Gameday Notebook - P.W.C. (4th Ed)
HAYMARKET, VA - Does anyone else find it hard to believe that a football game could be postponed due to rain? Makes you scratch your head a little bit doesn't it? Well that was the case for a few teams in the county in week five. All in all it was a solid week for Prince William County schools as the two premier teams continued their dominance, a coach reached a milestone and a team close to my heart won their first game of the year. Let's take a closer look at the week that was in Prince William.
SORRENTINO GETS HIS 60TH WIN
Coach Lou Sorrentino picked up the 60th win of his career at Hylton on Friday night as his Bulldogs (2-2) beat Forest Park 28-14 in the PWC notebook game to watch. Senior RB Bill Nyantaki nearly out gained the Bruins three to one as he ran for 142 yards and scored three touchdowns.
The Hylton defense held the Bruins (2-2) to only 53 total yards in the ball game. Hylton is only one win away from tying their total for the 2007 season. After losing a close game to Battlefield last week Coach Sorrentino has his team playing like the Bulldogs of old.
Forest Park was without three of their best players as RB/LB Tunde Bakare missed the game due to an elbow injury, and QB Bruce Facundas and WR/DB Miguel Marshall did not play because of disciplinary reasons. Its worth noting that this game was considered a non-district game as these two schools will meet again on November 7th to close out the regular season.
INGRAM LEADS THE WAY
So far no one has found a way to stop Adrian Ingram and Thursday night was no different as the senior ran for 171 yards and two touchdowns en route to a 29-0 victory over Stonewall Jackson (0-4).
The bad conditions kept passing to a minimum in the game but Bobcat QB Bo Revell was able to find Cooper Bull on a 15 yard touchdown pass to get the Bobcats (4-0) on the board first. Later in the first half Zavier Stringfellow returned an Anthony Ashby pass 64 yards to put the Bobcats up 14-0. The Raiders were once again without Damien Thigpen as he continues to nurse an ankle injury.
OSBOURN IMPROVES TO 2-0 IN CEDAR RUN PLAY
The Osbourn Eagles dominated district foe Liberty 27-14 on Saturday night at James J. Leo Stadium. The Eagles came into the game with a deceiving record of 1-2. Both defeats came by way of two of the better teams in the state in the Woodbridge Vikings and the Brooke Point Black Hawks.
Junior QB Thomas Keith looked like one of the best players in the county as he accounted for 238 total yards. The majority came on the ground as he carried the ball 28 times for 198 yards and two touchdowns. Junior Jerell McFadden gained 41 yards in the first half but suffered a big hit from Liberty's Corey Lillard and did not return in the second half. The Eagle defense did a great job of shutting down Liberty's (3-1) strong ground attack by holding them to just 71 yards. Liberty FB Damien Dodson was the lone bright spot as he carried the ball 3 times for 52 yards and a touchdown.
HAMMOND SAVES THE DAY
Brentsville's David Hammond scored the game winning touchdown from 7 yards out in overtime to give Coach Dean Reedy's team their first win of the year. QB P.J. Borko and RB Philip Johnson scored the Tigers other touchdowns from 4 and 11 yards respectively.
This ole Tiger fan can breathe a sigh of relief now as his alma mater finally got their first win of the season!
OTHER SCORES
Osbourn Park 21
Loudoun Valley 0
Woodbridge 35
Franklin Co. 8
Amherst 41
Freedom 7
James Monroe 33
Manassas Park 2
PWC NOTEBOOK GAME TO WATCH
#3 Battlefield (4-0) vs. Osbourn Park (4-1)
Coach Brian Beaty's Yellow Jackets eclipsed last year's win total last weekend by defeating Cedar Run District rival Loudoun Valley 21-0. Osbourn Park is off to their best start since the 2005 season when they finished 8-2.
The majority of the team's success can be attributed to the arrival of sophomore transfer Dominique Terrell. Terrell has been a dynamic force on offense and has keyed the Yellow Jacket offensive attack. Couple Terrell's emergence with the return of RB Shawn Khanamuenwai, sophomore WR Gary Jackson and senior WR Mason Baxter and coach Beaty has a very potent offense.
It is very easy to overlook the Yellow Jacket defense when the offense is grabbing the headlines but this unit is one of the Cedar Run's best. OP has not allowed more than 7 points in a game so far this season and boasts one of the better linebackers in the county in senior Mike Noblit. Noblit and the Yellow Jacket defense will have to play at their best to slow down Battlefield's offense.
The Bobcats have averaged 33 points a game this season and have pitched three shutouts in four games. Senior RB Adrian Ingram is well on his way to surpassing his numbers from '07 when he ran for 1,552 yards and scored 18 touchdowns. Ingram is the focal point of the Bobcat attack usually getting 25-30 touches a game if not more. Junior QB Bo Revell is making strides each week and has three solid options to throw to in Blaine Mason, Matt Plum and Cooper Bull.
In my opinion this is the game of the year so far in Prince William County, I just wish I could go watch it. Battlefield has been playing at a high level this season and I expect that to continue. Don't count out Osbourn Park in this one, they are more than capable of pulling off the upset.
Prediction: Battlefield 24, Osbourn Park 14
OTHER GAMES IN PRINCE WILLIAM THIS WEEK
Forest Park (2-2)
E.C. Glass (1-3)
Prediction: Forest Park 27, E.C. Glass 6
Freedom (1-3)
Gar-Field (1-3)
Prediction: Gar-Field 14, Freedom 13
Culpeper (0-4)
Hylton (2-2)
Prediction: Hylton 35, Culpeper 6
Osbourn (2-2)
Potomac (4-1)
Prediction: Osbourn 21, Potomac 13
Stonewall Jackson (0-4)
Liberty (3-1)
Prediction: Liberty 33, Stonewall 7
Brentsville (1-3)
Millbrook (2-3)
Prediction: Brentsville 20, Millbrook 14
Manassas Park (0-4)
Buckingham County (1-3)
Prediction: Buckingham County 22, Manassas Park 6
Bye: Woodbridge
