FOOTBALL -- N. Lenoir @ E. Wayne

By Ben Coley
Published in Sports on August 21, 2016 1:48 AM

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bcoley@newsargus.com

Eastern Wayne head coach Leander Oates slammed his paper and looked down in frustration.

While nursing a 7-6 lead early in the fourth quarter, the Warriors allowed North Lenoir running back Stephon Swinson to break into the secondary and cross midfield. But when Oates lifted his eyes, the referee stood in front of a pile and pointed in his team's direction. EW had caught up with Swinson, caused a fumble and regained the football.

The Warriors tactically drove downfield and running back Mathew Askew-Betts scored a rushing touchdown to seal a 14-6, season-opening victory over the Hawks on Friday evening.

"Our guys were able to not give up," said Oates, who triumphed in his head coaching debut. "You saw the long, big run at the very end. Easy for North Lenoir to go up on us maybe 14-7, and we would've been in a different situation. It's a testament for our guys to say we didn't give up on the play.

"One play can change a game. We all know that."

In the early stages of the game, both teams showed signs of rust and nerves. On the second play from scrimmage, Eastern Wayne defensive back Juwan Holmes picked off a North Lenior pass.

One play later, Warriors' quarterback Ezekiel Best threw an interception.

Later in the first quarter, Best lost a fumble and NL quarterback Michael Pollard threw another interception, putting the turnover total at four in the opening minutes.

"Pretty much we're going to kind of expect that," Oates said. "Even though we played the scrimmage, it was the first game and having those first-game jitters. I think it was just a nerve thing. Once that ball got kicked, it was like 'Whoa, it's Friday night football.'

In the second quarter, Best began to settle in the pocket. While inside the Hawks' 30-yard line, the senior converted a fourth-and-long by finding wide receiver Alex Sharpless for 19 yards.

A few plays later, Best and the offense were faced with fourth-and-goal. Seemingly unfazed, the Warriors' signal-caller zipped a 12-yard pass to wide receiver Anthony McNair for the first score of the game.

The Hawks wouldn't go quietly.

Just before halftime, Swinson broke off a 55-yard run to set his team up inside EW's 10-yard line. He later punched it in from a couple yards out to bring the game to 7-6.

A relatively quiet third quarter led into Swinson's mishap, which happened to be the Hawks' fourth turnover.

For the entire game, North Lenoir turned it over five times -- three interceptions and two lost fumbles. The Warriors committed three turnovers, but the Hawks never took advantage.

"Wide-open field, and we drop the ball on the ground," said North Lenoir head coach Kim Brown. "We gave them every opportunity to win, and they took advantage of it. But we're going to be all right. We didn't lose the year, we lost the game."

Despite losing the costly fumble, Swinson carried the ball 16 times and gained just over 100 yards. The Warriors were paced by Askew, who rushed 25 times for nearly 120 yards.

Oates knows that a play here, or a play there, could have changed the landscape of the game. But in front of his family and friends, the first-year head coach tallied his first victory.

And at the end of the day, the final scoreboard is what matters most.

"The guys pretty much bought in from the day I had my first practice," Oates said. "It's all about them. I'm glad I got the win, but it's all about them. We have some patches to fill, but a win is a win."