Millbrook 36-28 over Handley
- Thread starter VerizonSportsFan
- Start date
Another close loss for the Judges. Tough for both of them to have been one score games. Still, they've made huge strides this year. I don't think many expected them to be 5-2 at this point in the season. I certainly didn't. Based on how Liberty played against James Wood, I could see them winning that game.
Millbrook rallies to beat Judges in fourth quarter
Millbrook's Noah Robinson (right) looks for running room behind offensive lineman Michael Villa (53) and Zach Harrison (73) as Handley's RaeQuan Wilson (9) and Joey Ashby (50) defend in the Pioneers' 36-28 win on Saturday at James R. Wilkins Jr. Stadium. Robinson had 266 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries.
Handley quarterback Jacob Parker throws a pass over Millbrook's Kelvin Enriquez that Kevin Curry caught crossing left to right near the line of scrimmage for a 15-yard touchdown in the first quarter Saturday at James. R. Wilkins Jr. Stadium. Parkers completed 18 of 29 passes for 198 yards, three touchdowns and one interception in the Pioneers' 36-28 win.
WINCHESTER — The Millbrook football team had ample reason to feel frustrated heading into the fourth quarter on Saturday at Handley's James R. Wilkins Jr. Stadium.
The Pioneers also had ample reason to feel good, and their positive mindset helped them dig out of a 36-28 comeback win over the Judges in Class 4 Northwestern District action.
Millbrook's Savon Smith made the final big play of the rally, knocking the ball out of Handley wide receiver Kevin Curry's hands to wipe out a potential touchdown catch in the end zone with 50 seconds left. That play was part of an impressive final 12 minutes in which the Pioneers outscored Handley 16-0 and outgained them 118-34.
The Pioneers (5-2, 2-1 Class 4 Northwestern District) outgained Handley (5-2, 1-2) 358-265 through three quarters, but four turnovers over that stretch took away the impact of that differential.
The two they had in the third quarter were particularly notable.
Quarterback Kaden Buza was ruled to have fumbled the ball on a play in which it appeared his arm was going forward in an attempt to pass, and the Judges converted that turnover into a touchdown.
On the next possession, Noah Robinson (26 carries for 266 yards and two TDs) fumbled at the end of a 51-yard run inside the Handley 20 after he had the ball punched out by Curry.
"That's part of the game," said Smith, who rushed for 49 yards and one TD on seven attempts. "You're going to get the mistakes, the fumbles, the turnovers, stuff like that.
"But the good teams show what you can do to bounce back and overcome adversity. We had turnovers, and we've got to work on that, but the score shows that we overcame adversity."
Smith helped ensure that with his play in the end zone.
Down 36-28 after Robinson's seven-yard touchdown run and Gavin Evosirch's two-point run with 3:05 left, Handley needed just four plays to advance from its own 36 to the Millbrook 19. Jacob Parker (18 of 29 for 198 yards and three touchdowns to Curry, and one interception) connected with four different players on the drive, including Curry (seven catches for 121 yards).
But a combination of good coverage and pressure resulted in three straight incompletions, and Handley called timeout. The Judges then went to its go-to player in Curry, the 6-foot-1 jumping jack whose season highlights include the winning touchdown catch and two-point catch with 14 seconds left in the season opener against Warren County and the winning touchdown catch in overtime last week against Fauquier.
Parker found a leaping Curry in the middle of the end zone, and for a split-second, it looked like the Judges were within two points and would have a chance to tie by going for the two-point conversion. But as soon as Curry came down Smith swung down hard on the ball and knocked it out of his hands, setting off a Millbrook celebration.
"I thought nobody was behind me," Curry said. "And then Savon came from the corner spot. He ripped the ball. It was a great play, one of the best plays anyone's ever made against me.
"I thought I had it. I wasn't going to bring the ball into my body because I thought it was secure. He came out of nowhere. It was a great play. Much respect to him for that."
Smith wasn't specifically covering Curry on the play, but he knew he was the player to watch.
"All the games that they played on film showed that when they look for big plays, they're going to go to him," Smith said. "We set up our defense all week to slow him down as best as we could.
"My assignment was the deep third [of the field]. I just saw the ball in the air. I knew they were going to try to throw to him. Everybody that was there [around Curry] just tried to make a play."
After Smith's fellow defensive back Isaiah Robinson made an acrobatic interception at the Handley 49-yard line with 7:53 left, Millbrook went to work on making that late lead possible.
Junior Gavin Evosirch (12 carries for 86 yards and a TD) threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to T.J. Spain (three catches, 38 yards) five plays after the interception and ran in the two-point conversion to tie the game 28-28.
Evosirch — who started the previous four games at quarterback — played in the slot position that he starred in last year to open the game. But in the second half, he shared quarterback duties with Buza, who became the third person to start at quarterback this year for the Pioneers.
Millbrook then forced a three-and-out on Handley's next possession, making the Judges lose nine yards in the process. The drive included a sack from linebacker Tyrek Talley, who masterfully timed his blitzes to break through just after the snap to record all four of his sacks in the second half.
The Pioneers took over at their own 40 following a 34-yard punt, and just as they had much of the game they leaned on Robinson. He rumbled for 46 yards to the Millbrook 12 on second down, then finished the drive by walking in up the middle from seven yards out. Evosirch easily ran in the two-point conversion to make it 36-28 with 3:05 left.
Robinson was glad he was able to make such an impact after Curry knocked the ball out from behind on his 51-yard run with 1:55 left in the third quarter.
"I know I messed up on my part, but I wasn't going to let that get me down," Robinson said. "I came out and played hard every snap."
With the way Handley was playing defense, Millbrook coach Josh Haymore said the logical thing was to feed the 5-foot-11, 215-pound Robinson and trust his veteran offensive line to give him the clearance he needed.
"They gave us respect on the outside," Haymore said. "Meaning, outside as in us throwing the ball. That opened up the inside running game."
Handley also had to guard against players like Smith and Evosirch running to the edges, and the Judges weren't able to cover all their bases.
"We've just go to play gap responsibility, and if you don't, they have so many weapons, and they run their offense so well that if you're not sound, they take advantage of you," Handley coach Dan Jones said. "That's what they did today. They got us out of position on the jet sweeps, then they started pounding us, and we weren't in the right spots."
Haymore decided to go with Evosirch at quarterback exclusively for the last two drives to make Handley account for him as a runner.
But earlier in the half he was using both quarterbacks within the same series, and that's something that could be a staple in the future with the Pioneers.
Haymore attended Martinsburg's 50-45 win over Sherando on Friday night in which the running threat Grant Harman and the pocket passer Elijah Banks starred. Both of those players are strong throwers. In the running threat Evosirch and the pocket passer Buza — both of whom can throw — Haymore also has two different types of quarterbacks he can use.
"When you play a team that's got two quarterbacks, or even just two styles of offenses, it's difficult to defend," Haymore said.
Handley was also led by Malachi Imoh (28 carries for 113 yards and a TD). The Judges led 21-14 at the half, and Curry's 12-yard touchdown catch with 2:15 left in the third quarter following Buza's controversial fumble made it 28-20 Handley.
While it was a disappointing loss for the Judges, Handley left its game with Millbrook in much better shape than it usually is after the Judges play the Pioneers. Millbrook outscored the Judges 155-6 in the last three meetings.
"I'm happy to see our kids compete for four quarters again," Jones said. "I felt like it was, once again, another game where if not for one or two plays it could have gone in our favor."
Millbrook's Noah Robinson (right) looks for running room behind offensive lineman Michael Villa (53) and Zach Harrison (73) as Handley's RaeQuan Wilson (9) and Joey Ashby (50) defend in the Pioneers' 36-28 win on Saturday at James R. Wilkins Jr. Stadium. Robinson had 266 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries.
Handley quarterback Jacob Parker throws a pass over Millbrook's Kelvin Enriquez that Kevin Curry caught crossing left to right near the line of scrimmage for a 15-yard touchdown in the first quarter Saturday at James. R. Wilkins Jr. Stadium. Parkers completed 18 of 29 passes for 198 yards, three touchdowns and one interception in the Pioneers' 36-28 win.
WINCHESTER — The Millbrook football team had ample reason to feel frustrated heading into the fourth quarter on Saturday at Handley's James R. Wilkins Jr. Stadium.
The Pioneers also had ample reason to feel good, and their positive mindset helped them dig out of a 36-28 comeback win over the Judges in Class 4 Northwestern District action.
Millbrook's Savon Smith made the final big play of the rally, knocking the ball out of Handley wide receiver Kevin Curry's hands to wipe out a potential touchdown catch in the end zone with 50 seconds left. That play was part of an impressive final 12 minutes in which the Pioneers outscored Handley 16-0 and outgained them 118-34.
The Pioneers (5-2, 2-1 Class 4 Northwestern District) outgained Handley (5-2, 1-2) 358-265 through three quarters, but four turnovers over that stretch took away the impact of that differential.
The two they had in the third quarter were particularly notable.
Quarterback Kaden Buza was ruled to have fumbled the ball on a play in which it appeared his arm was going forward in an attempt to pass, and the Judges converted that turnover into a touchdown.
On the next possession, Noah Robinson (26 carries for 266 yards and two TDs) fumbled at the end of a 51-yard run inside the Handley 20 after he had the ball punched out by Curry.
"That's part of the game," said Smith, who rushed for 49 yards and one TD on seven attempts. "You're going to get the mistakes, the fumbles, the turnovers, stuff like that.
"But the good teams show what you can do to bounce back and overcome adversity. We had turnovers, and we've got to work on that, but the score shows that we overcame adversity."
Smith helped ensure that with his play in the end zone.
Down 36-28 after Robinson's seven-yard touchdown run and Gavin Evosirch's two-point run with 3:05 left, Handley needed just four plays to advance from its own 36 to the Millbrook 19. Jacob Parker (18 of 29 for 198 yards and three touchdowns to Curry, and one interception) connected with four different players on the drive, including Curry (seven catches for 121 yards).
But a combination of good coverage and pressure resulted in three straight incompletions, and Handley called timeout. The Judges then went to its go-to player in Curry, the 6-foot-1 jumping jack whose season highlights include the winning touchdown catch and two-point catch with 14 seconds left in the season opener against Warren County and the winning touchdown catch in overtime last week against Fauquier.
Parker found a leaping Curry in the middle of the end zone, and for a split-second, it looked like the Judges were within two points and would have a chance to tie by going for the two-point conversion. But as soon as Curry came down Smith swung down hard on the ball and knocked it out of his hands, setting off a Millbrook celebration.
"I thought nobody was behind me," Curry said. "And then Savon came from the corner spot. He ripped the ball. It was a great play, one of the best plays anyone's ever made against me.
"I thought I had it. I wasn't going to bring the ball into my body because I thought it was secure. He came out of nowhere. It was a great play. Much respect to him for that."
Smith wasn't specifically covering Curry on the play, but he knew he was the player to watch.
"All the games that they played on film showed that when they look for big plays, they're going to go to him," Smith said. "We set up our defense all week to slow him down as best as we could.
"My assignment was the deep third [of the field]. I just saw the ball in the air. I knew they were going to try to throw to him. Everybody that was there [around Curry] just tried to make a play."
After Smith's fellow defensive back Isaiah Robinson made an acrobatic interception at the Handley 49-yard line with 7:53 left, Millbrook went to work on making that late lead possible.
Junior Gavin Evosirch (12 carries for 86 yards and a TD) threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to T.J. Spain (three catches, 38 yards) five plays after the interception and ran in the two-point conversion to tie the game 28-28.
Evosirch — who started the previous four games at quarterback — played in the slot position that he starred in last year to open the game. But in the second half, he shared quarterback duties with Buza, who became the third person to start at quarterback this year for the Pioneers.
Millbrook then forced a three-and-out on Handley's next possession, making the Judges lose nine yards in the process. The drive included a sack from linebacker Tyrek Talley, who masterfully timed his blitzes to break through just after the snap to record all four of his sacks in the second half.
The Pioneers took over at their own 40 following a 34-yard punt, and just as they had much of the game they leaned on Robinson. He rumbled for 46 yards to the Millbrook 12 on second down, then finished the drive by walking in up the middle from seven yards out. Evosirch easily ran in the two-point conversion to make it 36-28 with 3:05 left.
Robinson was glad he was able to make such an impact after Curry knocked the ball out from behind on his 51-yard run with 1:55 left in the third quarter.
"I know I messed up on my part, but I wasn't going to let that get me down," Robinson said. "I came out and played hard every snap."
With the way Handley was playing defense, Millbrook coach Josh Haymore said the logical thing was to feed the 5-foot-11, 215-pound Robinson and trust his veteran offensive line to give him the clearance he needed.
"They gave us respect on the outside," Haymore said. "Meaning, outside as in us throwing the ball. That opened up the inside running game."
Handley also had to guard against players like Smith and Evosirch running to the edges, and the Judges weren't able to cover all their bases.
"We've just go to play gap responsibility, and if you don't, they have so many weapons, and they run their offense so well that if you're not sound, they take advantage of you," Handley coach Dan Jones said. "That's what they did today. They got us out of position on the jet sweeps, then they started pounding us, and we weren't in the right spots."
Haymore decided to go with Evosirch at quarterback exclusively for the last two drives to make Handley account for him as a runner.
But earlier in the half he was using both quarterbacks within the same series, and that's something that could be a staple in the future with the Pioneers.
Haymore attended Martinsburg's 50-45 win over Sherando on Friday night in which the running threat Grant Harman and the pocket passer Elijah Banks starred. Both of those players are strong throwers. In the running threat Evosirch and the pocket passer Buza — both of whom can throw — Haymore also has two different types of quarterbacks he can use.
"When you play a team that's got two quarterbacks, or even just two styles of offenses, it's difficult to defend," Haymore said.
Handley was also led by Malachi Imoh (28 carries for 113 yards and a TD). The Judges led 21-14 at the half, and Curry's 12-yard touchdown catch with 2:15 left in the third quarter following Buza's controversial fumble made it 28-20 Handley.
While it was a disappointing loss for the Judges, Handley left its game with Millbrook in much better shape than it usually is after the Judges play the Pioneers. Millbrook outscored the Judges 155-6 in the last three meetings.
"I'm happy to see our kids compete for four quarters again," Jones said. "I felt like it was, once again, another game where if not for one or two plays it could have gone in our favor."
