Eastern Wayne's title run comes up short

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on December 6, 2014 11:52 PM

• Print
• Email

rcoggins@newsargus.com

HAVELOCK -- Eastern Wayne just couldn't get the crucial defensive stops it needed against a Shrine Bowl quarterback and future Division I running back Friday evening.

The Warriors' offense had no answer, either.

Havelock senior Travis Sabdo directed three first-half scoring drives and Tony Sharpe rushed for three touchdowns during the Rams' 35-12 triumph over the Warriors in the N.C. High School Athletic Association Class 3-A eastern regional championship game.

The Rams (14-1 overall) claimed their fourth straight eastern title and oppose Shelby Crest (15-0) in the state finals next Saturday at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh.

"The score is not indicative of the game, I don't think tonight," EW head coach Bubba Williams said. "Our kids played hard, fought hard and did an excellent job. Our kids gave maximum effort.

"We probably didn't put them in the right places at times."

Each team's initial possession ended in a punt.

Then Sabdo got warmed up.

Protected by a strong and physical offensive line, Sabdo moved the Rams downfield in just five plays for their first touchdown of the night. The 6-foot-1, 165-pound completed three passes -- the final dropping into the hands of Jordan Begley for a 3-yard scoring strike.

Sabdo concluded the night an efficient 14 of 16 for 220 yards.

"We got off to a slow start on the run and we wanted to attack them deep in the air," Sabdo said. "We did that tonight against their man coverage defense. (Our receivers) do a great job in practice learning different schemes and different route concepts.

"They know what I'm thinking on the field."

Eastern Wayne (11-3) responded with an 8-minute, 63-yard drive. KK Best's 13-yard touchdown run capped the 13-play possession and closed the gap to 7-6.

Sharpe polished off the Rams' next two offensive drives with TD runs of 1 and 28 yards, which pushed the score to 21-6 at halftime.

The Warriors took the second-half kickoff and needed just four plays to find the end zone. Best hooked up with Deshaun Boudy for a 36-yard completion that set up his second TD -- a 15-yard scamper aided by DayDay Pridgen's block on the edge.

Havelock answered with a five-play scoring drive. Sabdo completed a 9-yard touchdown pass to Kyran Bowman, one of three receivers who hauled in a reception on the 51-yard march.

"It kind of killed a little bit of momentum," Sabdo said of matching EW's touchdown. "They wanted to attack us and punch us in the mouth to start the second half, and we knew that coming out of the break. We had to answer.

"I told my offensive line 'it's time to go, put it on their shoulders' and they did a great job tonight."

Eastern Wayne punted on two of its final three possessions and turned the ball over once on downs. A 12-yard quarterback sack, a false start on a short fourth-down play and a back-breaking 18-yard holding penalty proved difficult to overcome.

"They've got players, mixed up the coverage well (and) we couldn't get in the right places," Williams said. "We got in second-and-long and third-and-long situations we couldn't afford to be in against a good defense."

The Rams held the Warriors to a playoff-low 69 yards rushing on 31 attempts. Larry Newsome III and Best combined for a hard-earned 64 yards on 24 totes.