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BATTLEFIELD DISTRICT

November 7, 2009 12:36 am

BY TAFT COGHILL JR.

As Caroline first-year football coach Ben Boyd prepared to give his team a post-game speech, two Cavaliers showered the players with a Gatorade bath.

The talk was interrupted and the Cavaliers carried their celebration into the locker room following a 26-13 Battlefield District road win over Spotsylvania.

It was the first win of a difficult season for Boyd and the Cavaliers (1-8, 1-5 Battlefield). Spotsylvania (0-9, 0-6) remained winless.

"I'm not going to lie to you. It felt pretty good to that off our backs right there," Boyd said. "Really we've played better every week. We've just played some tough teams and we could not get a play here or there when we needed it. Tonight we got one when we needed it."

That's an understatement.

The Cavaliers had scored just 20 points all season entering last night's contest and they hadn't managed an offensive touchdown in district play.

That all changed in the first two quarters when Caroline jumped out to a 20-0 lead.

Senior defensive back Quinton Broaddus scooped up a Spotsylvania fumble and raced 51 yards for a touchdown and a 7-0 advantage.

Sophomore running back Duane Fields (20 rushes, 100 yards and a touchdown) added a 1-yard scoring run and Broaddus hauled in an 8-yard touchdown catch from quarterback Zack Crabtree to put the Cavaliers in the driver's seat.

"It's been hard. It was really, really frustrating," Broaddus said of Caroline's down season. "I would come to the games and nothing would happen for me. I was really getting down on myself, but I never quit. I'm not a quitter."

The Knights aren't quitters either.

That's why they rallied to cut their deficit to 20-13 after two big passes from junior quarterback Cody Jenkins to senior wide receiver Kyle Schubert.

The first was a 27-yard play that set up Jenkins' 2-yard touchdown run. On the second big pass, Schubert outfought double-coverage and pulled down a 43-yard touchdown catch with 4:15 left in the second quarter.

"I told [my players] to hold their heads high," Spotsylvania first-year head coach Ben Lawrynas said. "They've got respect and they haven't quit yet this year. Everything that's been thrown at them, they haven't stopped. They've played football wire-to-wire every week. I can't ask for much more than that."

The Knights had a golden opportunity to earn their first win. Caroline amassed 13 penalties for 126 yards. A Caroline 15-yard personal foul penalty set Spotsylvania up with first and goal from the 5-yard line in the fourth quarter.

But Spotsylvania running back Chris Crouch was called for a personal foul and ejected from the game to push Spotsylvania back to the 20. A holding penalty put them on the 33-yard line and three incomplete passes later Caroline had the ball again.

The Cavaliers put the game away on junior Colby Mial's 27-yard touchdown run up the middle with 1:44 left.

"We became a team tonight," Fields said. "We played our hearts out. It didn't matter what our record was."

Caroline hosts King George next Friday. Spotsylvania visits Eastern View.

Caroline	14	6	0	6	--	26
Spotsylvania	0	13	0	0	--	13

First Quarter

Ca--Q. Broaddus 51-yard fumble recovery (D. Faloney kick).

Ca--D. Fields 1-yard run (D. Faloney kick).

Second Quarter

Ca--Q. Broaddus 8-yard pass from Z. Crabtree (kick failed).

Sp--C. Jenkins 2-yard run (K. Schubert kick).

Sp--K. Schubert 43-yard pass from C. Jenkins (kick failed).

Fourth Quarter

Ca--C. Mial 27-yard run (kick failed).

TEAMSTATISTICS

INDIVIDUALSTATISTICS

Passing: Caroline--Zack Crabtree 8-14-0 71, TD. Spotsylvania--Cody Jenkins 7-17-0 107, TD.

Receiving: Caroline--Antoine Smithers 2-34; Quinton Broaddus 5-32, TD; Brandon Brooks 1-5. Spotsylvania--Kyle Schubert 4-95, TD; Nate Ennis 2-9; Dra Nelson 1-3.

Taft Coghill Jr.: 540/374-5526
Email: tcoghill@freelancestar.com