From early on, it was apparent that South was going to win this game. The offense took control early, moving the ball down the field with Maveric Thiery and punching in a score with a Mason David run.
It was also obvious from very early in the game that Castle quarterback Nathan Harpenau did not belong on the field, throwing a pass right into the hands of South linebacker Elijah Griffin. The interception left everyone scratching their heads, but provided a massive morale boost to an already jittery Panther sideline. Shortly after, David threw a touchdown to Sean Azcui to put South up 13-0 in the first quarter.
This would be the theme for the rest of the game, as the Panther defense continued to manhandle Castle’s offensive line and make scoring touchdowns a near impossible task for the Knights. Senior Cody Root, along with juniors Darnell Boyce and Izayah Rodriguez, showed complete dominance over an undersized Castle offensive line, pressuring the quarterbacks from start to finish. The great defensive line play set up the secondary to make easier plays, especially cornerback John Law, who was arguably the player of the game.
“Our scout offense did a really good job all week to prepare us for what Castle was going to bring to the table,” junior safety Maddix Blackwell said.
The rest of South’s scoring would happen in the second quarter, highlighted by a 73 yard Thiery run up the Castle sideline. Thiery, however, rested most of the game to avoid overworking a hamstring injury he had sustained a couple of weeks prior. David would go on to throw a touchdown to senior Jordan Meeks and punch in another short run on the ground, finishing his varsity debut with four total touchdowns.
“There was no point in feeding Maveric for the whole game,” offensive coach Anthony Lindsey said when asked about Thiery’s limited role. “He proved plenty in the first half. When we’re up 30+ points there’s really no point in risking an injury.”
South would go scoreless in a rather uneventful second half, struggling in the third quarter and playing backups in the fourth. Castle went on to score a meaningless touchdown in garbage time and finished out the game with 10 points.
Final Score: BHSS- 34 CHS-10
