Tip drill seals Goldsboro's victory over rival Eastern Wayne

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on August 31, 2015 1:49 PM

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rcoggins@newsargus.com

Goldsboro High's Maurice Stokes heard the ball bounce off the Eastern Wayne receiver's helmet. He tipped it into the hands of teammate Ronnie Tookes.

A mere 72 seconds later, the Cougars did the unthinkable -- stun county rival Eastern Wayne, 26-21, on a pleasant Friday evening in New Hope.

"First, I dropped back in the safety position, saw the ball coming and I had to react," said Stokes, who worked out at safety all week during practice.

"I had the tip on it and (Tookes) caught the tip."

It was one of four takeaways recorded by a Cougar defense that seemed hungry and determined to prevent the Warriors' explosive offense from putting points on the board.

Eastern Wayne (1-1 overall) turned the ball over on its final two possessions of the game and saw its 11-game win streak against regular-season opposition come to an end.

Goldsboro won for the 30th time in the 45-year-old series.

"We made too many mistakes, had too many turnovers, Goldsboro was the better team tonight," said Eastern Wayne head coach Phil Gray, whose team compiled just 189 yards of total offense.

"We didn't look like the same team we were last week. We just didn't play Eastern Wayne football."

The Cougars (1-1) cashed in on three of their first six offensive possessions into touchdowns. Senior quarterback Na'Shir Bowden completed a fourth-down scoring strike to Eric Bufkin that covered 52 yards barely two minutes into the opening quarter.

Bufkin, though, had to fight for the ball with two Warrior defenders.

"I just had to save my quarterback," Bufkin said. "I really didn't think I was going to catch it. When I felt it was in my hands, I brought it in. It built our momentum and gave us some confidence.

"As a team, (we) played better than last Friday."

EW knotted the game at 7-7 on Robert Gonzalez's 31-yard touchdown pass to Austin Hite as the quarter ended. Goldsboro answered with two TDs -- Bowden's 6-yard pass to Tookes and Aaron Smith's 5-yard scamper up the middle.

It was Smith's second TD of the season.

After a scoreless third quarter, the teams staged a nail-biting fourth. The Cougars and Warriors combined for three touchdowns on just 11 plays within a 3 1/2-minute span.

The last score, a 43-yard ramble by Gonzalez, pulled the Eastern Wayne to within 26-21 with 8-plus minutes left on the clock. But Goldsboro's defense forced a turnover on downs, recovered a fumble and capped the night with the Stokes to Tookes pick.

"Thank God for the tip drill!" Goldsboro head coach Bennett Johnson shouted as the team gathered behind him for a celebration photo.

"It took so much grit, so much determination ... at any point in the second half we could have folded. It was nothing but adversity in the second half and all we did was fight, fight.

"I was so proud of them."