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Without Beamon in the game, Kecoughtan inserts Adam Hatcher. His first run is for 2 yards and his next one is even better - a gain of 10, and most importantly, he alertly gets out of bounds at the Heritage 8-yard line with 23 seconds till the break to save the Warriors their last time-out and a chance at the end zone instead of settling for a field goal try.

 

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A quick pass by Jonathan Melvin to Darrell Cone for 6 yards down to the Heritage will force Alonzo Coley of Kecoughtan to burn his final time-out with 13 seconds left in the half. Kecoughtan could try what would seem to be the sure thing from the right hash - a 21-yard field goal - or they can take the chance of scoring a TD and hope they don't run out of time without getting any points.

They're going for it...

 

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Pass is incomplete by Kecoughtan so Heritage will use a time-out before 3rd & Goal from the 2 with 9 seconds left.

This is where I'm calling sprint out left if I'm Kecoughtan, using Jonathan Melvin (who's left-handed). The big key is to get rid of it and not take a tackle with time running out.

 

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A very dangerous move for the Warriors to run the ball up the middle - with having to shift over one of their guards to the center spot (with the starting center going down earlier) - yet Melvin makes it pay off with points.

Heritage does get the ball first to begin the second half after using the intermission as an opportunity to re-group.

 

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A 16-yard pass by Darius Price to a diving Shelton Hicks brings us to the conclusion of the first half of play here from Darling Stadium...

 

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Some numbers at the break...

Kecoughtan 14:
Jonathan Melvin - 5-8 for 53Yds; 10Car. 78Yds. TD
Lee Beamon - 8Car. 34Yds. TD
Darrell Cone - 4Rec. 24Yds.
Omari Calloway - 1Rec. 17Yds.
George Mitchell - 4 Tackles, TFL

Warriors - 33 plays for 185 total yards; 6-10 for 49 pass yards; 23 rushes for 136 yards; 0 turnovers; 4 penalties for 27 yards

Heritage 6:
Darius Price - 5-6 for 70Yds.
Trevon Faison - 9Car. 62Yds. TD
Shelton Hicks - 4Rec. 58Yds.
Davionta Robinson - 6 Tackles (4 Solo), Sack

Hurricanes - 21 plays for 140 total yards; 5-6 for 70 pass yards; 15 rushes for 70 yards; 1 turnover (lost fumble); 2 penalties for 10 yards

 

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Heritage begins with the football to start the second half at their own 35. After no gain on the first play from scrimmage, QB Darius Price finds Roderick Webb - a junior with the skills to play at the next level - for a gain of 13 through the air.

The Canes cross into Kecoughtan territory, but the protection breaks down on a second down play where Terrence Hubbard and Chandler Perry combine to make the sack on Price.

On 3rd & 19, it's Price dumping it off to Trevon Faison, their RB, on a screen for 12 yards. Heritage will go for it on 4th & 7 from the Kecoughtan 38.

 

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Terrific route running by Shelton Hicks and a good grab on an accurate throw from QB Darius Price to move the chains on 4th & 17, picking up 13 yards down to the Kecoughtan 25.

An incomplete pass on first down leads to a second down play that nearly turns disastrous for the Canes as a high snap leads to Kecoughtan LB Jonathan Melvin sacking Price. On 3rd & 22 - it's incomplete. Decision time now for Coach Massenburg, from the Kecoughtan 37.

 

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After the Heritage punt, Kecoughtan will have its first series of the second half at their own 8-yard line with :14 remaining in the third period and ahead 14-6 on Heritage.

An injury update for Kecoughtan -- and it's a mixed bag. Starting center Michael Massolena is back and that's not good news. On the other end, it appears that Lee Beamon's day may be done. He's sitting on the bench with ice around his knee.

 

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Kecoughtan nearly gets hit in the end zone for a safety on 2nd & 14 from their own 4 as a sweep with Adam Hatcher barely got to the 1, their own 1 that is. On 3rd & 17, Jonathan Melvin gains 8 and a penalty on the Warriors is declined by Heritage. That brings on the punting unit for Kecoughtan.

 

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A penalty on Heritage brings back a 23-yard return by Heritage's Roderick Webb on the punt that would've set the Hurricanes inside the 30 of Kecoughtan. Nonetheless, Heritage is on the move thanks to a completion by Darius Price to Jaylen Givens, followed by a late hit penalty on Kecoughtan.

Another catch from Givens, a sophomore with good scoot after the catch, picks up 17 yards and to the Kecoughtan 8.

Heritage calls time-out with 1:10 left in the third quarter. The Hurricanes are looking to cut into this Kecoughtan 14-6 lead as they have it 2nd & Goal from the Warriors 5 following a quick 3-yard pass to Roderick Webb on a screen.

So far Price is 12 of 15 today for 139 yards passing, doing a good job against a Kecoughtan pass rush that has been present in this second half with a couple of sacks.

 

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Keyshawn Harris and George Mitchell limit Trevon Faison to a 2-yard run on 2nd & Goal. Now it's 3rd & Goal from the 3 for Heritage and Faison plows through with relative ease for a touchdown - his second of the day.

Heritage is lining up for a potential game-tying two-point conversion with 11 seconds left in the third quarter.

 

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Looked like Kecoughtan LB Jonathan Melvin - who has accounted for 139 total yards on offense - might have gotten a fingertip on it to prevent the connection for 2 points.

 

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Adam Hatcher slips on the first play from scrimmage following the Heritage touchdown. That ends the third quarter and we have a close ballgame to begin the fourth quarer...

 

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A quick pass from Jonathan Melvin to Darrell Cone only picks up 1, and on 3rd & 9 from their own 43, Melvin gains just 4. Kecoughtan is forced to punt it away, where it goes out of bounds for just 19 yards.

Heritage takes over at their own 34 with 10:20 to play and the Hurricanes seem to be a bit more upbeat, despite trailing this one 14-12.

 

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Facing 3rd & 5, Heritage gets a fresh set of downs thanks to a penalty on Kecoughtan.

Another third down for Heritage with under 8 minutes to play and it comes following a pair of 2-yard runs from Trevon Faison. This time on 3rd & 6, the Kecoughtan defense gets the stop with Chandler Perry sacking Darius Price. A holding penalty on Heritage was declined. That's the third time that Price has been sacked in this half.

With 7:38 to go in the game, Kecoughtan takes over at its own 20 as a 59-yard punt rolls in the end zone for a touchback. The Warriors cling to a 14-12 advantage.

 

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Christian Cole gets his first carry of the day and it's worth 5 yards here in a key spot in the fourth quarter. Jonathan Melvin from the QB spot then rushes for 7 to get him up to 97 yards on the day on 13 rushes. A pass is incomplete by the Warriors and then Melvin runs for 4 yards to put him over 100 on the day

On 3rd & 6, the Warriors go to Adam Hatcher, who picks up 4.

Kecoughtan will call time-out, leaving them with two remaining, with 5:30 to go as they decide what to do as they look at 4th & 2 from their own 40. Conventional wisdom says punt here, but they've not had a ton of success with their punting game and Melvin could help them put this away by moving the chains running the ball.

 

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On first down from the corner spot - Kecoughtan's Adam Hatcher comes up and delivers a big hit on WR Shelton Hicks, sending him backwards a couple yards. But on 2nd & 12, QB Darius Price finds Roderick Webb over the middle on a crossing pattern for 22 yards down to the Kecoughtan 35. Even worse, a horse collar tackle is called - 15-yard penalty to put it at the 20 of the Warriors with 4:27 to play.

 

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Price and Webb found a rapport and that scoring strike probably was the prettiest pass by the Heritage signal caller all day long. He's now 15 of 19 for 179 yards, a touchdown and no intercepts (the lone turnover coming on a fumble).

 

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Back-and-forth we go folks. This game has been worth the 45-minute trip from our Max Media studios on Greenwich Road to Virginia Beach (where I co-host High School Sports Talk every Saturday from 10 AM to Noon alongside Coach Ed Young on ESPN Radio 94.1... my shameless plug of the day for the blog) to Darling Stadium.

Whoever has the ball last could take this one. We have some fourth quarter drama between two teams sitting at 3-2, both believing they can get to the 7 or 8 win mark by season's end and possibly host a playoff game in the first round.

 

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Heritage's offense is picking up the pressure from Kecoughtan better and they start at their own 47 with QB Darius Price dumping it off to Trevon Faison for 7.

A backwards pass to Roderick Webb results in a loss of 2, where Jonathan Melvin finds him for the stop.

 

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On 2nd & 6 - it's Kecoughtan's Jonathan Melvin rushing for 10 to move the chains as the Warriors look to take the time under a minute. They can take a knee and get the win.

 

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