Buza's TD passes lead Millbrook over Fauquier
WARRENTON — Millbrook senior quarterback Kaden Buza rebounded from an early interception to throw five touchdown passes and lead the Pioneers to their fourth straight victory in a 42-21 romp over Fauquier on Friday.
Buza’s errant pass landed in the hands of Falcons’ defensive back Evan Jackson midway through the first quarter.
Fauquier (2-3, 0-2 Class 4 Northwestern District) capitalized on the turnover as quarterback J.T. Diehl snuck over from a yard out to give the Falcons a quick 7-0 lead.
“We didn’t come out as physical as we should have,” Buza said. “On the interception, I didn’t step into it and I overthrew. We hit the reset button and came back on the next drive.”
From that moment on it was all Pioneers (5-1, 3-0).
Buza (14 of 27, 307 yards, one interception) and senior running back Gavin Evosirch (20 carries, 153 yards) led Millbrook down the field before Buza hit Jordan Jackson (two receiving TDs) on an 8-yard TD pass in the waning moments of the first quarter to knot the game at 7-7.
That triggered a 28-0 run by the Pioneers.
Jackson gave the offense a break and put Millbrook ahead for good. He fielded a punt at his own 16-yard-line and slipped through a group of Fauquier defenders before breaking to the outside for an 84-yard punt return.
“It’s always great when you can get a touchdown on special teams,” said Millbrook coach Josh Haymore, who wasn’t overly impressed with his team’s performance. “I thought we were sloppy. I did not think we played up to our potential.
“I think [Buza] is doing a good job. He just needs to understand that some of the reads are there. He wants to elongate the play and find something else but sometimes he just needs to hit things on time. But he is doing a good job meshing with the receivers. He knows where they are going to be with how well they run routes.”
That connection Haymore referred to was evident on the Pioneers next two drives. Especially between Buza and Diante Ball, who hooked up for three of the five passing scores.
Buza hit Ball for a 40-yard touchdown with a little more than three minutes left in the half and then again for 28 yards with just 12 seconds left before half.
“As a team we love it when everybody touches the ball," Ball said. "[Buza] gives everybody a chance.”
Millbrook was firmly in control with a 28-7 lead after the half when senior T.J. Spain picked off a J.T. Diehl pass on the Falcons’ opening drive of the third quarter.
However, momentum briefly swung when Buza was sacked by Fauquier’s Hershel Rinker and fumbled into the hands of Kyle Dargis, who returned it 51 yards for a touchdown.
“We sent Rinker and he forced it,” said Fauquier head coach Karl Buckwalter. “Kyle was there to scoop and score. It was some different stuff because we don’t sit on defense. We are going to go after them. We made a play.”
The defensive touchdown brought the Falcons within two scores for a brief moment.
Millbrook didn’t allow the Falcons any room to build on their momentum. Just over a minute later Buza rolled and hit Ball for a 49-yard-touchdown strike.
Ball finished with four catches for 144 yards and three touchdowns.
“We battled it out and got after them,” Buckwalter said. “They have some guys that can make plays. They have some smart pills, those guys make plays. Some things just didn’t look right. It was frustrating. The best thing is that our kids battled and went after them. They are not going to go away.”
Fauquier responded again with a 19-yard-touchdown pass from backup quarterback Evan Jackson to Cameron Swift, but Buza once again smothered any notions of a comeback with a 78-yard-touchdown pass to Jackson.
Fauquier tried to respond one final time but Spain made a leaping grab for his second interception of the game that allowed Millbrook to wilt the clock away.
The Pioneers host Handley (5-0, 2-0) on Friday.
“We have to clean up our passing game,” Haymore said. “We just need to focus in that so that we can come out next week and succeed.”
“We can’t let this momentum get to our heads,” Ball said of the four-game winning streak. “Next week is a big game and we have to come out and play.”
- By JOSH DORSEY Special To The Winchester Star
- Oct 5, 2019
WARRENTON — Millbrook senior quarterback Kaden Buza rebounded from an early interception to throw five touchdown passes and lead the Pioneers to their fourth straight victory in a 42-21 romp over Fauquier on Friday.
Buza’s errant pass landed in the hands of Falcons’ defensive back Evan Jackson midway through the first quarter.
Fauquier (2-3, 0-2 Class 4 Northwestern District) capitalized on the turnover as quarterback J.T. Diehl snuck over from a yard out to give the Falcons a quick 7-0 lead.
“We didn’t come out as physical as we should have,” Buza said. “On the interception, I didn’t step into it and I overthrew. We hit the reset button and came back on the next drive.”
From that moment on it was all Pioneers (5-1, 3-0).
Buza (14 of 27, 307 yards, one interception) and senior running back Gavin Evosirch (20 carries, 153 yards) led Millbrook down the field before Buza hit Jordan Jackson (two receiving TDs) on an 8-yard TD pass in the waning moments of the first quarter to knot the game at 7-7.
That triggered a 28-0 run by the Pioneers.
Jackson gave the offense a break and put Millbrook ahead for good. He fielded a punt at his own 16-yard-line and slipped through a group of Fauquier defenders before breaking to the outside for an 84-yard punt return.
“It’s always great when you can get a touchdown on special teams,” said Millbrook coach Josh Haymore, who wasn’t overly impressed with his team’s performance. “I thought we were sloppy. I did not think we played up to our potential.
“I think [Buza] is doing a good job. He just needs to understand that some of the reads are there. He wants to elongate the play and find something else but sometimes he just needs to hit things on time. But he is doing a good job meshing with the receivers. He knows where they are going to be with how well they run routes.”
That connection Haymore referred to was evident on the Pioneers next two drives. Especially between Buza and Diante Ball, who hooked up for three of the five passing scores.
Buza hit Ball for a 40-yard touchdown with a little more than three minutes left in the half and then again for 28 yards with just 12 seconds left before half.
“As a team we love it when everybody touches the ball," Ball said. "[Buza] gives everybody a chance.”
Millbrook was firmly in control with a 28-7 lead after the half when senior T.J. Spain picked off a J.T. Diehl pass on the Falcons’ opening drive of the third quarter.
However, momentum briefly swung when Buza was sacked by Fauquier’s Hershel Rinker and fumbled into the hands of Kyle Dargis, who returned it 51 yards for a touchdown.
“We sent Rinker and he forced it,” said Fauquier head coach Karl Buckwalter. “Kyle was there to scoop and score. It was some different stuff because we don’t sit on defense. We are going to go after them. We made a play.”
The defensive touchdown brought the Falcons within two scores for a brief moment.
Millbrook didn’t allow the Falcons any room to build on their momentum. Just over a minute later Buza rolled and hit Ball for a 49-yard-touchdown strike.
Ball finished with four catches for 144 yards and three touchdowns.
“We battled it out and got after them,” Buckwalter said. “They have some guys that can make plays. They have some smart pills, those guys make plays. Some things just didn’t look right. It was frustrating. The best thing is that our kids battled and went after them. They are not going to go away.”
Fauquier responded again with a 19-yard-touchdown pass from backup quarterback Evan Jackson to Cameron Swift, but Buza once again smothered any notions of a comeback with a 78-yard-touchdown pass to Jackson.
Fauquier tried to respond one final time but Spain made a leaping grab for his second interception of the game that allowed Millbrook to wilt the clock away.
The Pioneers host Handley (5-0, 2-0) on Friday.
“We have to clean up our passing game,” Haymore said. “We just need to focus in that so that we can come out next week and succeed.”
“We can’t let this momentum get to our heads,” Ball said of the four-game winning streak. “Next week is a big game and we have to come out and play.”
