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Orange gets in gear, rolls past Spotsylvania

After two road games and a bye, Orange County finally played before its home crowd at Porterfield Park Friday night. The Hornets’ offense clicked into high-gear in the first quarter and kept it up for most of the evening, scoring the game’s first 33 points and cruising on from there to wrap up non-district play with a 40-13 victory over Spotsylvania.

 

“We threw the ball well, ran the ball really well, and the kids played well up front,” said Orange coach Jesse Lohr as the Hornets piled up 416 yards of offense.  “That kind of performance is something I expect us to be able to come out and do on these Friday nights. It can’t be hit-and-miss, and the first two weeks was kind of hit-and-miss. It was good to see us respond from last weekend.”

 

After an abysmal offensive output at Eastern View last week, the Hornet faithful saw just about everything they might hope to see for the rest of this fall — and next — as junior quarterback Kenyon Carter tossed four touchdown passes and sophomore running back Jaylen Alexander tallied 171 yards, pounding and dragging Spotsylvania defenders on most of his 20 rushes.

 

“When you get in rhythm, you can make calls, and you can’t do that when you’re third-and-long,” Lohr said. “We didn’t win first and second down last week. What we did this week is move the ball well enough and get in rhythm. Now we can call what we feel like we’re able to call and you don’t know where the ball’s going to be.”

 

Carter touchdown passes capped the Hornets’ second and third offensive possessions. The first went 35 yards, hitting junior Christopher Washington in stride on the first snap after a hard count drew the Knights’ defensive line offside to move the chains on fourth-and-3. The second was an arcing pass that senior Tyrone Warren hauled in with a well-timed leap near the left edge of endzone from 23 yards out, setup after two running plays picked up 43 yards. Then, after Spotsylvania’s third three-and-out in the first four possessions, Orange fed Alexander to drive into the red zone before senior Shavonn Ellis raced 18 yards around the right edge for a 20-0 lead.

 

“Had to watch the film and see the mistakes,” said Carter, who completed 12 of his 17 passes on the night for 171 yards before starters exited early in the fourth quarter. “The run game and the linemen were doing a heck of a job. Jaylen running hard opened the pass up for me. I saw man-on-man and took advantage of it.”

 

The teams traded punts before Spotsy mounted its best drive as the first half wound down. Senior running back Malaki Terrell caught an option pass and raced 33 yards into Hornet territory. But then, on third-and-9 at the 30, disaster struck as pressure converged on quarterback Daquan Carter in the backfield. On the way to the ground for a sack, he flung the ball forward to no one in particular – except senior defensive back Jordan Shook.

 

“Wilhelm Lutterodt had the sack, but I’m glad he wasn’t marked down,” said Lohr as Shook made the pick and took it 70 yards for six and a 27-0 halftime lead. “That’s good team defense. The defense complemented the offense tonight. Now we’ve got to make sure special teams is not leaving points out here on extra points or giving up yardage on returns.”

 

True, there were still some hiccups to work on before Charlottesville rolls into town next week. The Hornets advanced into the red zone on their opening possession, but an airmailed snap on third-and-1 cost 24 yards and a scoring opportunity. Special teams had some shaky moments, including a shanked six-yard kickoff, several long returns, and a missed extra point. Receiving the third quarter kickoff, Orange appeared on its way to setting up a running clock as Alexander broke a 40-yard run on the first play from scrimmage.  However, Knights’ junior Tysean Tyler foiled the drive as he broke in front of a goal line pass and took it 45 yards the other way.

 

Moments later, the Hornets’ defense returned the favor, as senior linebacker Aizaya Evans intercepted Carter after Spotsy picked up a first down at the Orange 40. The Hornets found the endzone later in the quarter as Washington tallied his second touchdown on a 14-yard reception.

 

“We had some issues on coverage,” said Spotsylvania coach Jeremy Jack. “We were giving up the inside on the slants, and you can’t play that soft. Their line was physical. Their receivers had nice hands and were catching the ball out in the open. My hat’s off to them — Coach Lohr’s got them going.”

 

Although the outcome was all but settled, Terrell flashed some special teams brilliance for Spotsylvania down the stretch, starting with an 80-yard return on the ensuing kickoff. The Knights got on the board two plays later as Brandon Waller ran in from 13 yards. Midway through the fourth quarter, Terrell fielded an Orange punt around his own 40 and took it all the way for six.

 

Orange’s final touchdown came on a 5-yard pass from Carter to senior receiver Darius Minor. He and Washington both finished with four receptions for 44 and 73 yards, respectively. After Alexander, Ellis added 58 yards on six rushes.

 

Spotsylvania (2-1) managed just 157 yards of offense, and Daquan Carter accounted for most of it. The junior quarterback completed 9 of 18 passes for 52 yards, and carried nine times for 42 yards.

 

Orange (2-1) kicks off Jefferson District play next Friday when it hosts Charlottesville (2-1) for Homecoming.

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