After a two-game skid, Covenant needed to get in gear, and they needed to do it fast.
Against Hargrave Military Academy Friday afternoon, the Eagles found that desperately needed rhythm and snagged a big home win, rolling 41-14 over the Tigers.
“We just needed a game where we could really just gain some confidence and break out,” said Covenant head coach Dave Hart. “We do have a good team, we just have a lot of young players that aren’t quite confident yet.”
Freshman running back Rick Weaver had a breakout game against Hargrave with a season-high 159 yards on the ground and three touchdowns. Weaver is one of three freshmen on Covenant’s roster, though he brings a lot of size for a ninth-grader at 5-foot-10, 235 pounds. Weaver seemed to require at least three Hargrave defenders to go down on nearly every carry.
Despite Weaver’s impressive day on the ground, the game was mired in turnovers with 12 total turnovers between the two teams, with five interceptions and seven fumbles.
Covenant’s senior safety Stephen Wilder led the defense with two interceptions while also collecting a receiving touchdown on the offensive side of the ball.
“We covered the field well and timed the passes well with our jumps and we got our eyes back in coverage,” Hart said. “We were able to follow the ball while at the same time maintaining our coverage.”
Hargrave had six plays resulting in 20 or more yards throughout the game showing an ability to move the ball through the air bur a rash of turnovers undercut those plays’ effectiveness.
Hargrave (0-3) will look to turn their season around at the Randolph Macon Academy on Sept. 26.
Meanwhile the Eagles (2-2) will try to build some momentum with their next home game against Massanutten Military Academy Sept. 24.
