By Liz Keller / Scrimmageplaycva.com contributor
POWHATAN – The Powhatan High School football team seems to be peaking at just the right time.
On Friday in a Jefferson District showdown against Louisa County, the Indians excelled in all areas – offense, defense and special teams – en route to a 35-7 victory over the Lions.
Powhatan kept its perfect district record intact with the win and has won five straight games since a loss to Fork Union in September.
“We’ve been improving every game,” Powhatan veteran coach Jim Woodson said. “We have some seniors, but they were not starters last year. Some other guys made the big plays and we got in the first couple of games and our guys were looking around for somebody to make the play and nobody was making them. So we addressed the problem and we’ve had some people step up and they’ve accepted the challenge.”
The Indians (6-2, 3-0 JD) made a statement from the opening kickoff, as Norris Goode picked up the squib kick and dashed 68 yards for the score.
The visitors were forced to punt on their opening drive, but answered on their following possession. Andre Mealy and Zack Jackson got down to business, splitting carries on the drive. Jackson’s runs of 27 and 2 yards set up a 1-yard TD from Mealy to tie the game.
Powhatan had a short field to work with much of the game and took advantage. The Indians started on the Louisa 38-yard line twice in the second quarter and both drives resulted in touchdowns. Tommy Mitchell hooked up with Alex Higuchi for a 12-yard pass play to give Powhatan the lead. The district newcomers tacked on another with a 1-yard run from Ray Brown to extend its advantage to 21-7 by halftime.
The Indians’ defense forced Louisa to go three-and-out on its opening possession of the second half, as Bobby Oglesby sacked Jackson on third down to keep the Lions at bay.
Woodson praised defensive coordinator Ernie Henderson for getting the team prepared for Louisa’s tricky single-wing offense.
“It was a huge adjustment and the guys responded,” Woodson said.
Powhatan continued to wear Louisa down in the third quarter. The Indians used a 7-play, 40-yard drive – all Brown – to take a commanding 28-7 lead. The 5-foot-10, 177-pound senior added a 5-yard TD run late in the quarter and finished with a game-high 110 yards on 29 carries.
Mealy, who eclipsed the 1,000-yard rushing mark during the game, led the Lions with 93 yards on 16 carries. Jackson added 42 rushing yards, while Peanut Johnson totaled 62-all-purpose yards.
The Lions entertain Charlottesville next Friday, while the Indians face another stiff district test as they play host to Monticello, a winner over Fluvanna County on Friday night. Both team enter the game unbeaten in district play.
“We keep getting better and better every week,” said Mitchell, who was 10 of 12 passing for 78 yards. “[This win will] definitely give us some momentum and we have home field advantage again. We’re going to keep working at it this week.”
