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03 26

2021 Prep football: Hanover at Patrick Henry 6:00 p.m.

03 26

2021 Prep football: Mechanicsville at Atlee 7:00 p.m.

| Youth, High School, College, Recreational & Professional

Allen’s charge helps PH forestall Raiders

By Rob Witham For the Mechanicsville Local

ASHLAND – A final score can be quite deceptive.

Patrick Henry’s 28-6 win over Atlee Friday night to sweep the Raiders in two meetings and move to 4-0 came in a game very much in doubt early in the fourth quarter.

A forced fumble by Atlee (1-3), recovered by Tyler Garr and returned 28 yards for a touchdown with 9:28 remaining cut a precarious Patriot lead to 12-6.

Enter Jordan Allen. The junior quarterback, who broke off a 56-yard run on the Patriots’ first play from scrimmage, found a hole up the middle, turned right, and raced 38 yards to the Atlee 35.

“I got all those yards and thought, it’s my time. Let’s go get it,” Allen said.

On the next play, Allen went left, gaining 18 yards. His next carry traveled 9 yards. On the fourth play of the drive, he patiently waited for two blocks to his left, then bolted for the pylon, breaking the plane of the goal line just ahead of an Atlee defender.

For good measure, Allen converted a 2-point conversion that made it 20-6 Patriots with 7:05 remaining.

In the blink of an eye he did it again.

James Valentine’s recovery of a Raider fumble on the first play of the ensuing possession set up Patrick Henry at the Atlee 9-yard line. Allen, who wears No. 9, looked left, cut up the middle, and scored his second 9-yard touchdown run in 15 seconds. He used the superior blocking of his offensive line to convert another 2-point try. strike to Nick Sikkar late in the first half to build a 12-0 halftime lead. Camden Byrd scored on a 5-yard run on the Patriots’ first drive to open the scoring.

The Patriots held Atlee to 158 total yards. Eric Rankin carried nine times for 42 yards for the Raiders.

Patrick Henry continues to be in a group of four schools – with Monacan, King George and Louisa – that are unbeaten atop Region 4B. Lurking behind them are one-loss teams Eastern View, Powhatan, and the Patriots’ next opponent: Hanover.

“We know we need a great week. We know that it’s the one,” Allen explained when asked about their second meeting with the Hawks, who took the Patriots to the limit before falling 22-14 on March 5.

Head Coach Ken Wakefield knows Friday’s contest could be an elimination game when it comes to the postseason.

“One thing we tell our kids, you’re going to hit adversity,” Wakefield said. “You just don’t know when it’s going to come, and it’s how you respond to it.”

Hanover hopes to bring plenty of adversity to Patrick Henry beginning at 6 p.m. Friday.

Rob Witham can be reached at sports@mechlocal.com.

Joel Klein for The Local

Patrick Henry quarterback Jordan Allen disposes of Atlee defender Luke Jasinski in the Patriots’ 28-6 win over the Raiders Friday.

Patrick Henry’s lead was secure.

Allen is quick to praise his young offensive line and to point out their journey this season.

“Two sophomores, three juniors. They’re growing,” Allen noted. “Three of them didn’t play much last year, so to see that drive in a big game – it’s win or go home at this point – that’s great for me.”

Allen had 14 carries for 152 yards with the two 9-yard scores and threw a 31-yard touchdown

No. 8 Patrick Henry 28, Atlee 6

Top performers: Patrick Henry — Jordan Allen 14 carries, 152 yards, 2 TDs rushing, 7 of 8, 93 yards, TD passing; Nick Sikkar 4 rec., 78 yards, TD receiving Atlee — Mike Joyce 8 carries, 31 yard rushing; 5 for 15, 33 yards; Tyler Garr fumble return TD

Samardge stays steady in Hanover victory

By Dave Lawrence Sports Editor

MECHANICSVILLE – Placekickers rarely attract the plaudits given to other skill positions in football, like quarterbacks, running backs, receivers and the like, but that doesn’t mean their jobs are any less important for the success of their teams. Friday night, Hanover placekicker Ethan Samardge more than earned his stripes.

With less than a minute before the first half expired, the game scoreless and the Hawks with the ball on fourth down at the Mechanicsville 6, Hanover called a timeout to prepare for a field goal attempt. The Mustangs then followed with three timeouts of their own to see if they could rattle the Hawk kicker.

The ploy didn’t work. With a wisp of a second remaining, Samardge launched a 24-yard lob toward the goal posts. It didn’t look like it would make it. The ball started to fade short and drifted right – but it just found its way through the uprights. Those three points proved the winning margin in Hanover’s 17-14 win.

“Three points on the board, that’s what won the game, but it was the entire team, the entire unit,” Samardge said. “I couldn’t have done it without them. It was 100% team effort.”

But there comes a time where the burden is all on Samardge – and his ability to tune all the distractions out.

“It’s just me and the ball,” he said. “They tried to throw me off mentally with those three timeouts, I think it was. It don’t work. I stay locked in almost like we do in practice. You’ve got to stay calm. You’ve got to block out all the noises and everybody yelling at you.”

No matter how locked in he may be, he can still feel stress – as he did as the ball drifted toward the upright.

“You better bet I was praying. I was, like, ‘Please go in!,’ ” Samardge said. “My left foot slipped a little bit because the ground was a little muddy, but that’s no excuse. I still was praying for it to go in. It was a close one.”

The muddy ground contributed to a number of slips throughout the game as both offenses struggled at times. The heavy rains of the latter part of the week did not help the field’s condition. It and the cold contributed to a number of turnovers by both offenses.

The Mustangs went ahead in the third quarter on an 8-yard run by quarterback Logan Harris, but the lead did not last long. The Hawks responded with a pair of touchdowns in the fourth quarter, both on runs by Hanover quarterback Levi Huesman of 8 and 12 yards, respectively.

Samardge supplied both extra points.

Huesman led the Hawk offense, completing 15-of-29 passes for 125 yards and carrying the ball 23 times for 68 yards and his two touchdowns.

Mechanicsville got the final score of the game in the final minute on a 1-yard run by Avant Johnson. The Mustang placekicker, Thomas Richman, was steady as well, providing both Mechanicsville extra points.

The victory is further evidence that Hanover head coach Sam Rogers’ efforts to instill a winning mentality at Hanover is paying off.

“We’ve been at it since February of last year,” Samardge said. “The coaching staff, all the kids, everything has changed. The culture is completely different at Hanover. It’s on its way back to where it once was. We’re on a roll. I could not be more proud of the coaches and the entire team.”

Dave Lawrence can be reached at dlawrence@mechlocal.com.

Dave Lawrence/The Local

Above, Mechanicsville running back Cole Varner (24) tries to get away from Hanover’s Jackson Currie in the Hawks’ 17-14 victory over the host Mustangs Friday. Left, Hanover’s William Flora (1) hauls in an interception late in the fi rst half. The turnover set up the fi rst score of the game, a 24-yard fi eld goal by Hanover’s Ethan Samardge.

Hanover 0 3 0 14 — 17 Mechanicsville 0 0 7 7 — 14

HAN — Samardge FG 34 MEC — Harris 8 run (Richman kick) HAN — Huesman 8 run (Samardge kick) HAN — Huesman 12 run (Samardge kick) MEC — Johnson 1 run (Richman kick)

Raider girls win close one at Patrick Henry

Dave Lawrence/The Local

Atlee’s girls volleyball team celebrates the fi nal point in their 3-1 victory over host Patrick Henry Wednesday night.

By Dave Lawrence Sports Editor

ASHLAND – Looking at the final match score of 3-1, one could be excused for thinking that Atlee girls volleyball team dominated the floor at Patrick Henry Wednesday night.

But anyone coming to that conclusion would be wrong. Three of the four games went into extra time, and the other just missed the opportunity.

Atlee on the first match 31-29, and the second one 28-26. The Patriots took the third game 26-24 before the Raiders claimed the match with a 25-22 win in the final game.

“Patrick Henry’s a good team. We knew they’re a good team,” said Atlee head coach Curtis Carpenter. “Especially coming here. They bring energy from someplace, from way down in the depths of something. I don’t know where, but they bring it.”

The energy was most evident in the fourth game when the Patriots hoped to send the match to five. Atlee jumped to a solid lead early, but Patrick

see CLOSE, pg. 23

Joel Klein for The Local

Mechanicsville’s Will Oliver (right) fi res a shot past Hanover’s Josh Brooks in the Hawks’ sweep of the Mustangs Wednesday.

Youth step up in R-MC win over visiting Guilford

By Rob Witham For the Mechanicsville Local

ASHLAND – Coming off a disappointing 24-8 defeat at the hands of No. 11 Christopher Newport Wednesday, Randolph-Macon men’s lacrosse entered Senior Day on Saturday looking to apply the lessons learned from that loss.

The Yellow Jackets, whose starting lineup includes freshmen both in goal and on attack, are still developing their chemistry in a season where little is normal thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. Though they turned in an uneven performance in a 16-10 Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) victory over Guilford at Day Field, Randolph-Macon came closer together.

“We only have five seniors. We have some pretty talented juniors and sophomores, but those young guys are very capable,” Yellow Jacket head coach J.B. Sheridan said. “They need experience, not only for themselves personally but they need experience for us as a group, chemistry-wise.”

Goalkeeper Oz Potter, from nearby Midlothian High School, has been stellar between the pipes so far, registering eight saves in Saturday’s win, anchoring a defense that kept the Quakers off the scoreboard for nearly 21 minutes in a first half stretch that saw Randolph-Macon (3-2, 2-0 ODAC) go on an eight-goal run that turned a 2-2 tie into a 10-2 advantage.

Junior Jack Averna scored all four of his team-leading four goals in a nearly 13-minute timeframe, half in the aforementioned run. Guilford ended it on a goal from DiMaggio Wilson with 2:37 left in the second period for a 10-3 halftime margin.

The learning for the Yellow Jackets continued in an uneven third period, which saw the Quakers score three of the first four goals to trim their deficit to 11-6. Finally, on a man-advantage, Ryan Pritchard, another freshman, and one of three Yellow Jackets to score three goals, fired a shot past Guilford goalkeeper Jack Rogers with 2:58 left in the quarter.

Nick Homkomp answered just 19 seconds later, but junior Brandon Smith scored one of his three goals less than a minute later, making it 13-7 Yellow Jackets. The teams traded goals to start the final period, then, with 8:22 left, Pritchard took a pass from Cameron Foti and scored, the second of three straight Randolph-Macon goals to put the game out of reach.

The final goal, fittingly, came from senior attacker Michael Peters, who entered the game when freshman Jack Smith, who scored three goals, was shaken up. For Peters, it was his third collegiate goal, sending his Yellow Jacket team-

see YOUTH, pg. 23