HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL - WEEK 7 ST. ALBANS STORMS PAST NITRO

Publication: THE CHARLESTON GAZETTE
Published: Saturday, October 11, 2008
Page: 1B
Byline: D.J. WILLIAMS FOR THE SATURDAY GAZETTE-MAIL

ST. ALBANS 23
NITRO 6

It took St. Albans a half to get going, but once it did, it was full steam ahead.

Freshman quarterback Leon Mitchell accounted for 108 yards and threw for a touchdown as St. Albans defeated Nitro 23-6 in the Battle of the Bridge at Crawford Field Friday night.

"I feel very good after this win," Mitchell said. "We have bragging rights."

When asked about his continued improvement, Mitchell replied, "I have been working hard in practice. I get yelled at a lot, but I continue to work hard."

"Leon is getting a good feel for the position," said St. Albans coach Derek Christian. "As a ninth grader, he has a knack for football and he has football savvy. He just makes things happen."

Marcus Fox also contributed with 56 rushing yards and a 10-yard touchdown pass to Markus Guy for SA (3-3).

"We have a young team, but we are coming together towards the end of the year," Fox said. "It's a big win for us. We have the bragging rights for the remainder of the year until next year."

The game started badly for SA as it was unable to convert a fourth-and-1 on Nitro's 2-yard line when Guy was stuffed at the line of scrimmage in the first quarter.

Then, in the second quarter, Fox broke free for a 26-yard touchdown run, but it was called back by a holding penalty. SA would commit three straight penalties and ended up with a first-and-53 from Nitro's 31. The drive ended with an interception by Nitro (1-5). Both teams committed two turnovers on the night.

"We almost picked it up there," Christian said with a laugh. "We got back to the regular chain mark, but that was the longest first and a bus ride."

But SA would manage to score on a 10-yard pass from Fox to Guy right before halftime.

"He has always wanted to throw and be a quarterback," Christian said of Fox. "So we put that play in the playbook for him."

Despite an average position of Nitro's 46-yard line, SA would only manage seven points by halftime for a 7-0 lead. Nitro had an average starting position of its own 16. In the first half, Nitro didn't go past its own 32-yard line.

"Field position has been a problem for us all year," said Nitro coach John Sowards. "We have had to punt with our running back because that is all we have."

For the half, SA accumulated 157 yards of offense, while Nitro only managed 51 yards. For the game, SA finished with 218 yards and Nitro 103.

"Our defense has been working hard and getting a lot better," Christian said. "They are starting to understand the scheme and where they need to be on the field. This is what you want this time of year. You want to get better."

The second half ran much more smoothly for SA as it scored on the first drive when Mitchell connected with Derreck Bodie on a 3-yard touchdown pass as he was being dragged down by a Nitro defender.

SA added to its lead on a safety by Justin Hundley and 4-yard run by Guy after Duran Workman returned an interception 61 yards to set up the score. At that point, SA led 23-0.

The game turned ugly as a fight between the teams broke out on Nitro sideline. Two players from each team were ejected. Nitro would score late in the game on a 1-yard run by Tyler Kennedy.

Nitro was led by Mark Chandler, who had 25 yards passing and two interceptions.

"We made some bad decisions with the ball today," Sowards said. "We just threw the ball up for grabs and they would get to it before we would."