SOUTH LAKES 40, LAKE BRADDOCK 22
BURKE – Relying on a run defense that held Lamont Atkins to 17 yards on 12 carries, the South
The Bruins (11-2) opened in fine form, driving 80 yards on a seven-play drive that featured quarterback Ty Crabb. Crabb, who alternates on almost every play with Jack Darcy, scored first downs on runs of 23 and 11 yards, before calling his own number for a third time and bursting through the middle for a 39-yard touchdown. Jack Rawlins’ extra point gave the Bruins a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter.
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| South Lakes held star running back Lamont Atkins to 17 yards in their 40-22 win over Lake Braddock in the 6A North semifinals last Saturday. |
The Seahawks did not get off to an auspicious start. Devin Miles’ first pass of the game was intercepted by Ibrahim Mansaray, who returned the ball to the South Lakes 25. However, the defense, with key plays from Andrew Funaki and Terry Jackson, held Lake Braddock, first dropping Lamont Atkins for a six-yard loss, and then sacking Crabb for another ten-yard loss on 4th-and-11.
Down 7-0 and losing momentum, there was a chance that South Lakes could have faced the same type of Bruin whitewall that befell Hayfield last week, when Lake Braddock jumped to a 35-0 halftime lead. Not so, said junior running back Spencer Alston, whose two second half rushing touchdowns helped the Seahawks put the game away.
“(When we were down 7-0) we knew that we had to trust our defense,” said Alston, who finished with 79 rushing yards on 15 carries. “We had to punch in and keep pounding. Our defense did a good job of shutting down.”
And the Seahawks defense could not have done much better. After allowing the 79 yards to Crabb on the opening drive, the Bruins allowed just 66 more yards on the ground, and totally shut down Atkins, who entered the game with 1,869 yards and 31 rushing touchdowns.
And while the Bruins were having difficulty breaking through the line of scrimmage, South Lakes countered with its one-two punch of Alston and fellow junior Albert Mensah. Mensah led the Seahawks with 84 yards on the ground, and added his own touchdown. Not to be outdone, quarterback Miles chipped with two scores of his own on an 11 for 49 ground effort.
The Seahawks (12-1) benefitted greatly from their ability to make the big play when it mattered. One player in particular, Funaki, seemed to consistently be in the right place at the right time, especially on third down. Funaki caught two passes for first downs, both on third-and-long situations. And defensively, the senior seemed to have the knack to be where the ball was, knocking down several crucial Bruin passes and making the right stop on short yardage downs.
Asked about his innate ability to appear at the right place, Funaki was quick to credit his teammates. “On offense, it all comes from our offensive line. The other team’s defenders are focused on our running backs, Albert and Spencer, and it makes me able to make plays for Devin at quarterback. Defensively, we just press up front and that leaves me open to (stop defenders).”
Sky Lubreski had a key 33-yard interception return in the first half. However, it was Kojo Kumi who made the most crucial defensive play for Trey Taylor’s squad. Leading 26-7 to open the fourth quarter, the Bruins were forced to open up their passing game. However, Crabb’s second pass of the quarter was picked off by the junior linebacker, who returned the ball 14 yards to put South Lakes ahead by 26 points, and leave the thoughts of a comeback in the dust.
“I was in flat coverage,” said Kumi. “I wasn’t good at covering out there in the beginning of the season, but I have been working on it. I saw the ball going that way and reacted. Just caught the pass and ran it in.”
Mansaray keyed a fierce second half comeback almost single-handedly, scoring two fourth quarter touchdowns as part of an eight-reception afternoon.
SOUTH LAKES (12-1) 6, 13, 7, 14 --40
LAKE BRADDOCK (11-2) 7, 0, 0, 15 -- 22
1st Quarter
LB – Crabb 39 run (Rawlins kick)
SL – Mensah 2 run (kick blocked)
2nd Quarter
SL – Miles 1 run (pass failed)
SL – Miles 9 run (Dover kick)
3rd Quarter
SL – Alston 2 run (Dover kick)
4th Quarter
SL – Kumi-Darfour 14 int return (Dover kick)
LB – Mansaray 18 pass (Rawlins kick)
SL – Alston 26 run (Dover kick)
LB – Mansaray 8 pass (Atkins pass)
SL LB
First downs; 15, 15
Rushes-yards; 42-212, 29-156
Passing yards; 82, 180
Comp-att-int; 8-11-2, 14-33-2
Penalties-yards; 6-40, 7-54
Punts-avg; 2-39, 2-40
Fumbles-lost; 1-0, 1-1
INDIVIDUAL STATS: Rushing: SL - Mensah 16-84, TD, Alston 15-79, 2 TD, Miles 11-49, 2 TD. Total 42-212. LB – Crabb 17-120, Atkins 12-17, Metheny 1-12, Darcy 3 – (-4). Total 33-145. Passing: SL – Miles 8-11, 82 yds. 2 INT, LB – Crabb 3-9, 29 yds., INT, Darcy 11-24, 151 yds. 2 TD, INT. Receiving: SL - Alston 3-31, Funaki 2-31, Mohler 2-9, Seneca 1-11, LB – Mansaray 8-125, 2 TD, Park 4-29, Esposito 1-17, Metheny 1-9.
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