RWA quarterback Mitchell Gibbons stands and delivers. (Photo/Martha Ladd)
WINNSBORO (Sept. 12, 2016) – The Richard Winn Eagles picked up their second win of the season when they traveled to Lexington Friday and pummeled the Northside Christian Crusaders 33-18. This is Richard Winn’s second consecutive double-digit win after the season opening loss.
Things got off to a bit of an odd start. On the first drive of the game the Eagles fumbled the ball, and Northside recovered only to fumble the ball again back into Richard Winn’s possession.
Eagles’ quarterback Mitchell Gibbons made them pay. First he scrambled free for a 23-yard gain, and then put Richard Winn on the scoreboard with a 1-yard touchdown run up the middle.
The Crusaders wasted no time in replying to the early touchdown. Louis Hunter broke away from every Eagle defender en route to a 56-yard touchdown, and it would not be his last long run.
Ty Walker scored for the Crusaders in the second quarter, after picking up his own fumble and running it in for a 3-yard score. Walker already had a 39-yard rush on the drive that set them up in the red zone
The score gave Northside a 12-8 lead, but it would not stick for long. Later in the second, Gibbons chugged into the end zone again, this time from 4 yards out, and the Eagles reclaimed a 16-12 lead going into halftime.
Northside opened the second half with a promising drive, but they were bitten by the fumble bug again. Noah Edwards recovered the fumble and returned it to the Crusaders’ 28-yard line.
With Zack Taylor in at quarterback, the Eagles looked to take advantage of the fumble and drove the ball inside the 5-yard line. The Crusaders put up a solid goal-line stand and forced Richard Winn to settle for a Mitchell Gibbons chip-shot field goal.
Hunter struck again on Northside’s next drive. He topped his 56-yard rushing touchdown from earlier with a 57-yard rushing score.
More importantly for the Crusaders it gave them the chance to take the lead on a 2-point conversion, but the attempt fell short and the Eagles retained their 19-18 lead.
Taylor turned things up for the Eagles on their next drive. He completed three passes on the drive, including an 18-yard pass to Gibbons and an 8-yard touchdown pass to Johnny Edenfield.
On the next Richard Winn drive it would be Gibbons who dominated on the ground and through the air. He completed a 9-yard pass to Jake Clyburn, then hit Jimmy Mckeown on an 11-yard reception before finishing things up himself with a 20-yard rushing score.
With the score Richard Winn took a 15-point lead early in the fourth quarter.
Despite picking off Gibbons for the second time of the night, Northside was unable to move the ball anywhere. The Crusaders did not attempt their first pass of the night until the fourth, and it was an incomplete pass by Noah Powell.
Richard Winn will be back in action against Newberry Academy this Friday, at home. Newberry previously lost to Northside 46-8.
NCA: 6-6-6-0 –18
RWA: 8-8-10-7 – 33
Scoring
First Quarter
RWA – Mitchell Gibbons 8 run (Brandon Miller 3 pass from M. Gibbons).6:28.
NCA – Louis hunter 56 run (run failed).3:57.
Second Quarter
NCA – Ty Walker 3 run (run failed).8:30.
RWA – M. Gibbons 4 run (Jimmy Mckeown 3 pass from M. Gibbons).3:36.
Third Quarter
RWA – M. Gibbons 13 field goal.5:45.
NCA – L. Hunter 57 run (run failed).4:44.
RWA – Johnny Edenfield 8 pass from Zack Taylor (M. Gibbons kick).2:53.
Fourth Quarter
RWA – M. Gibbons 20 run (M. Gibbons kick).10:21.
TEAM STATS
NCA RWA
First Downs 5 10
Rushes/Yards 39-249 33-141
Passing Yards 0 80
C-A-I-TD 0-1-0-0 10-17-1-2
Fumbles/ Lost 3/4 2/2
Penalties/Yards 6-45 5-35
INDIVIDUAL STATS
RUSHING: NCA- Louis Hunter 19-186,Ty Walker 8-32, Noah Powell 8-22, Nathaniel Smith 4-9. RWA- Mitchell Gibbons 25-141, Peyton Gilbert 2-2, Zack Taylor 6-(-2).
RECEIVING: RWA- Johnny Edenfield 3-15, Mitchell Gibbons 1-18, Jimmy Mckeown 2-33, Jake Clyburn 4-14.
PASSING: NCA- Noah Powell 0-1. RWA- Zack Taylor 4-6, 34 yards, one touchdown: Mitchell Gibbons 6-11,46 yards, two interceptions.
