SABINE FINDS GOING TOUGH IN 8-3A | Atlanta leaves Liberty City with shutout win
LIBERTY CITY – It’s tough sledding right now for the Sabine Cardinals, who find themselves trying to climb out of a winless hole against teams that all seem to be district title contenders.
Well, they don’t seem to be: they are.
Sabine was back home at James Bamberg Stadium Friday night against Atlanta’s Rabbits, and the upset-minded Cardinals were overwhelmed, unable to pull the upset, as the Rabbits left with a 35-0 win.
Sabine (0-7) visits White Oak (4-2), another ETBlitz-area program, next Friday. Both teams will be looking for their first win in District 8-3A, Division II.
Friday night, the Rabbits won the toss and that was only the beginning of their winning.
They kicked off to the Cardinals and Terry Vanden returned the kick 45 yards, setting up the Cards at the Rabbits’ 39-yard-line.
After an incomplete pass, Damin Richardson took the handoff, but he lost it, and Atlanta’s Deondrae Simmons picked it up. Quarterback Brayden Thompson found CJ Whaley for 24 yards on first down. Jayden Riley took the handoff on the next play and went 25 yards for the touchdown. Whaley added the extra point and Atlanta had an early 7-0 lead.
The score continued to multiply for the Rabbits after the defense stopped the Cards on a four-and-out. Thompson hooked up with Whaley on an 18-yard pass that was followed by a 6-yard run by Riley. The drive ended with Whaley hopping in from the 3. He added the extra point for a 14-0 lead.
Vanden took the next kickoff back 47 yards, again setting up the Cards with great field position. But they turned the ball over on downs following a fourth-down sack. The defense then held and forced the Rabbits to punt. The quarter wound down and quarterback Griffin DeHoyos found Lincoln Royce for a nice 19-yard gain, but the quarter ended with the Cards facing third down.
The second quarter saw the Cardinals’ offensive woes continue as they were forced to punt. Immediately after gaining possession, Riley took the handoff and broke free for a 76-yard touchdown. After the extra point, Atlanta had a 21-0 lead.
After a 31-yard return by Vanden, Sabine’s offense was having a rough time running the ball as they were met multiple times by a colony of Rabbits. DeHoyos did find Vanden for an 11-yard gain, followed by a 5-yard gain by Richardson. That was all the Rabbits would allow as they forced another turnover on downs.
Thompson connected with Liam McKinney for 15 yards, followed by a 35-yard connection with Whaley. He then scrambled for 16 yards and Marshawn Woodberry went the final six for another score and a 28-0 halftime lead for the Rabbits.
The second half began with both teams’ defenses forcing punts. Then the Rabbits went on another scoring drive. Woodberry broke for a 41-yard run, then hauled in a 15-yard pass from Thompson. The drive was capped off with a 19-yard reception by Whaley, who kicked his own extra point for what would be the game’s final score, 35-0.
The fourth quarter had the Rabbits in possession, but a nice hit by the Cards’ defense forced Woodberry to fumble and Sabine’s Keifer Serrano pounced on the ball. Princeton Jones gained 18 yards on three carries, but alas the Cardinals again turned the ball over on downs. After a 21-yard run by Omariea Kinney for the Rabbits, they were able to run the clock out.
DeHoyos had 42 yards through the air, Royce had 36 yards receiving and Jones led the team with 22 rushing yards.
The Rabbits were led by Whaley, who had 103 yards receiving and two scores, and hit five extra points. Thompson had 138 yards through the air. On the ground, the Rabbits were led by Riley, who had 105 yards and two touchdowns. Woodberry had 52 yards and a score.