FOOTBALL: Princeton gets boost from kicking game

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on October 21, 2016 9:57 AM

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rcoggins@newsargus.com

CALYPSO -- Garrett Fields did his job.

His teammates did the rest.

Princeton recovered two onside kicks within less than two minutes of each other, converted both into touchdowns and cruised to a 41-19 victory over Carolina 1-A Conference foe North Duplin at H.E. Grubbs Field on Thursday evening.

The Bulldogs (4-4 overall) improved to 3-0 in league play for the first time since 1981 when Harvey Brooks was head coach.

"The ball was bouncing our way tonight," PHS head coach Travis Gaster said.

Indeed.

Senior defensive lineman Darius Avery pounced on a fumble that sparked a 24-0 run. Earl Gibson Jr. capped the possession with a 39-yard touchdown run -- the second of his four touchdowns on the night.

Fields lined up for the onside kick and booted a bouncer that deflected off one North Duplin player. Princeton's Lamar Wilkins smothered the ball as he slid out of bounds. Four plays later, Gibson Jr. scored from 7 yards out.

But Princeton wasn't done.

Avery recovered an onside kick that, once again, deflected off the Rebels. And Gibson, as he did before, finished off the possession -- this time from 1 yard out.

Dogs 32, Rebels 7.

"Garrett did a great job kicking and our kids did a great job of finding the ball," Gaster said. "That wore them down. It's exhausting mentally when you know you're supposed to get the ball and you don't."

The three turnovers allowed Princeton to keep North Duplin's ball-control offense off the field for nearly nine minutes. After Gibson Jr.'s fourth TD of the night, the Rebels moved into the red zone. On fourth-and-9 from the 9, Fields broke up a pass in the end zone.

"No matter how hard you work at it, it's hard to simulate those kicks and just to handle them, too," Rebels head coach Hugh Martin said. "It puts a lot of pressure on whoever has to handle it. It certainly was a huge factor in the game.

"If we can get some defensive stops (after the turnovers), then you're OK. We just couldn't seem to do that."

Gibson Jr. polished off Princeton's opening drive with a 2-yard burst. ND quarterback Will Archer answered with a 20-yard scoring gallop and Colby Craig's PAT closed the gap to 8-7 before the turnover fest started.

Ranked among the area's top five rushers, Gibson Jr. rambled for 160 yards on 30 totes. Backfield mate Matt Stallworth contributed 101 yards and a fourth-quarter TD on 16 carries.

Princeton owned a 291-219 edge in total offense.

Archer led ND with 108 yards.

"North Duplin was a very physical team and to come out and match their physicalness, and to come out on top at the end, that's very pleasing to me," Gaster said. "That's where we have to live. We're not very flashy. We've got to be able to move people and we've got to be able to break tackles.

"On the other side of the ball, we've got to be able to fit correctly and make tackles."

Princeton did.